Being never lost and being always found: Voter's prayer

There’s too much at stake in this coming political exercise to leave things to chance. With just one year to go, alongside keeping ourselves informed and involved, regular prayer should be in our armamentarium for the 2010 elections.

I’m re-posting a May 2007 entry containing

The Voter’s Prayer

LORD, make me an instrument of your presence in the polls.

Where there is coercion and violence,
Let me sow seeds of love;

Where there is bribery and vote buying,
Let me sow seeds of integrity;

Where there is discord,
Let me sow seeds of unity;

Where there is electoral fraud,
Let me sow seeds of honesty;

Where there is duplicity and propaganda,
Let me sow seeds of truth;

Where there is indifference,
Let me sow seeds of care and concern;

And, where there is despair in the electoral process,
Let me sow seeds of hope.

Oh Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
Think of my selfish motives when I vote.

Instill in me a deep sense of communal solidarity in my critical choice of candidates who would rise above the traditional politics of PAY-OFF, PERSONALITY and PATRONAGE.

Enlighten me to elect worthy men and women who embody the true spirit of public service in their moral consciousness.

For it is voting responsibly that we receive
the fruits of true democracy.

And it is in dying as a seed to our selfishness
that we are born to eternal life.

Amen.

(Adapted from The Prayer of Saint Francis. Lifted from http://kpkcommongood.blogspot.com)