A Prayer of the Persecuted

Who wrote the following prayer? No one knows. It was scrawled on a scrap of paper and placed inside the clothing of a child who was killed at Ravensbruck, a concentration camp where the Nazis killed thousands of innocent people. Whoever wrote the prayer may have died in the same gas chamber as the child.

"O Lord, remember not only the men and women of good will, 
    but also those of ill will.
But, do not remember all of the suffering 
    they have inflicted on upon us:
Instead remember the fruits we have borne 
    because of this suffering -
our fellowship, our loyalty to one another, our humility, 
    our courage, our generosity,
the greatness of heart that has grown from this trouble.
When our persecutors come to be judged by you, 
    let all of these fruits that we have borne 
    be their forgiveness."

Comments

Rebecca Ramsey said…
This stuns me.
What a beautiful, unbelievable prayer. Thank you so much for sharing it.
Drew Hill said…
I agree, Rebecca. This prayer defines grace and forgiveness at its deepest, truest level.

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