Weekly Prayer, May 10th, 2026
Happy Mother's Day
Weekly Prayer May 10th 2026
Let us enter into a spirit of care, remembrance, and prayer for the world, for our country, for those who have impact on our lives, and for the unfolding of care, innovation and discovery of life. Let us honor those people and events that have come before us as we look toward the possibilities of what may come and what we can create.
Prayers for the World
We pray for peace for the Middle East, for an end to the violence, for the reduction of oil prices worldwide, and for countries to work together to the mutual benefit of all people.
We pray for those who died in Lebanon after bombings today. At least 19 people died.
We pray for the people of Ukraine and an end to war there.
We pray with gratitude for the 59 countries who’ve agreed to create a “roadmap” away from fossil fuel use at the “Transitioning Away from Fossil Fuels” Conference this last week. Half of these countries produce fossil fuels.
We pray for newly sworn in Prime Minister Peter Magyar of Hungary. May all Hungarians benefit from its newly elected leadership. Magyar has vowed to restore democratic institutions and governmental checks and balances that were heavily eroded during Orbán’s rule, and to clamp down on alleged corruption.
We pray for those in Northeastern Philippines who are fleeing volcanic ash from Mayon volcano. Over 5000 people have fled the area. Vegetable crops have been damaged and livestock has died. The area is populated by some 200,000 people.
We pray for Mexico City which is currently sinking at the pace of 10 inches a year due to groundwater pumping and urban development. Even satellite photos have shown the sinkage.
We pray with gratitude for the Grand River First Nation and Neoen (an international renewable energy company) that have teamed up together for Ontario, Canda’s largest solar farm project. Construction will begin in 2028 and will begin operation in 2030. Neoen is also teaming with Matachewan First Nation on another solar project.
We pray with gratitude for new renters’ rights enacted in the UK. Renters’ rights have been broadened to reduce discrimination, unfair rent increases, faster redress against poor conditions, and banning fixed-term contracts and “no fault” evictions.
We pray for the Capital Kiwi Project which is working to restore the kiwi population to New Zealand. Once 12 million kiwi birds roamed New Zealand. Today there are 70,000 kiwis left. The Project recently rewilded seven crates of kiwis around the countries capital and is working toward the bird being commonplace for the next generation of New Zealanders.
We pray for Alberta, where separation activists contend they have enough signatures to force a vote on secession from Canada. Signatures have yet to be verified and First Nations people have filed suit saying the referendum violates their agreements with the province and the country.
We pray for those in Changsha, China, affected by the explosion at the fireworks factory last week. At least 26 people have died and others have been injured.
We pray for those on the cruise ship in the Atlantic where the Hantavirus has claimed three lives with at least 11 others stricken. We pray for the health for all those being tracked.
We pray for those affected in Leipzig, Germany, where a driver plowed into a crowd of people last week. Two people have died and another 20 people were injured.
We pray with gratitude for the ending of the global tariffs.
We pray for an end to the use of Russian paramilitary forces to support military juntas in Africa. Recent attacks in Mali were carried out by these forces, formerly known as the Wagner Group.
We pray for those affected by the volcanic eruption on Halmahera Island in Indonesia this week. At least three people have died and other were injured.
We pray for those in Japan engaging in anti-war protests, the largest the country has seen in decades, following the prime minister’s push to increase defense spending.
We pray for the Australians holding vigils following the alleged murder of a 5-year-old Aboriginal girl near Alice Springs, Northern Territory.
We pray for those affected by the fire the fairground in Villahermosa, Tabasco, Mexico, during a concert there. At least five people have died.
We pray for those affected by explosion at a coal-mine near Bogata, Colombia this week. At least nine people have died and six others were injured.
We pray for those in Chad who died after the ambush by Boko Haram. Chad has declared a National Day of Mourning.
We continue to pray for the people of Cuba who are experiencing food shortages, power outages, and economic hardship.
Prayers for the United States
We pray for a government that solves people’s problems as opposed to creating distractions to change the conversation.
We pray for the Native American tribes in North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska, who have sued the US government to stop exploratory drilling for graphite on tribal sacred spaces.
We pray that Congress does not approve government funding for a promised White House ballroom that was initially reported to be paid by private donations.
We pray for an end to assault weapons being available to the public. This week the Department of Justice sued the city of Denver to end its assault weapons ban.
We pray for the Southern Poverty Law Center as the had their first appearance in court in charges from the Department of Justice.
We pray for an end to gerrymandering and for representation that is fair for all people.
