One: God of endless mercy.

People: Hear our prayer.

One: O that you would break through the heavens and come down.

People: O that you would speak the word that ends violence and hatred. With your hand take away the devastation placed upon our transgender community.

One: When you did awesome deeds that we did not expect, you came down. The mountains quaked with your presence.

People: Now we quake with a violence that ravages bodies, families, churches, communities, and our world.

One: Have you hidden your face from us, God?

People: Thousands have died. Thousands will die.  Hundreds are orphaned.  So many are at risk.

One: After all this, will you restrain yourself, O God? Will you keep silent?

People: O God, your trans children are living with violence, and the violence is not silent.

One: The sound of violence and hate can be heard in the cries of the children, mothers, fathers, partners, friends, and all those who have lost loved ones to this savageness.

People: O God, your trans children are living with violence and hatred, and this violence and hatred is not silent.

One: The sounds of violence and hatred can be heard in every land and every language on earth.

People: We watch this violence grow every year, reaching all parts of the globe.  We feel helpless to stop it.

One: At times we push away the violence and hatred done to the trans community.  We deny its effect on us.  We cover our heads, our eyes, our ears, and our hearts. But still it grows.

People: After all this, will we restrain ourselves?  Will we remain silent?

One: O God, that you would break through the heavens and come down.

People: Break through our silence, God.  Help us lend our voices to our sisters, brothers, fathers, mothers, children, friends, and all those living with the challenges of transition.

One: We light candles.  Let them lift our hopes.

People: Let them also light our hands as we work, educate, act, and care to stop violence and hatred towards the trans community.

One: On this day, God, end our silence.  On this day, end our fear and begin anew our fight for life that is full and productive.

People: Replace the sound of this evil with the sound of our voices speaking out, lifting up, teaching, demanding change.

One: God, give us the strength and conviction to be the hope we seek in the world.

People: God, break through into the world through us.  Help us end the silence; help us be the word that is the end of violence and hatred towards our sisters and brothers in the transgender community.  Amen

This community prayer is provided by Rev. Paul Turner of Gentle Spirit Christian Church of Atlanta for use in the Transgender Day of Remembrance, 2007.  It is reproduced here with his permission.  Please feel free to use it in your own vigil or service.