Novena for Peace Preparation

Contrary to the claims of many chain emails (especially ones labeled Novena of St. Theresa), a novena is not some sort of superstitious set of magic words to get what you need out of life. A novena is a nine-day ritual prayer focused on a particular intention. It does not rely on superstition or magic for its power; its power comes from the effort to be consistently connected to the Divine.

A novena is a greater gift to the one who prays than to the Divine. It generally has a simple structure that uses a “prayer formula” or a “meditative guide” that serves to open one’s soul to the personal connection with God.

When a community prays a novena together, they are reminded that they are not really separate individual souls but simply different parts of the Oneness of all creation. In that Oneness, those praying connect their individual souls to the community and to the Divine – feeding the spirit of all and thus magnifying the spiritual gifts.

It is with this understanding that I invite you to come with me on a nine-day prayer journey during this holy season that celebrates Light in the darkness as we pray together a Novena for Peace. I invite people of all faiths to come as children of the One Source seeking peace in our lives and peace throughout the world. Though we generally ask God to provide peace for us, I personally think God expects us to co-create the peace we desire through our thoughts and in our actions; this Novena for Peace is an attempt to do that.

Tomorrow, I will post the prayer ritual and the reflection questions to help focus our thoughts on the actions of our lives that create or disturb peace. Feel free to adjust the prayers and questions to suit your religious tradition, need, or comfort.

Each morning, I will add a short quote, sacred reading, or personal reflection to accompany the ritual and to aid the process. Take what you need, let go of the rest. And please add comments with your thoughts or experiences along the way.

Though I am following the Christian calendar of my tradition so that the novena ends on Christmas eve, I want to also honor other sacred traditions and invite comments that will add to our understanding (ecumenical peace-making).

Praying the novena for peace will take less than 10 minutes per day. We’ll use the Prayer of St. Francis for the opening, have a short reading or quote, and then reflect on the same questions daily about our actions. The ritual closes with a short prayer that prepares us for the day ahead or for a good night’s sleep (depending on when you choose to pray).

That’s it. Ten minutes or less (or more if you choose to reflect longer). Invite whomever you think would join their hearts to ours to be the peace we seek for the world.

PAX