Anniversary of the Bombing of Hiroshima
On this day in 1945, the United States hastened the end of World War II in the Pacific by dropping the first nuclear bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Three days later, it bombed the city of Nagasaki. The Japanese surrendered shortly thereafter. Given what we now know about the power of humans to actively destroy our planet, this is a day of repentance and prayer as well as remembrance for all victims of human warfare.
Antiphon https://tinyurl.com/589h5dmw
With the Lord there is mercy;
in him is plentiful redemption. Psalm 130
Eternal God, creator of the universe,
there is no God but you.
Great and wonderful are your works,
wondrous are your ways.
Thank you for the many splendored variety of your creation.
Thank you for the many ways
we affirm your presence and purpose,
and the freedom to do so.
Forgive our violation of your creation.
Forgive our violence toward each other.
We stand in awe and gratitude for your persistent love
for each and all of your children:
Christian, Jew, Muslim,
as well as those with other faiths.
Grant to all and our leaders attributes of the strong:
mutual respect in words and deed,
restraint in the exercise of power,
and the will for peace with justice, for all.
Eternal God, creator of the universe,
there is no God but you. Amen. 2
Music: https://tinyurl.com/ycn4djk5
O Lord, open my lips.
And my mouth will declare your praise.
Make haste, O God, to deliver me;
make haste to help me, O Lord.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Praise to you, O Christ, Alleluia!
HYMN: Fred Kaan ©
Tune: Westminster Abbey https://tinyurl.com/24jmwx9m
1 For the healing of the nations,
Lord, we pray with one accord,
for a just and equal sharing
of the things that earth affords.
To a life of love in action
help us rise and pledge our word.
2 Lead us forward into freedom;
from despair your world release,
that, redeemed from war and hatred,
all may come and go in peace.
Show us how through care and goodness
fear will die and hope increase.
3 All that kills abundant living,
let it from the earth be banned:
pride of status, race, or schooling,
dogmas that obscure your plan.
In our common quest for justice
may we hallow life’s brief span.
4 You, Creator God, have written
your great name on humankind.
For our growing in your likeness,
bring the life of Christ to mind
that by our response and service
earth its destiny may find.
PSALMS
Psalm 32 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/twtffy5)
1 Blessed is he whose unrighteousness is forgiven *
and whose sin is covered.
2 Blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputeth no sin *
and in whose spirit there is no guile.
3 For while I held my tongue *
my bones consumed away through my daily complaining.
4 For thy hand is heavy upon me day and night *
and my moisture is like the drought in summer.
5 I will acknowledge my sin unto thee *
and mine unrighteousness have I not hid.
6 I said, I will confess my sins unto the Lord *
and so thou forgavest the wickedness of my sin.
7 For this shall every one that is godly make his prayer unto thee,
in a time when thou mayest be found *
but in the great water-floods they shall not come nigh him.
8 Thou art a place to hide me in, thou shalt preserve me from trouble *
thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance.
9 I will inform thee, and teach thee in the way wherein thou shalt go *
and I will guide thee with mine eye.
10 Be ye not like to horse and mule, which have no understanding *
whose mouths must be held with bit and bridle, lest they fall upon thee.
11 Great plagues remain for the ungodly *
but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord,
mercy embraceth him on every side.
12 Be glad, O ye righteous, and rejoice in the Lord *
and be joyful, all ye that are true of heart.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 33 (Anglican Chant: https://tinyurl.com/qsa6l3x)
1 Rejoice in the Lord, O ye righteous *
for it becometh well the just to be thankful.
2 Praise the Lord with harp *
sing praises unto him with the lute, and instrument of ten strings.
3 Sing unto the Lord a new song *
sing praises lustily unto him with a good courage.
4 For the word of the Lord is true *
and all his works are faithful.
5 He loveth righteousness and judgement *
the earth is full of the goodness of the Lord.
6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made *
and all the hosts of them by the breath of his mouth.
7 He gathereth the waters of the sea together, as it were upon an heap *
and layeth up the deep, as in a treasure-house.
