Prayers and Blessings for Healthcare Workers

MANDY MIZELLE is a chaplain, minister, writer, retreat leader, perpetual procrastinator, and imperfection advocate who lives in Durham, North Carolina. A lifelong lover of words—especially poetry—her favorite sacred texts are the everyday stories of our lives.MARTHA SPONG is executive director of RevGalBlogPals, an international online community with more than 4,000 members. She contributes to The Christian Century and The Huffington Post. An ordained United Church of Christ minister married to a Presbyterian minister, Spong and her family live in central Pennsylvania.GINNY WILDER is a poet, musician, and Episcopal priest currently serving as the Rector of St. Anne's Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Passionate about taking the good news of Jesus Christ out into the city and beyond, she hosts a weekly Bible study in a bar, plays at local venues, and openly asks people about their prayer life. She has seven CDs and has performed in various venues, festivals, and churches on East Coast.GAYLE FISHER-STEWART, editor of Preaching Black Lives (Matter) serves currently as the interim rector at the historically Black, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Washington, DC. Prior to becoming ordained, she served with the Metropolitan Police Department in Washington DC, and later taught at the university level while consulting with local and federal government agencies. She lives in Maryland.DAVID FINNEGAN-HOSEY is the College Chaplain and Director of Campus Ministries at Barton College in Wilson, North Carolina. He is the author of Christ on the Psych Ward. In 2011, David was diagnosed with bipolar disorder after a series of psychiatric hospitalizations. He now speaks and writes about the intersections among mental illness, mental health, and faith. David lives in Wilson with his wife, Leigh, and their dog, Penny Lane.JENNIFER GRANT is the author of several books including the picture book Maybe God Is Like That Too. which won a gold medal from the Moonbeam Spirit Awards for excellence in children's literature and was named a book of the year finalist in the Foreword Indies awards. Her second picture book, Maybe I Can Love My Neighbor Too, was named a Junior Library Guild official gold standard selection. She lives in Chicago, Illinois.INEDA P. ADESANYA is an American Baptist minister and spiritual director. Ineda holds masters degrees from San Francisco Theological Seminary and Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley. She provides spiritual direction, retreats, an annual Spirituality and Hermeneutics Forum, and a weekly blog. She teaches at the Interfaith Chaplaincy Institute, and is a pastoral counselor and spiritual director for the Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary, SFTS, and in private practice. She lives in Oakland, California.BARBARA CAWTHORNE CRAFTON is a popular preacher, retreat leader, and writer who teaches at Marble Collegiate Church and at the General Theological Seminary in New York City. Her articles have appeared in the New York Times, Reader's Digest, Episcopal Life, and many other publications. She is the author of many books, including Called, The Courage to Grow Old, The Sewing Room, Living Lent, and many others. She lives in Metuchen, New Jersey.Catherine Meeks, PhD, is Executive Director of the Absalom Jones Center for Racial Healing. She is the retired Clara Carter Acree Distinguished Professor of Socio-Cultural Studies from Wesleyan College and Founding Executive Director of the Lane Center for Community Engagement and Service. She is frequently asked to present commentaries on Georgia Public Radio and other radio and television programs. She is the author of six books and one inspirational CD and is the editor of Living Into God’s Dream: Dismantling Racism in America and co-author of Passionate for Justice: Ida B Wells as Prophet for Our Times. She is the winner of The President Joseph R. Biden Lifetime Achievement Award and holds a Master’s Degree in Social Work from Clark Atlanta University and PhD from Emory University. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia.The Most Rev. Michael B. Curry is the Episcopal Church’s 27th Presiding Bishop. He was the Bishop of North Carolina from 2000 to 2015. Bishop Curry has a national preaching and teaching ministry and is a regular on TV and radio and a frequent speaker at conferences around the country. His books include Crazy Christians: A Call to Follow Jesus; Following the Way of Jesus: Church’s Teachings for a Changing World; and Love Is the Way: Holding on to Hope in Troubling Times.