We pray for Smith College as the Justice Department has opened an investigation into the historic school for admitting transgender women.
We pray for the lawsuit in Pennsylvania charging that AI chat boxes are representing themselves as doctors.
We remember the website ask.com also known as “Ask Jeeves” which closed last week after 25 years.
We pray for a reversal of the FDA’s approval of fruit-flavored vapes.
We pray with gratitude for the new rules that will revoke passports to travelers who owe more than 100,000 dollars’ worth of child support.
We pray for those affected by norovirus on the Fort-Lauderdale based cruise ship in the Caribbean. At least 115 people have been affected.
Prayers For Those Who Have Impact on our Lives
We remember CNN/TNT/TBS founder, entrepreneur and philanthropist Ted Turner who died this week at age 87.
We remember Irish actor Gary Lydon, “Banshees of Insherin” whose death was reported this week at age 61.
We remember New York Yankees broadcaster John Sterling who died this week at age 87.
We remember Donna Fisher, co-founder with her husband of The Gap, who died this week at age 94.
We remember Baseball Hall of Famer and manager, Bobby Cox, who died this week at age 84.
We honor environmentalist, educator, and television star Sir David Attenborough who turned 100 this week.
We pray for singer Bonnie Tyler, 74, who is in a medically induced coma, following emergency surgery in Portugal.
We congratulate Cherie DeVaux, the first female trainer to win a Kentucky Derby this last weekend. The horse Golden Tempo came from the back to win the 152nd Kentucky Derby. Golden Tempo is also owned by a woman.
We congratulate those awarded a Pulitzer Prize for journalism and the arts last week. For full list of winners which include The New York Times, The Washington Post, Texas Monthly, The Minneapolis Star-Tribune, and The Associated Press, follow this link. We need more journalism that sheds the truth on the world. https://www.pulitzer.org/prize-winners-by-year/2026?user_id=6766b385fcb8b9ccf60fbdc8
We congratulate all those receiving Tony nominations this week.
Prayers for Unfolding Care, Innovation and Discovery of Life
We pray for the 1,500 dogs rescued in Wisconsin from a research and breeding facility in Wisconsin. Activists had been protesting outside the facility over their concerns for the dogs. The beagles are currently up for adoption.
We pray with gratitude for the report released this week that Australia is on track to become the first country to eliminate cervical cancer (by 2035).
We pray with hope around the new study if Indigenous people in the Peruvian Andes’ Mountains that shows how culture, diet and environment interact to shape human genomes, with implications for understanding metabolism, the microbiome and gene–diet interactions relevant to human health. The Indigenous people there have what was called a superpower in how they dealt with a high-starch diet.
We Honor Our History on this Day, and Pray to Remember what These People and Events Have Informed Us
We honor with prayer the events and the lives of people born on this day in history May we celebrate the contributions, remember those who died, and learn from the harm that was the done:
· In 1497, Amerigo Vespucci was reported to have left for his first voyage to the New World
· In 1503, Christopher Columbus visited the Cayman Islands, naming them Las Tortugas after the numerous turtles there
· In 1534, Jacques Cartier visited Newfoundland
· In 1752, French scientist Thomas Francois Dalibard drew sparks from a 50-foot rod raised in a thunderstorm, proving lightning is a form of electricity
· In 1765, British clock master John Harrison was awarded 10,000 pounds for the invention of the naval longitude clock
· In 1768, riots break out in London over the imprisonment of John Wilkes, a journalist who severely criticized King George II
· In 1773, British Parliament passed the Tea Act designed to help the British East India Company
· In 1774, Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette became King and Queen of France
· In 1775, a small colonial militia led by Ethan Allen and Benedict Arnold captured Fort Ticonderoga
· In 1775, the Second Continental Congress took place in Philadelphia
· In 1776, Napoleon’s Army defeated the Austrian Army at Lodi Bridge in Italy killing some 2000 Austrian soldiers
· In 1797, the first US Navy ship was launched
· I=In 1801, The Barbary pirates of Tripoli declared war on the United State of America (The First Barbary War)
· In 1824, The National Gallery Opened in London
· In 1837, New York City banks suspend the payment of specie (a kind of coin), triggering a national banking crisis and an economic depression whose severity was not surpassed until the Great Depression of 1929
· In 1837, Pickney Pinchback, the first US black governor (Louisiana), was born