8 Let all the earth fear the Lord *
stand in awe of him, all ye that dwell in the world.
9 For he spake, and it was done *
he commanded, and it stood fast.
10 The Lord bringeth the counsel of the heathen to nought *
and maketh the devices of the people to be of none effect,
and casteth out the counsels of princes.
11 The counsel of the Lord shall endure for ever *
and the thoughts of his heart from generation to generation.
12 Blessed are the people, whose God is the Lord Jehovah *
and blessed are the folk, that he hath chosen to him to be his inheritance.
13 The Lord looked down from heaven,
and beheld all the children of men *
from the habitation of his dwelling
he considereth all them that dwell on the earth.
14 He fashioneth all the hearts of them *
and understandeth all their works.
15 There is no king that can be saved by the multitude of an host *
neither is any mighty man delivered by much strength.
16 A horse is counted but a vain thing to save a man *
neither shall he deliver any man by his great strength.
17 Behold, the eye of the Lord is upon them that fear him *
and upon them that put their trust in his mercy;
18 To deliver their soul from death *
and to feed them in the time of dearth.
19 Our soul hath patiently tarried for the Lord *
for he is our help, and our shield.
20 For our heart shall rejoice in him *
because we have hoped in his holy Name.
21 Let thy merciful kindness, O Lord, be upon us *
like as we do put our trust in thee.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son :
and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be :
world without end. Amen.
Psalm 32 (Plainsong: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-32.mp3)
1 Happy are they whose transgressions are forgiven, *
and whose sin is put away!
2 Happy are they to whom the LORD imputes no guilt, *
and in whose spirit there is no guile!
3 While I held my tongue, my bones withered away, *
because of my groaning all day long.
4 For your hand was heavy upon me day and night; *
my moisture was dried up as in the heat of summer.
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you, *
and did not conceal my guilt.
6 I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD.” *
Then you forgave me the guilt of my sin.
7 Therefore all the faithful will make their prayers to you
in time of trouble; *
when the great waters overflow, they shall not reach them.
8 You are my hiding-place; you preserve me from trouble; *
you surround me with shouts of deliverance.
9 “I will instruct you and teach you in the way that you should go; *
I will guide you with my eye.
10 Do not be like horse or mule, which have no understanding; *
who must be fitted with bit and bridle,
or else they will not stay near you.”
11 Great are the tribulations of the wicked; *
but mercy embraces those who trust in the LORD.
12 Be glad, you righteous, and rejoice in the LORD; *
shout for joy, all who are true of heart.
| Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
| as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Psalm 33 (Plainsong: http://oremus.org/chant/Psalm-33.mp3)
1 Rejoice in the LORD, you righteous; *
it is good for the just to sing praises.
2 Praise the LORD with the harp; *
play to him upon the psaltery and lyre.
3 Sing for him a new song; *
sound a fanfare with all your skill upon the trumpet.
4 For the word of the LORD is right, *
and all his works are sure.
5 He loves righteousness and justice; *
the loving-kindness of the LORD fills the whole earth.
6 By the word of the LORD were the heavens made, *
by the breath of his mouth all the heavenly hosts.
7 He gathers up the waters of the ocean as in a water-skin *
and stores up the depths of the sea.
8 Let all the earth fear the LORD; *
let all who dwell in the world stand in awe of him.
9 For he spoke, and it came to pass; *
he commanded, and it stood fast.
10 The LORD brings the will of the nations to naught; *
he thwarts the designs of the peoples.
11 But the LORD’S will stands fast for ever, *
and the designs of his heart from age to age.
12 Happy is the nation whose God is the LORD! *
happy the people he has chosen to be his own!
13 The LORD looks down from heaven, *
and beholds all the people in the world.
14 From where he sits enthroned he turns his gaze *
on all who dwell on the earth.
15 He fashions all the hearts of them *
and understands all their works.
16 There is no king that can be saved by a mighty army; *
a strong man is not delivered by his great strength.
17 The horse is a vain hope for deliverance; *
for all its strength it cannot save.
