As a child I prayed for Russia
At the end of Mass
In old age I pray again
Has nothing come to pass?
Thousands dying on battlefields
Fodder for the guns
A madness gets a hold of us
We’ll let the bloodshed run
In personal life Jesus teaches us to do good to everyone, enemies included. Do not allow injustice and hurt to drive you into violence. In social and political life Jesus tells a story, observing how kings at war need to calculate numbers, and if things look bleak to sue for peace. All fighting is a failure of humanity.
I remember as a child, fighting in the schoolyard and on the grass outside my house, provoked and overcome by anger. When it was over I knew it for a fool’s game. This is no way to proceed.
All efforts should be brought to bear to stop the war and to enter into dialogue.
What will my prayers do?
They are a conversation with the Lord
He will teach me now in my own life
How to be brave and lay aside the sword
The grace then planted in your heart
Like ripples on a pond spread far and wide
To show to others how to make a start
In quiet ways to bring down human pride
Brian Fahy
12 June 2022
Erris Poetry 