· In 1838, John Wilkes Booth was born (assassinated Abraham Lincoln)
· In 1855, yogi Yukteswar Giri, guru of Paramahansa Yogananda and Swami Satyananda Giri was born
· In 1865, Union troops captured Confederate President Jefferson Davis
· In 1869, the Transcontinental Railroad was completed at Promontory Summit, in Utah Territory with a golden spike
· In 1872, Victoria Woodhull became the first woman to be nominate for president of the United States
· In 1877, US president Rutherford B. Hayes had the first White House telephone installed
· In 1886, the English Football Association approved the sporting cap for international matches. The earliest caps were velvet with satin linings and a tassel
· In 1886, Swiss theologian Karl Barth was born
· In 1893, renowned Pueblo artist Tonita Pena was born
· In 1893, the US Supreme Court decided, for taxation reasons, that despite scientific evidence, a tomato was a vegetable and not a fruit
· In 1899, American actor/dancer/singer Fred Astaire was born
· In 1900 astronomer and astrophysicist Cecilia Payne who discovered what the universe is made of was born
· In 1902, Portugal went bankrupt
· In 1908, Mother’s Day was first observed in the US in the town of Grafton, WV
· In 1915, Canadian physician Cluny Macpeherson first presented his invention of the gas mask
· In 1919, former Connecticut Governor Ella Grasso was born; she was Connecticut’s first woman governor (Elected in 1975) and the 4th woman to become governor of any state
· In 1922, the US annexed the Kingman Reef (halfway between Hawai’I and Samoa)
· In 1924, J. Edgar Hoover was appointed Director of the FBI (he served until 1982)
· In 1929, actor George Coe, “Saturday Night Live” regular season1, “Archer”, “Big Eden was born
· In 1930, the first US planetarium opened (Chicago)
· In 1933, the Nazi government stage massive public book burnings
· In 1933, British novelist Barbara Taylor Bradford was born
· In 1933, Paraguay declared war on Bolivia
· In 1938, Spanish five-time grand slam champion Manuel Santana was born
· In 1940, German fighters accidentally bombed Freiberg, Germany
· In 1940, Winston Churchill became prime minister of the UK
· In 1940, country-soul singer Arthur Alexander was born
· In 1941, the German Luftwaffe damaged The House of Commons in an air raid
· In 1942, three-time NCAA champion men’s basketball coach for UConn Jim Calhoun was born
· In 1943, dancer and choreographer Judith Jamison was born
· In 1946, Scottish singer Donovan was born
· In 1946, singer/songwriter/guitarist and founder of “Traffic” Dave Mason was born
· In 1949, fashion designer Miuccia Prada was born
· In 1954, actor Mike Hagerty was born “Lucky Louie” was born
· In 1955, famed ESPN sportscaster Chris Berman was born
· In 1955, John Lennon murderer Mark David Chapman was born
· In 1957, punk rock singer and bassist Sid Vicious was born
· In 1958, former Pennsylvania senator and former presidential candidate Rick Santorum was born
· In 1959, US Senator from Mississippi Cindy Hyde-Smith was born
· In 1960, Singer-songwriter and activist Bono (U2) was born
· In 1960, the US atomic submarine Triton completed the first submerged circumnavigation of the globe
· In 1961, Air France Flight 406 was destroyed by a bomb over the Sahara Desert, killing 78 people
· In 1962, Marvel comics published the first issue of The Incredible Hulk
· In 1965, Canadian model Linda Evangelista was born
· In 1969, The Battle of Dong Ap Bia (Hamburger Hill) began in the Vietnam War
· In 1972, a South Korean bus plunged into a reservoir killing 77 people
· In 1975, Sony introduced the Betamax videocassette recorder
· In 1975, Brazilian race car driver and “Dancing with the Stars” champion Helio Castroneves was born
· In 1976, Paul Harvey’s “The Rest of the Story” debuted on ABC radio
· In 1978, Actor/comedian Kenan Thompson “Saturday Night Live” was born
· In 1979, the Federated States of Micronesia became self-governing
· In 1989, General Manuel Noriega nullified Panama’s election despite losing to the opposition by 3-1 margin
· In 1993, a fire at the Kader Toy Factory killed over 200 workers in Thailand
· In 1994, Nelson Mandela was inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president
· In 1994, Italy’s Silvio Berlusconi formed a government with 5 neo-fascists
· In 1995, an elevator accident killed 104 miners in South Africa
· In 1996, a blizzard struck Mt. Everest, killing 8 climbers
· In 1997, a 7.3 earthquake in Northeastern Iran killed 1,567 people
· In 1998, Viktor Orban was elected prime minister of Hungary
· In 2000, India’ s population reached 1 billion people
· In 2002, an FBI agent was sentenced to life imprisonment for selling US secrets to Russia for 1.4 million in cash
· In 2005, a hand grenade was thrown at US President George Bush while he was giving a speech Tbilisi, Georgia. (It malfunctioned and did not detonate)
