Today, let us set our faces toward the Lord God to make request by prayer and supplications, and with fasting. Let us pray to the Lord our God, and make confession, and say,
“O Lord, great and awesome God, who keeps His covenant and mercy with those who love Him, and with those who keep His commandments, we have sinned and committed iniquity, we have done wickedly and rebelled, even by departing from Your precepts and Your judgments. Neither have we heeded Your servants the prophets, who spoke in Your name to our fathers and all the people of this land.
O Lord, righteousness belongs to You, but to us shame of face, as it is this day – to the people of the island of Ireland, those near and those far off in all the countries to which You have driven them. O Lord, to us belongs shame of face, to our rulers and our fathers, because we have sinned against You.
O Lord our God, to You belongs mercy and forgiveness, though we have rebelled against You. We have not obeyed the voice of the Lord our God, to walk in Your laws, which You set before us by Your servants the prophets. Yes Lord, all Ireland has transgressed Your law, and has departed so as not to obey Your voice; therefore we find ourselves in turmoil and wrath, because we have sinned against You. All this disaster has come upon us; yet we have not made our prayer before the Lord our God, that we might turn from our iniquities and understand Your truth.
O Lord, according to all Your righteousness, we pray, let Your anger and Your fury be turned away from the island of Ireland. God, hear the prayer of Your servants, and our supplications, and for Your sake cause Your face to shine on this land and Your church, which is desolate. O our God, incline Your ear and hear; open Your eyes and see our desolations, and this land which You love; for we do not present our supplications before You because of our righteous deeds, but because of Your great mercies.
O Lord, hear!
O Lord, forgive!
O Lord, listen and act!
O Lord, do not delay for Your own sake, our God, for this island and for Your people who are called by Your name.” We pray this prayer in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
(A prayer based on the words of Daniel 9:1-19)