As usual, shared in the hope that this might be helpful.

Loving God, who gathers us into your love as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, we bring our sorrow and outrage, our horror and shock, to you.

We pray for the people of Christchurch, all the people of New Zealand, and all Muslims around the world. We remember the many people killed as they were at prayer. We know that you hold them in your loving arms; may their memories be a blessing to those who loved them. We pray for the healing of all those who were injured, those who witnessed the massacre, and those who are grieving. Please give them the strength and courage they need to face the road ahead.

We pray for Jacinda Adern, for all the members of New Zealand’s emergencies services, and for everyone involved in the recovery after this tragedy. Give them the wisdom they need. If there is any good to come from this horror, let it be stronger gun control laws; that as Australia did after Port Arthur, New Zealand says “never again”.

Loving God, those of us who are Anglo-Celtic Australians acknowledge that the terrorist was one of us, and said that he was acting in our name. Give us the wisdom of serpents, that we may never be led astray by the preachers of hate. Let us never be fooled by those who proclaim Islamophobia, who talk of anti-white racism, who share the slogan, ‘it’s all right to be white’. Help us to recognise racism and white supremacy in all its forms and to repudiate it utterly.

Loving God, we recognise that you are the God of Hagar and Ishmael as well as of Sarah and Isaac; that like Christians and Jews Muslims have Abraham for their ancestor, and so we are all members of the one family. Remind us that the human family is even greater; that every single one of us is made in your image and is your beloved child. Help us to live as we pray; to love one another as you love us; to never allow hate to divide us.

We make these prayers in the name of your Son, who told us that we would see him in the face of ‘the least of these’. May we never look at the face of another human being without seeing his face.

Amen.