This Sunday, Christians across Scotland will join together in prayer at 7pm in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
As with previous weeks during lockdown and the phased easing of restrictions, 14 Christian church leaders across the country, including Archbishop Leo Cushley, have co-signed this week's letter calling for prayer.
In it, they say: "In the midst of the complexity, we hear again the commandments to love God and neighbour and affirm that everything hangs on these two as our indispensable guide.
We pray
Lord our God,
We turn to you,
As the One who has spoken in times past,
And ask that that you would speak to us in times present.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Lord our God,
In our response,
We listen for your Word
And the call to love you with heart and soul and mind.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Lord our God,
In the living out of our response,
We offer all that we are,
Knowing you have given all through Christ our Lord.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Lord our God,
We turn to you,
As the One who has made us in your image,
And who makes our neighbour in that same image.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Lord our God,
In our response,
We journey with our neighbour
And seek to love them as you command.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Lord our God,
In the living out of our response,
We stand together with our neighbour,
Knowing you stand together with us through Christ our Lord.
Lord, in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.
Signed by:
- Rt. Rev. Dr Martin Fair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
- Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
- Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
- Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
- Rev. Lindsey Sanderson, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
- Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
- Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
- Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
- Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
- Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
- Rev. Claire Fender, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
- Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
- Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)
- Rev Fred Drummond, Director, Evangelical Alliance (Scotland)