Litanies for Bold Women's Day
Use these litanies during worship, at a Women of the ELCA event, or at other times and places. The "Leader" role can be shared among several women. If there are musicians in the group, they might softly play background music as the leaders speak each portion and then accompany the response with a brighter harmony.
A Litany of Boldness
Leader: O Creative God, you made us in your image.
All: You call us into discipleship in Jesus Christ. Leader: You empower us through the Holy Spirit.
All: Let your lovingkindness be upon us as you accept our prayers.
Leader: O God of our ancestors, we remember the bold witness of our foremothers who paved the way for all women, lay and ordained.
All: We give you thanks, O God.
Leader: O Holy One, who breathes life into us all, we raise before you the bold women among us today.
All: We give you thanks, O God.
Leader: For those who pray, for those who parent, for those who study, for those who advocate,
All: We give you thanks, O God.
Leader: For those who laugh, for those who share, for those who extend hospitality, for those who smile,
All: We give you thanks, O God.
Leader: O Gracious One, forgive us when we are too timid to live up to the boldness you have placed within us.
All: We pray to you, O God. Leader: O Gracious One, enable us to recognize, honor and support the boldness you have placed within others.
All: We pray to you, O God.
Leader: O God of infinite possibility, grant to us all the opportunity to act boldly on our faith in Jesus Christ.
All: Hear our prayer. Leader: O God of abundant life, grant to us all emotional, physical and spiritual wholeness so that we might best serve others in your name.
All: Hear our prayer. Leader: O God of strength, give us courage, hope and open hearts, that we might experience expanding possibilities and grow through change.
All: Hear our prayer. Leader: Nurturing God, you have inspired and empowered women throughout all ages.
All: Give us the courage and wisdom to act boldly on our faith in you, O Creating, Redeeming and Sustaining One. Amen.
A Litany of Thanks for Bold Women
Those present may answer in any or all of the roles they live: For example, one may speak up as married woman, mother and grandmother; another as young woman, sister and single woman. Other bold women may be lifted up in prayer near the end of this litany. Leader: Lord our God, we give thanks today for the witness of bold women. From the earliest times until today and on into the future, bold women show all of us how to live as God's beloved children in God's beloved creation, carrying out our baptismal call to work for justice and peace for all God's creatures.
Leader: For Eve, mother of us all, sinful and beloved, we say:
All: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For Miriam, who danced beside the Red Sea, we say:
Young women: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For Mary, mother of Jesus, who pondered the angel's words in her heart, we say:
Mothers: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For Mary Magdalene, first to hear the voice of the Risen Christ, we say:
Single women: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For Naomi, who rejoiced in her grandson Obed, we say:
Grandmothers: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For the Syro-Phoenician woman, bold enough to challenge Jesus himself for her child's sake:
Daughters: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For Mary and Martha of Bethany, who served the Lord together in their different ways, we say:
Sisters: Thank you, Lord! Leader: For the persistent widow, who would not rest until she won justice, we say:
Widows: Thank you, Lord!
Leader: For Katharine von Bora Luther, who ran to embrace change in her world, we say:
Married women: Thank you, Lord! Leader: There have been bold women all around us on our way, if only we look for them. For whom do we thank the Lord today? Name her aloud and let us thank God for her witness.
(Those present may speak the names of other bold women aloud, briefly describing her witness. After each one, the group responds:)
All: Thank you, Lord!
(When the group is done naming bold women, the leader concludes:)
Leader: For the witness of all bold women, yesterday, today, and tomorrow, Lord our God, we thank you and we praise you. Lord our God, let their boldness flourish in our own hearts as we live out our baptismal call to serve you and our neighbor, with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our strength.
All: Thank you, Lord! Alleluia, Amen!