18 Behold, the eye of the LORD is upon those who fear him, *
on those who wait upon his love,
19 To pluck their lives from death, *
and to feed them in time of famine.
20 Our soul waits for the LORD; *
he is our help and our shield.
21 Indeed, our heart rejoices in him, *
for in his holy Name we put our trust.
22 Let your loving-kindness, O LORD, be upon us, *
as we have put our trust in you.
| Glory be to the Father, and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit;
| as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
PRAYER
O God,
by your Word you made heaven and earth,
and through your living Word, Jesus Christ,
you continue to accomplish your purpose for creation.
Make us witnesses to your truth and instruments of your peace,
that all may know you are the God
who loves justice and acts faithfully;
through Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen. BCW2018
THE WORD OF GOD
The next day Moses said to the people, “You’ve committed a terrible sin. So now I will go up to the Lord. Maybe I can arrange reconciliation on account of your sin.” So Moses went back to the Lord and said, “Oh, what a terrible sin these people have committed! They made for themselves gods of gold. But now, please forgive their sin! And if not, then wipe me out of your scroll that you’ve written.”
But the Lord said to Moses, “The ones I’ll wipe out of my scroll are those who sinned against me. Now go and lead the people to the place I described to you. My messenger here will go in front of you. When the day of reckoning comes, I’ll count their sin against them.” Then the Lord sent a plague on the people because of what they did with the bull calf that Aaron made.
The Lord said to Moses, “Go and leave this place, you and the people whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt. Go to the land I promised to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob when I said, ‘I’ll give it to your descendants.’ I’ll send a messenger before you. I’ll drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites. Go to this land full of milk and honey. But I won’t go up with you because I would end up destroying you along the way since you are a stubborn people.”
When the people heard the bad news, they were sorry. No one put on any jewelry, because the Lord had said to Moses, “Tell the Israelites, ‘You are a stubborn people. If I were to go up with you even for a single moment, I would destroy you. So now take off your jewelry, while I figure out what to do with you.’” So after leaving Mount Horeb the Israelites rid themselves of their jewelry.
HYMN: George Utech ©
Tune: Old 120th https://tinyurl.com/23ww9852
1 Great God, our source and Lord of space,
O Force of all by whose sheer pow’r
The primal fires that flared and raged
Were struck, blazed on, and still are made:
O save us, Lord, at this fierce hour
From threat’ning fires that we have laid.
2 Great God of fire, incarnate flame,
Through Christ in whom your love has burned
And burns the way for our dark pace
On cosmic routes within us turned:
Lead us beyond atomic night;
Guide, Lord, in hope our broken race.
3 Lord of the atom, we praise your might,
Expressed in terrifying light;
Before us rise the flames as pyres,
Or bursts of love–they blind our sight.
Help us, our Lord, O help us see
New forms of peace through suff’ring fires.
Christ didn’t send me to baptize but to preach the good news. And Christ didn’t send me to preach the good news with clever words so that Christ’s cross won’t be emptied of its meaning.
The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are being destroyed. But it is the power of God for those of us who are being saved. It is written in scripture: I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and I will reject the intelligence of the intelligent. Where are the wise? Where are the legal experts? Where are today’s debaters? Hasn’t God made the wisdom of the world foolish? In God’s wisdom, he determined that the world wouldn’t come to know him through its wisdom. Instead, God was pleased to save those who believe through the foolishness of preaching. Jews ask for signs, and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, which is a scandal to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles. But to those who are called—both Jews and Greeks—Christ is God’s power and God’s wisdom. This is because the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength.
Look at your situation when you were called, brothers and sisters! By ordinary human standards not many were wise, not many were powerful, not many were from the upper class. But God chose what the world considers foolish to shame the wise. God chose what the world considers weak to shame the strong. And God chose what the world considers low-class and low-life—what is considered to be nothing—to reduce what is considered to be something to nothing. So no human being can brag in God’s presence. It is because of God that you are in Christ Jesus. He became wisdom from God for us. This means that he made us righteous and holy, and he delivered us. This is consistent with what was written: The one who brags should brag in the Lord!
HYMN: Isaac Watts
Tune: St Michael https://tinyurl.com/3n55a46r
1 How heavy is the night
That hangs upon our eyes,
Till Christ with his reviving light
Over our souls arise!
2 Our guilty spirits dread
To meet the wrath of heaven;
But, in his righteousness arrayed,
We see our sins forgiven.
3 Unholy and impure
Are all our thoughts and ways:
His hands infected nature cure
With sanctifying grace.
4 The powers of hell agree
To hold our souls in vain;
He sets the sons of bondage free,
And breaks the cursed chain.
5 Lord, we adore thy ways
To bring us near to God,
Thy sovereign power, thy healing grace,
And thine atoning blood.
From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and legal experts, and that he had to be killed and raised on the third day. Then Peter took hold of Jesus and, scolding him, began to correct him: “God forbid, Lord! This won’t happen to you.” But he turned to Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stone that could make me stumble, for you are not thinking God’s thoughts but human thoughts.”
CANTICLE Revelation 15:3-4
(Chant by Joe Cox: https://tinyurl.com/yb3kd863)
Ant. All nations will draw near and fall down before you, *
because your just and holy works have been revealed.
O ruler of the universe, Lord God,
great deeds are they that you have done, *
surpassing human understanding.
Your ways are ways of righteousness and truth, *
O King of all the ages.
Who can fail to do you homage, Lord,
and sing the praises of your Name? *
for you only are the Holy One.
All nations will draw near and fall down before you, *
because your just and holy works have been revealed.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Ant.
PRAYERS1
O God, tender and just,
the names of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
cut through our denial
that we are capable of destroying the earth
and all that dwell therein.
Forgive us –
and help us to always remember.
We must remember because this must never happen again.
We must remember because you would have us live
in harmony with each other,
seeing the joy of your creation in our
sisters and brothers.
Holy God, God of all the ages,
lead us from death to life,
to the stockpiling of hope, and of possibilities,
and of love
rather than the stockpiling of weapons, or stones to throw,
or of hate.
We pray for the healing of the earth and of its peoples,
especially for our sisters and brothers
upon whom a nuclear rain poured down.
Help us to imagine that another world is possible
and guide our actions towards the peace
you envision, the peace you have already given us.
In the name of the One who came so that we might have life,
and have it abundantly, we pray.
Amen.
(Traditional chant: https://tinyurl.com/ydzx5jdp)
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread;
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
[For thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.]
God,
good beyond all that is good,
fair beyond all that is fair,
in you is calmness, peace, and concord.
Heal the dissensions that divide us from one another
and bring us back to a unity of love
bearing some likeness to your divine nature.
Through the embrace of love
and the bonds of godly affection,
make us one in the Spirit
by your peace which makes all things peaceful.
We ask this through the grace, mercy, and tenderness
of your Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Dionysios of Alexandria, d. 264
Music: https://tinyurl.com/y9efvwm5
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with us all. Amen. 2 Cor. 13:14
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BCW Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 1993.
BCW2018 Book of Common Worship, Presbyterian Church U.S.A., 2018
1 United Church of Christ, https://www.ucc.org/international-policy/justice_just-peace/justice_just-peace_remember-and-repent-the-60th/
2 Written by Christian, Jewish, and Muslim clergy and published
by the World Council of Churches (1991)
The three main scripture readings are © 2011 Common English Bible.
The traditional language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1662). The modern language psalms are from The Book of Common Prayer (1979) and are chanted by Ryland Angel.
Musical links are usually either to artists’ albums posted on Spotify or to recordings made available at smallchurchmusic.com. Audio stripped from YouTube videos is footnoted accordingly above.
Compilation © 2025 Stephen T. Benner. All links worked at the time they were created, but I cannot accept responsibility for their content or any damage resulting from their use. The linked content is under the control of the respective content creators and is subject to change at any time. Any copyright texts included in this compilation are provided for non-commercial purposes related to study or worship. Please contact the respective copyright holders for permission to use the texts in other contexts.
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