· In 2012, suicide bombers used car bombs in Damascus, Syria, killing 55 people
· In 2013, the One World Trade Center became the tallest building in the Western Hemisphere
· In 2016, an Indian fertility clinic announced the birth of a baby boy to a 70-year old woman
· In 2020, the number of global cases of COVID-19 rose to 4 million and the death toll rose to 270,000
· In 2021, the FDA authorized the COVID-19 vaccine for those 12 to 15 years old
· In 2022, Queen Elizabeth missed the State Opening of Parliament for the first time in 59 years
· In 2022, Apple stopped producing iPods
Holidays to hold this day:
Mother’s Day (2nd Sunday of May) (US, Canada, Australia, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Guatemala)
Alaska Mining Day - May 10, 2026
Boys’ Festival (Japan/Hawai’i)
Clean Up Your Room Day
Children’s Day--Maldives
Confederate Memorial Day - May 10, 2026 (States of North Carolina and South Carolina)
Constitution Day (Micronesia)
Golden Spike Day (Promontory, Utah)
Mother’s At the Wall Day - (Always Mother’s Day)
National Clean Up Your Room Day
National Lipid Day
National Shrimp Day
National Small Business Day
National Veal Ban Action Day -
One Day Without Shoes
Trust Your Intuition Day
World Lupus Day
A Reminder of Good in the World
This week from the BBC in Africa….
A baby hippo found desperately nudging its dead mother at a lake in Kenya over the weekend is now being hand-reared at a wildlife sanctuary after being rescued.
The calf, which has been named Bumpy, was “just days old” when it became orphaned, according to Sheldrick Wildlife Trust, a charity whose keepers are now taking care of it.
The Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS), which rescued the calf and handed it over to the wildlife charity for specialised care, said the mother may have died from natural causes.
KWS said the mother hippo had visible injuries on its lower body, which are “presumed to have resulted from an encounter with another wild animal”.
“It is possible that the mother sustained fatal injuries while protecting the calf or during a naturally occurring encounter... [or it] could be an encounter with a male hippo during the mating process,” KWS told the BBC.
It said such incidents, while not routine, were not uncommon in a wild ecosystem.
KWS said rescuing the calf from the water was a “logistical challenge”, with the calf clinging to its dead mother. It said it had to make a “painful decision” to use the decomposing body “as the only anchor to safely reach the calf”.
According to Sheldrick, the mother had been dead for more than a day or longer, based on the level of decomposition.
After being rescued, the baby hippo spent its first night at a nursery in the capital Nairobi, being fed on milk and swaddled in a blanket.
The charity says Bumpy “was clearly desperate for comfort and connection” and has been glued to his keepers ever since.
The calf was later flown by helicopter to Sheldrick’s Kaluku sanctuary near Tsavo East National Park, to be taken care of until it is ready to be released into the wild.
The sanctuary has been sharing Bumpy’s story and photos at its new location – at a pool near the Athi River which runs through the park.
“[Bumpy] spends a lot of the day submerged - but never alone. A rather waterlogged keeper is by his side throughout the day, in the water or on the ground,” Sheldrick adds.
“He is a very snuggly creature and is happiest when nestled on or against someone,” the sanctuary adds, alongside a photo of the hippo with its head on the keeper’s lap.
Bumpy joins another young hippo at Kaluku who is nearly a year old, although they are being kept in different areas, the sanctuary says.
Both are expected to be released when they grow up to join other hippos living in the wild.
In the wild, a hippo calf nurses for up to a year or more but remains closely attached to its mother for several years until around sexual maturity, according to wildlife experts.
Founded in 1977, the Sheldrick Wildlife is renowned for its care of orphaned elephants and rhinos, rescuing and reintegrating them into the wild.
The charity received the first hippo under its care in December 2016 - an orphaned female named Humphretta, or Humpty. However, the young hippo died six months later.
KWS told the BBC that successful hand-rearing of a hippo was possible when undertaken by experienced wildlife professionals, with rehabilitation programs “designed to preserve their instinctive behaviours and natural affinity to water”.
It added that it had, with its conservation partners, previously rehabilitated and reintegrated other orphaned hippos successfully into the wild at the Tsavo park.
For those events, people, and acts, and for the week ahead and for what we hold in our hearts, we offer these prayers of remembrance, honor, and care. May we all work to make our world a better place.