After our Advent Penance Service at church today, we took home these prayer cards, and the name and photo of a soldier who died in the current war. I got about 4 names that I will be praying for — I should've gotten more, 'cuz we had a lot left — there weren't that many people who attended the service. In any case, below is the prayer I'll be using. If you want, you can go to this website that has the list of dead soldiers, get a name from that site and then say the prayer below until the end of Advent.
Prayer for your soldier and the soldier's family
Eternal rest grant unto Staff Sgt. Allan K. Walker, Sgt. Taft V. Williams, Cpl. Jesse L. Thiry, and Staff Sgt. Wilbert Davis, O Lord.
and let the perpetual light shine upon them.
May the soul of Staff Sgt. Allan K. Walker, Sgt. Taft V. Williams, Cpl. Jesse L. Thiry, and Staff Sgt. Wilbert Davis
and all the souls of the faithful departed
through the mercy of God, rest in peace
May the families of those who have lost a loved one
receive compassion from God's people
and peace from God.
Amen.
Here's another prayer in general:
We pray for all those who have died in the war in Iraq and Afghanistan.
We pray for the soldiers and Iraqis who have perished.
We pray for those injured, widowed, and orphaned.
Come Prince of Peace and heal all of us.
Lead us from death to life, from falsehood to truth.
Lead us from despair to hope, from fear to trust.
Lead us from hate to love, from war to peace.
Let peace fill our hearts,
Let peace fill our world,
Let peace fill our universe.
Amen.
