Light a candle for peace

Pope Leo has encouraged us to join in prayer with others around the world to pray for peace this weekend. As a Marist community we are incorporating this request during our Mass in the morning and I will be participating in a prayer gathering in Johnsonville tomorrow evening. I have included a prayer by Pope Leo below that you can pray now as you read this or come back to throughout the week. You may wish to light a candle in solidarity with all those who experience violence of any kind in their lives.

A prayer composed by Pope Leo from his Urbi et Orbi message for Easter 2026.

[God] of Life, you shaped every human being in your image and likeness. We believe you created us for communion, not for war, for [family], not for destruction.

You who greeted your disciples saying, “Peace be with you,” grant us the gift of your peace and the strength to make it a reality in history. Today we lift up our prayer for peace in the world, asking that nations renounce weapons and choose the path of dialogue and diplomacy.

Disarm our hearts of hatred, resentment, and indifference, so we may become instruments of reconciliation. Help us understand that true security does not come from control fueled by fear, but from trust, justice, and solidarity among peoples.

[God], enlighten the leaders of the nations, so they may have the courage to abandon projects of death, halt the arms race, and place the lives of the most vulnerable at the centre. May the nuclear threat never again dictate the future of humanity.

Holy Spirit, make us faithful and creative builders of daily peace: in our hearts, our families, our communities, and our cities. May every kind word, every gesture of reconciliation, and every choice for dialogue be seeds of a new world. Amen.

You make like to listen to 'Make me a channel of your peace,' from the album, 'A Noble Work.'

Blessings on your week.