Sabeel Wave of Prayer

Each Thursday at noon 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. Following the 2006 Sabeel International Conference, the Friends of Sabeel coordinators met and discussed the idea of "Waves of Prayer." The premise is that in their 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 on around the world we will pray for Peace with Justice and focus on specific issues each week.



Wave of Prayer for Thursday, June 16, 2011


► We remember in prayer all of the people of Gaza as this week marks five years under Israeli siege, especially with the report just released by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) that Gaza continues to hold one of the highest unemployment rates in the world, with over 45.2% of working age people unemployed in the second half of 2010. We pray for an end to this destructive siege on the 1.6 million people of the Gaza Strip.

► As the situation in Syria deteriorates, we pray for all those caught in and fleeing the violence, including the over 7,000 refugees who have crossed into Turkey and the even larger number of people remaining just inside the Syrian border. We continue to hold in prayer all those striving for freedom, including the people of Bahrain, Libya, Palestine and Tunisia.

► We pray for all those in Africa who join us each week in the Wave of Prayer. As written by our South African friends, may we continue to "create 'kairos moments' in our own contexts," challenging "anything that seeks to kill and demean humans by using non-violent means to bring about just solutions."

► We pray for Sabeel's upcoming Community program on Friday, June 17: a Pentecost Picnic in the remains of Imwas, Yalo and Beit Nuba, Palestinian villages whose residents were driven out in 1967 by the Israeli authorities and their land turned into Canada Park. May this be a fruitful time of education, remembrance and fellowship.



With the Prayer Cycle of the World Council of Churches, we pray for:

Brazil



http://www.oikoumene.org/en/resources/prayer-cycle.html