Thursday, August 07, 2008

Sabeel Wave of Prayer

Each week at 12:00 in Jerusalem Sabeel holds a Communion service that is open to the community. It is a time to join together to celebrate the eucharist, to discuss how the scriptures apply to our lives today, and to pray for the specific needs of this region. Our hope is that in our respective time zones, individuals and groups around the world will pray together at 12:00 on Thursdays, in solidarity with Sabeel in Jerusalem and with “Friends of Sabeel” worldwide. Starting in Australia, passing through Palestine, and continuing on around the world we pray for Peace with Justice and focus on specific issues each week.

Wave of Prayer for Thursday, August 07, 2008

We pray for Gaza. We mourn the recent infighting between Hamas and Fatah factions and pray for the families of those hurt and killed. We pray for residents of Gaza who are denied entry into Israel for medical treatment, many of whom are being pressured into becoming informants in exchange for necessary treatment. We pray for God’s help in bringing justice and peace to the people of Gaza.

We pray for all those affected by the severe drought in the region, especially rural villages in the West Bank who face these hot summer days without adequate water. We pray that the Israeli government treat all of the people in this land, citizens and occupied, with an equitable distribution of water .

We pray for the local and international participants in Sabeel’s young adult conference as they travel to their respective homes. We thank God for their enthusiastic participation, and pray for their courage to share the stories and to advocate for a just solution to the conflict.

We thank God for the hundreds of "peace" squares that have been sent to Sabeel through our Friends of Sabeel Netherlands chapter for our Peace Tapestry. We are in awe of the diversity of visions of peace offered by our friends, both locally and internationally.

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