Sabeel Wave of Prayer
The Great March of Return was suspended this past
Friday due to the two days of bombing from Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF)
throughout the Gaza strip in response to rocket fire from Islamic Jihad. Up
until the declaring of an Egypt and UN negotiated ceasefire, IOF killed 33
Palestinians; 14 of them were civilians, including 3 women and 8 children.
Furthermore, 46 Palestinian civilians, including 16 children and 6 women, were
injured. Included in these numbers is the tragedy of the killing of 8 members
of one family in the Dir al-Balah area of Gaza. The family home was bombed on
the basis of ‘out-of-date intelligence’ according to the IOF.
- God of peace, our
prayers for a real and lasting cease-fire and the protection of the
civilians are unending. From lack of water, electricity, and medical
supplies to the onset of diseases, the humanitarian disaster in Gaza has
no immediate end. Lord, comfort your people in Gaza; be with them in
the shelters, in their broken neighbourhoods, in the overcrowded
hospitals, and in the lines as they wait for water. Lord in your
mercy…hear our prayer.
The Kumi Now initiative focuses on the work of Wi’am,
the Palestinian Conflict Transformation Centre based in Bethlehem. Wi’am helps
to resolve disputes in the Palestinian community. It has also set up programmes
to help the local community deal with the long-term effects of the Israeli
military occupation. There are nearly twenty thousand Palestinian residents
living in cramped conditions in the nearby Aida and Dheisheh refugee camps.
They experience high levels of stress due to frequent military incursions and
arrests in the camps.
- Dear Lord, we thank you for the
work of Wi’am and particularly for their outreach work with children
living in the overcrowded refugee camps. We pray that their work in the
shadow of the separation wall will bring light and hope to those who live
in a dark and dangerous area. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.
The Sabeel Annual Christmas Dinner will take place on
the 14th of December in East Jerusalem. Clergy and community members from all
Christian denominations are invited to celebrate together and to renew their
bonds of friendship and mutual support.
- Lord, we give thanks for this
joyful event and rejoice that our Palestinian brothers and sisters will be
drawn together in this celebration as ‘one body in Christ’. Lord, in your
mercy…hear our prayer.
Ayman Odeh, an Israeli Arab lawyer and politician has
been listed in the ‘Leaders’ group in Time magazine’s ‘100 Next’ listing of
rising stars who are shaping the future in various fields. Odeh is the leader
of the Hadash party, a member of the Knesset, and the head of the Joint List
alliance. He urges Jewish-Arabic co-operation as a way forward in the political
arena.
- Lord, we pray for all those who
work for peace, equality and righteousness in the Holy Land in a spirit of
co-operation and understanding. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.
Sabeel is hosting its first International Gathering
from the 2nd to the 7th of December. Those attending the Gathering will meet in
a variety of settings in Bethlehem to gain a deeper understanding of the
political situation in the Holy Land. They will also have the opportunity to
worship and enjoy fellowship with the Christian community, as well as meeting
Jews and Muslims.
- Lord, we pray for all the
careful planning and organisation that is going on to make the Gathering
relevant and interesting. We pray that you would enable those you want to
attend to learn and to be ready to share what they have learnt when they
return home. Lord, in your mercy...hear our prayer.
- We join with the World Council
of Churches in their prayers for the countries of East Timor (Timor
Leste), Indonesia, and the Philippines. Lord, in your mercy…hear our
prayer.
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