Prayers for Peace

Prayers for Peace: The Aftermath of 9/11

By Tanis Helliwell 

The Situation

What happened on September 11, 2001 in the US shook people in the developed world from their complacency. We’ve become increasingly aware of the shaky ground under our feet. Our values, how we share the Earth with others, and how to lead a compassionate life has become increasingly relevant questions to many people.

A poll in Time Magazine offers the following statistics:

• 81% of respondents think that the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11 will impact their lives in the future.
• 57% have thought more about the spiritual part of their lives since the attacks
• 62% feel the need to spend more time with family members
• 55% experience a greater focus or purpose in life

The accompanying article also states that sales of the Bible are up over 42% from this time period last year and sales of the Koran have quintupled since Sept. 11. Interest in interfaith alliances and the daily practice of non-religious spirituality has increased as well. The danger now is that we will allow ourselves to slip back into the old complacency and it is essential that we do not do this.

What we must do to ensure that this kind of world crisis and others like it do not happen again is to redress the errors in judgment that have created this problem in the first place. Poverty of body creates poverty of spirit and we in the developed world must do all we can to share our resources more equitably with those that have less. These resources include food, shelter, education without attempting to convert the recipients to our way of life. When people have these things they rise naturally to higher values of peace and love.

Let’s take time to reflect on what has happened in the past year and to count our blessings. With this spirit of gratitude and hope I’d like to share with you the messages of peace from the sacred books of the Christian, Muslim and Jewish religions.

Christian

 Blessed are the Peacemakers, for they shall be known as the Children of God. I say to you that hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To those who strike you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from those who take away your cloak, do not withhold your coat as well. Give to everyone who begs from you, and of those who take away your goods, do not ask of them again. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them.”               

Muslim

In the name of Allah, the beneficent, the merciful. Praise be to the Lord of the Universe who created us and made us into tribes and nations, that we may know each other, not that we may despise each other. If the enemy inclines toward Peace, do thou also incline toward Peace, and trust in God, for the Lord is the one that heareth and knoweth all things. And the servants of God, Most gracious, are those who walk on the earth in Humility, and when we address them we say, “Peace.”

Jewish

Come, let us go up the mountain of the Lord that we may walk the paths of the Most High. And we shall beat our swords into ploughshares and our spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation—neither shall they learn war anymore. And none shall be afraid, for the Lord of the Hosts has spoken.

The Native American Prayer for Peace

O, Great Spirit of our Ancestors, I raise my pipe to you, to your messengers, the four winds, and to Mother Earth who provides for your children.  Give us the wisdom to teach our children to love, to respect and to be kind to each other so that they may grow with Peace in mind.  Let us learn to share all the good things that you provide for us on this Earth.

 Tanis Helliwell, a mystic in the modern world, has brought spiritual consciousness into the mainstream for over 30 years. Since childhood, she has seen and heard elementals, angels, and master teachers in higher dimensions. Tanis is the founder of the International Institute for Transformation (IIT), which offers programs to assist individuals to become conscious creators to work with the spiritual laws that govern our world.

Tanis is the author of The High Beings of Hawaii, Summer with the Leprechauns, Pilgrimage with the Leprechauns, Embraced by Love, Manifest Your Soul’s Purpose, Decoding Your Destiny and Take Your Soul to Work.

For information on Tanis’ courses, click here.