Sabeel Wave of Prayer: Week of June 23, 2025
As mainstream media focuses all its attention on Iran and the potential of more devastating wars, the situation in Palestine deteriorates with forced marches, humiliation, bombings, and deliberate starvation in Gaza. Over the span of a week, hundreds of Palestinians have been in Killed in Gaza.
Holy God, we are living in the deepest depths of despair. We cry out to you, knowing that you know every name and face in Gaza, and you hold each of them close to you. We pray for the end of war and for justice to come for the most oppressed and marginalized.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
Over the weekend, the U.S. decided to escalate its involvement by directly launching strikes on nuclear facilities in Iran, further risking a broader and more devastating conflict. The U.S. government and mainstream media—many of whom have been directly complicit in the ongoing genocide in Gaza—continue to sound the drums of war, echoing the same propaganda that led to the Iraq War and the deaths of millions.
God of Truth, you hear the cries of the oppressed and see through the lies of empire. We come to you with heavy hearts as history threatens to repeat its worst chapters. When those in power try to manufacture our consent for war, remind us of your commandment to “do no wrong and do no violence to the stranger, the fatherless, or the widow.” (Jeremiah 22:3) Holy Spirit, help us disrupt the machinery of death in our own creative and nonviolent ways. May we be examples of your love in a world deeply divided by hatred and sin.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
Last week, Israel’s High Planning Council affirmed that “Firing Zone 918” is essential for military training, and that all civilian presence and planning requests are to be denied. Firing Zone 918 was created to clear Palestinians from the area of South Hebron Hills. 12 Palestinian villages, home to 2,800 people, are now at imminent risk of mass demolition and forcible displacement.
Divine Creator, we lift our hearts in grief and righteous anger at the erasure of Palestinian communities, knowing that for nearly 80 years, our people have endured the same relentless campaign of ethnic cleansing—carried out through legal rulings, military threats, and settler violence. We pray for protection for the people of Masafer Yatta, for strength in the face of relentless violence. Instill in the international community the integrity to rise up against this injustice and end the occupation that steals human life and dignity.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
In July, Rev. Nontombi Naomi Tutu and Iyad Burnat from Bil’in Palestine will embark on a FOSNA “Hope Beyond Apartheid” speaking tour in the United States, exchanging stories from South African and Palestinian contexts. The tour, organized by FOSNA, is also co-sponsored by CAIR-Georgia, The Palestine Justice Network (PJN) of the Presbyterian Church (USA), Episcopal Peace Fellowship, Unitarian Universalists for Justice in the Middle East (UUJME), and Atlanta Multifaith Coalition for Palestine for cosponsoring our tour. Visit fosna.org to register for upcoming tour dates and to donate to support the tour.
God of all nations, we give thanks for the brave voices and groups organizing to bring hope and solidarity during a time where fear grips many of our communities. As Reverend Nontombi Naomi Tutu and Iyad Burnat speak of hope beyond apartheid, help remind all of us that “we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed.” (2 Corinthians 4:8-9) We pray for the safety of Reverend Tutu and Iyad as they embark on their tour and for all who continue to labor for a just world.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
At least 22 people were brutally killed and 63 others injured in a horrific terrorist suicide bomb attack on a church in Damascus during Sunday mass.
Lord of all comfort and of the oppressed, we lift before You the families of those who lost their lives in this horrific act of violence, and we cry out for healing for the wounded—body, soul, and land.
We remember that You are the God who hears the cry of the suffering, who walks with the persecuted, and who breaks the chains of fear and injustice. Let justice roll down like a mighty river, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Let hatred, terror, and sectarian violence be cast down, and may the power of Your liberating love rise up through Your people.
Strengthen the ancient Christian communities of Syria—those who have held the light of Christ through centuries of trial. May they not only survive, but shine brighter in the shadow of oppression, bearing witness to a kingdom that cannot be shaken.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers
We join the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the people of Malawi and Zambia.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers