The Prayer

Our scientists have invented a weapon which,
Though imprudent,
Can destroy the world:
Let us pray.

Dear God, please deliver us from evil,
For our enemies are more evil than ourselves
And we are alone in the world:

And dear God, please cast the shadows black
That we might hide,
For in our hiding’s strength,
And we are not so strong :

For our purpose is strange
And not to be seen,
And our faces darken beneath the sky:
We are a proud people,
And have done no wrong.

Dear God, thank you for our neighbours,
For our neighbours have given us the courage to fight :
Without them we would be nothing,
But with them we are warriors,
Filled with hate.

We are Victims, Lord:
And being victims we know
That We Are Right,
For the Oppressor is always wrong.

We take our purity from our oppression, Oh Lord,
And from this we also take our strength of purpose:
No one can deny us our Innocence,
And we shall kill for you with this in mind.

It is our duty to inflict pain and terror -
Being innocent, we are above the law:

We shall do your will:
Thy Will be done, Oh Lord,
Let us kill in your name.

We shall saw off the heads of our enemies,
Slash open the bellies of the pregnant,
Stick glass in the genitalia of those we despise.

We are above them all, God,
For they are a nothing.

Let us shoot from a distance, Oh Lord,
The young and the old,
And near to, let us hold parties
To watch our enemies writhe and die in agony.

Our Generals are proud,
And defend us against the wicked:
Let us praise our Generals
And let us howl with outrage
At all accusations of their evil.

Lord, we are eternal Victims,
And you have been merciful,
And made that clear :
We can do anything with impunity,
For victims have no responsibility.

Lord, we thank you for our lives,
And even for our despair, which has coloured us so deeply:
For without that despair we would not try,
And in trying we have discovered our souls.

Our souls are dark, Lord, and beyond recognition -
We live in their darkness, and seem unable to change.
Our darkness has become a habit, Lord,
And we have become proud of that habit.

Lord, we are sinking,
Hiding our self-hatred in new, bright shops and the pretence of democracy:
But our evil will not go away,
For we are a cursed people.

Deliver us from self-revelation, Lord,
For we are proud and would rather die:

Our scientists have invented a weapon
Which, though imprudent,
Can destroy the world :

Let us pray.

July 2001