Some version of this I spoke at the March to Raise the Wage on July 24 in downtown Houston.

Let us pray:

God of many Names, let your presence be known.

Mystery of Life, fill our hearts this afternoon.

Our minds are full of the stories presented here today. They represent but three of the millions of low wage workers who must choose between paying the rent and feeding their families.

How closely linked we are—rich, poor, and in the middle. Poverty, wealth, power and powerlessness are interconnected and each of us is a part of that web of life.

We give thanks for all who advocate for a living wage, that they may be heard by employers, by communities, and by policy makers.

We call for fair pay so that full-time workers can live above the poverty line. A job should pull people out of poverty, not keep them in it. They’ll have money to spend on goods and services; money to save for emergencies; money to invest in education for the kids and for their own retirement.

We call for change in policies and managers who abuse their workers, that they will rise to a higher standard of decency and respect.

We call upon ourselves as consumers to hold companies accountable for the ways they treat their workers, and to work toward legal remedies.

We call upon you, God of our Hearts, Spirit of Life, to keep us united.

We pray all this in the name of all that is holy and whole.

Go in peace, Salaam, Shalom, İSí se puede!