Dear Heavenly Father,

We come to you as a nation at war. We confess the sin of arrogance. In great contests it is common for each party to claim to act in accord with the will of God. In the present war it is altogether likely that your purpose is something entirely different from the purpose of either party – yet, we pray that the human instrumentalities, working as they do, may be working toward your purpose.

We pray humbly but fervently for peace. With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as you give us the vision to see the right, give us the strength to finish the work we are in, to bind up the wounds of the nations, to care for those who have borne the battle and for their widows and their orphans, AND to do all in our power to achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.

We ask these things in your holy name.

Amen

A note on sources: Lincoln's "Meditation on the Divine Will" and Lincoln's Second Inaugural Address.