23/6/11 - English

As the Gaza Freedom Flotilla II sets sail we hold in prayer the over 500 people from 22 countries on board the 10 boats heading for Gaza in an attempt to break Israel’s illegal blockade of the Strip. With memories of the 9 flotilla members killed the First Freedom Flotilla last year and with the Israeli military’s statements that it will use force if necessary this year to prevent a breaking of the blockade, we pray for the safety of all involved and for an end to the 5 year old blockade that has deprived Gaza’s 1.6 million residents of freedom and human dignity and created a humanitarian crisis.

We pray for all the Palestinian children who are routinely arrested and held without charge by Israeli authorities, especially remembering the 8 year old boy in Hebron whose arrest Christian Peacemaker Teams witnessed on Sunday, June 19. We are encouraged by children and young adults who are nonviolently acting and speaking out against the occupation that affects every part of their lives, including Jalal Abukhater, a 16 year old Palestinian blogger from Jerusalem who is a part of the growing movement using social media (http://www.salem-news.com/articles/june102011/palestine-citizen-ja.php).

We hold in prayer the families affected by Monday’s demolition where Israeli bulldozers destroyed homes in the Bedouin herding encampment of Khirbet Bir Al-Idd, displacing 60 men, women and children.  We pray for an end to this policy of demolishing Bedouin villages, of which this is the latest in a series over the past months: including on June 14 the Jordan Valley Bedouin community of Fasayil was demolished, in March tent homes were demolished near Tubas and in April homes in the same area were demolished and shepherd dwellings in the northern valley were destroyed.

We pray for participants and leaders of the Sabeel Women’s program on Friday where participants from the Jerusalem and Nazareth areas will visit the villages of Aboud and Bir Zeit, visiting Christian Holy sites and learning about the archeological, historical and contemporary importance of these villages. We also thank God for the Nazareth staff who continue to offer programs and gatherings, including last week’s meeting of Christian and Jewish women working for peace and justice and the Children’s program for Pentecost.

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