• IntroductionA Note about Language and EditingFor Your GroundingFront and Center / Nathan BrownA Love Song to All the Helpers / Rev. Laura MartinPrayer for a New Day / Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith LundA Prayer Before Commencing a Shift / Rabbi Brian T. NelsonBlessing for Donning and Doffing / Rev .Hadley KifnerFor Those Who Walk in the Footsteps / Rev .Paula A. WellsFor Parents Who Leave Their Children at Home to Care for Others and You Feel as Though You Are the Cobbler and Your Children Have No Shoes / Rev. Traci SmithPrayer for Those Who Step into the Mess / Rev. Elizabeth FelicettiBlessing in a Pandemic / Rev. Ruth McMeekin SkjersethFor Those Who Keep the Ceiling From Falling In and Floors From Falling Out / Rev. Sonya GravleeA Blessing for Caregivers / Rev. Kathy Bozzuti-JonesPrayer for Leaning / Rev. Mark Wingfield A Prayer for All During Coronavirus / Dr.Virgil FryReminders / Rev. Keith A. MenhinickFor Your Hands A Prayer for the Young Man (Who Makes Not Much an Hour for Hazardous Duty) / Rev. Kevin M. RobertsBlessing for Your Hands / Rev. Hadley KifnerA Tuesday Afternoon in 2020 / Rev. Laura D. JohnsonVespers / Rev. Molly Bolton Bedside Prayers / Leslie DeslauriersBlessing of Nursing and Caregiving Hands / Rev. Ally Vertigan and Rev. Mishca R. Russell-SmithCOVID Collects / Rev. David Finnegan-Hosey Prayer for an EMT / The Most Rev. Michael B. CurrySeen All Along: A Sestina for the Helpers / Jennifer Grant For the One I Cannot Visit / Rev. Barbara Cawthorne CraftonRemembrance Gathering: A Way to Honor and Release Patients Who Have Died / Rev. Katherine K. HendersonA Meditation for Releasing Those Who Have Died / Rev. Ellen M. SwinfordBlessing for the End of This Year / Rev. Laura MartinFor Your Heart A Prayer in Times of Grief / Rev. Chelsea Brooke Yarborough Ora Pro Nobis / Catherine McNielA Prayer for Naming When It Hurts / Rev. Molly Brummett WudelLament / Rev. Molly BoltonBlessing for Anger / Rev. James AdamsPrayer for Grief’s Lessons / Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith LundWilderness (How Hagar Felt) / Rev. Dr. Danielle J. BuhuroIntercessory Prayer for Pandemic Frontline Workers / Heather BachelderA Lament for Composting Hard Truths / Rev. Kelly GregoryA COVID-19 Compline / Catherine McNielEmbracing Humankind / Rabbi Deborah Jill SchlossI Pray / Rev. Ineda Pearl AdesanyaPrayer for the Dead / Rev. Randy LewisA Litany for Those Who Have Cared for COVID-19 Patients and Their Families / Rev. Hadley KifnerWritten on Your Heart / Rev. Drew PhillipsHealers Needing Healing / Hayden DawesMetta Meditation: A Practice of Loving-Kindness / Rev. Ellen M. SwinfordTwo Blessings for Troubled Times (and Troubled Hearts) / Rev. Katherine K. HendersonFor Your BreathMy Lord, What a Morning / Rev. Molly BoltonBreath Prayer / Rev. David Finnegan-HoseyThey Say This Time Is Invaluable / Leenah SafiIt Is OK to Scream / Rev. Gayle Fisher-StewartA Blessing for the Weary / Catherine McNielBlessing for the Night / Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith LundA Prayer for Pandemic Times / Rev. Paul Roberts AbernathyHere / Rev. Kari PellegrinoA Collect for Parents Working on the Front Lines / Rev. Traci SmithFor Those Who Wait / Rev. Sheila P. SpencerIf Words Could Heal / Jessica Covil A Prayer for a Long Shift / Rev. Katherine Willis PersheyInFINITE / Rabbi Deborah Jill SchlossCompanioning One / Rev. Arianne Braithwaite LehnGod of It All / Rev. Hadley Kifner A Prayer at the Conclusion of a Shift / Rabbi Brian T. NelsonAn Invitation to Breath & Mystery & Courage / Rev. Ellen M. SwinfordSlow Exhale / Rev. Martha SpongFor Your Becoming Instructions for Anxious Days / Rev. Laura Martin Litany for Incarnation / Claire RepsholdtSunrise / Jamie R. RiveraInvocation of Opening the Curtains / Rev. Jessica StokesAn Invitation / Dr. Catherine MeeksLife Prevails / Rev. Randy LewisPrayer for the Covering / Rev. Dr. Sarah Griffith Lund God Is Everywhere / Rev. Malcolm L. Marler As You Love the Only World We Have / Rev. Keith A. MenhinickBeloved, You Are / Rev. Ginny WilderContributors

“This beautiful and inspiring collection of prayers and blessings provides words for those of us who were left speechless by the pandemic. It is a must-read for anyone who wishes to mark this difficult moment in history with light and hope.”—Amanda Held Opelt, writer, musician“In these pages you will encounter restorative, life giving words that speak to the commonalities of our journeys, and you will find affinity in their beautiful reminders of love’s perseverance. A much-needed exhale for the world.”—John Pavlovitz, author of A Bigger Table