Title: The Passion of Matthew Shephard

Categories: Images

Icon Number: 096

Reproductions: Prayer Cards

Dedicated To The Memory Of The
1,470 Gay and Lesbian Youth Who Commit Suicide In the U.S. Each Year
And To The Countless Others Who Are Injured Or Murdered

Be gracious to me, O Lord, for I am in distress;
my eye is wasted with grief, my soul and body also.
Strong, as I am, I stumble because of my inequality,
and my bones waste away.
I am the scorn of my adversaries, a horror to my
neighbors, an object of dread to my
acquaintances; when they see me in the street
they turn quickly away.
1 have passed out of mind like one who is dead; I have
come to be like something lost.
Yea, 1 hear many whispering -terror on every side! -as
they scheme together against me, to take my life.
But 1 trust in thee, O Lord, I say, "Thou art my God."
Rescue me from those who persecute me!
I will rejoice and be glad for thy unfailing love,
because thou hast cared for me in my distress
and thou hast not abandoned me
but hast set me free.

A Rereading From Psalm XXXI (RSV/NE/SE)