When the Israeli
occupation forces turned up to demolish a home in the West Bank village of
Budrus on January 6th they were met with an unexpected obstacle:
dozens of Palestinian women protecting the house with their bodies. Over 1100
homes and structures have been destroyed by the Israeli army in 2016.
·
Lord we thank you for all the grandmothers, mothers,
aunts, sisters, cousins, daughters, neighbors and friends who stood hand in
hand in solidarity and refused to let the army demolish that family’s home. We
pray that such beautiful actions of solidarity and nonviolent resistance will
continue to spread in our communities. Lord in your mercy…
Gaza has been
suffering from a chronic power deficit for years amid Israel's blockade - a
situation that worsened after the 2014 Israeli assault, which destroyed Gaza's
power plant. Even before the war, Israeli-supplied electricity to Gaza met less
than half of the territory's estimated needs.
·
Lord, you are the light of the world and Gaza won’t
stay in darkness. Thank you lord for the 320 days of sunlight per year. Thank
you for the innovative minds and dedications of the “Empower Gaza” initiative-
that aims to install solar panels in major hospitals throughout the territory.
Lord in your mercy…
A group of
Israeli settlers on Sunday morning took over a Palestinian residential building
in Silwan, East Jerusalem. The settlers reportedly took over the building while
accompanied by Special Israeli forces. The building is the property of a
Palestinian man, who is currently in Jordan. The settlers took over his home as
well.
·
Lord, Israeli settlers continue to be blinded by
extremism and greed. Grant us Lord the wisdom needed to deal with the settlers,
the courage required to defend the Palestinian victims and the full commitment
to nonviolence as the only tool of resistance. Lord in your mercy…
Dozens of female
cancer patients in the Gaza Strip have launched a protest against Israel’s
refusal to allow them to cross to the West Bank to seek medical treatment. The
women say the ban or delay of their treatments is a “premeditated death
sentence.”
·
Lord, let the cries of the cancer patients reach the
deaf ears of the decision makers in Israel and the world. We have faith in you
Lord and in your healing powers. Heal the hearts of the Israeli leaders with
compassion and mercy. Lord in your mercy…
·
We join the World Council of Churches in praying for
the countries of Iran, Iraq and Syria. Lord in your mercy…
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