Spoken Introduction to the Prayer Litany
Although the Emancipation Proclamation became effective on January 1, 1863, it did not bring about immediate emancipation. In the proclamation, President Abraham Lincoln declared that “all persons held as slaves” in any state in rebellion against the United States were freed. But those states did not recognize Lincoln’s authority and therefore did not free those held in slavery. Furthermore, the Emancipation Proclamation did not end slavery in slave states that were not part of the Confederacy (for example, Delaware, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, and West Virginia). The 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution—ratified in 1865—ended slavery.
Additionally, even after Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant on April 9, 1865, pockets of the Confederacy continued to fight. The final surrender occurred in Galveston, Texas on June 2, 1865. On June 19, 1865, Major General Gordon Granger came to Galveston to announce the end of the Civil War and slavery, freeing the 250,000 enslaved people in Texas.
The following prayer draws on both the Emancipation Proclamation and the Juneteenth General Order for freedom in Texas.
A Prayer Litany
The non-bolded sections may be read by the leader or part of the congregation, with the boldface sections read by the entire congregation or part of it. Or the entire litany may be read by one person as a prayer.
Dear Lord,
We have fallen short of recognizing
“the absolute equality of personal rights
and rights of property” among all people.
We diminish those with whom we do not identify
and fail to acknowledge their full humanity.
We do not see that they are our equals—
before you and before the law.
Help us to “recognize
and maintain the freedom” of all people,
especially those who do not share
our culture, language, religious beliefs,
or country of origin.
Through your “gracious favor,”
emancipate us from the tyranny of hostility toward others
so that we can experience the joy of fellowship
with all those whom Jesus would call our neighbor.
Through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
—Quotations taken from the Juneteenth announcement on June 19, 1865, which is available from the National Archives at this link, and the Emancipation Proclamation of January 1, 1863, which is available from the National Archives at this link.
Check Back Next Week…
This is the third of five blog posts of litanies developed by Dr. Barbara Bradley Feenstra and Dr. Ronald J. Feenstra for use in worship to commemorate events such as MLK’s birthday (January 15, 1929), Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address (March 4, 1865), Juneteenth (June 19, 1865), July 4/5, and the anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom (August 28, 1963). Any of these may also be used during Black History Month. Each litany or prayer is based on documents connected to the event being commemorated.
Published Litanies:
A Prayer Litany Based on Martin Luther King’s “Letter from a Birmingham City Jail”
A Prayer Litany Based on Abraham Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address