For children affected by AIDS

To play, to learn, to have food and health.
To be loved, secure and safe.
These are the rights of every child,
rights robbed by a virus and
robbed twice over in countries crippled by debt
and paralysed by trade rules designed to benefit the rich and powerful

Loving God, vanquish our complacency
at our injustice to these your children.
Remove all traces of empty conscience-salving charity.
Make us, instead, committed to sharing our resources –
your resources – with those who need them most;
to seeking in justice to remove the debt burdens of the poorest,
to working tirelessly
so that all your children might know again
the joys of playing, learning, living,
loving and being loved.

Ann Smith/CAFOD

Living example of a loving community

We pray for the Church throughout the world that she may be a living example
of a loving community, and a voice for those who are hungry for justice.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for the world’s leaders, that they may work to overcome the barriers between
peoples, and foster a spirit of global community.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

We pray for our own local community here. We pray for those who feel excluded from our local community, through poverty, disability or illness. We pray for people affected by HIV and AIDS,
and especially for those excluded from our communities through discrimination and prejudice.
Lord in your mercy, hear our prayer.

Linda Jones/CAFOD