Sabeel Wave of Prayer – Week of Dec. 1, 2025
On the second week of Advent on 7th December, many churches around the world will light the second candle, “The Bethlehem Candle,” which represents peace. Many communities are participating in FOSNA’s “Preach Palestine” Advent campaign to preach justice and peace during Advent and to organize their communities towards liberation. Sign up for the resources here
Prince of Peace, as we journey through Advent, help us remember that you came to this earth to proclaim peace and righteousness. Teach us how to heed your call to be peacemakers and to resist the temptations of evil. We pray that all violence, wars and genocides may cease and a just peace will prevail.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
Fr. Francesco Ielpo and Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa recently issued an encouragement for pilgrims and people of faith to come to the Holy Land and bear witness to the Christian community. Sabeel encourages pilgrims who are planning pilgrimages to the Holy Land to adhere to Authentic Christian Pilgrimage (ACP) principles, outlined by Canadian Friends of Sabeel here.
God of all nations, we give gratitude to those who show loving solidarity with the living stones of the Holy Land through their visits, international actions, and support. We pray that pilgrims coming to the Holy Land may bear witness to your presence among the oppressed, and in doing so, do their part in achieving peace and justice for all. Continue to strengthen the sumud and hope of our communities as they undergo violence, in all the theological and physical forms it takes.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
Green Olive Tours recently hosted a webinar on “Uprooting Christian Zionism,” featuring Omar Haramy from Sabeel and Ghassan Najjar of the Burin Land and Farming Cooperative. The conversation focused on the destructive impact of Christian Zionist initiatives in the Nablus District and the theological catastrophe they represent, as well as how to counteract them. The webinar is part of Green Olive Tours’s Sowing Solidarity Campaign to counter HaYovel and their Greening Israel Project, which brings Christian Zionist volunteers to plant forests and assist settler projects in settlements.
Divine Creator, we grieve the actions of other Christian siblings who participate in theologies that justify dispossession and displacement. We give thanks to those participating in the Sowing Solidarity Campaign, and we pray that their actions of prophetic love and solidarity may counter the harms of Christian Zionism and envision theologies of liberation in its place.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
After months of campaigning, protesting, and relentless pressure, Palestinian American teenager Mohammed Ibrahim, who was kidnapped by Israeli forces and detained without trial for over 9 months on the allegation of throwing stones, was released from prison. While in prison, his 20-year old cousin Sayfollah Musallet, a fellow U.S. citizen, was killed by settlers in the West Bank.
Holy God, we are thankful for the release of Mohammed, and we pray for his healing and safety. We put faith that you continue to dwell with the many youth who are still detained and tortured in Israeli military prisons, especially all who do not have the privilege of a Western passport. With Mohammed’s freedom, remind us that our actions can do much. Give us the strength of the Holy Spirit to continue our work until freedom belongs to all.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
Despite the so-called ceasefire, an Israeli attack killed two children in Gaza over the weekend. Fadi and Goma Abu Assi, brothers aged 10 and 12, were gathering firewood to help their wheelchair-bound father east of Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
God of justice, you know what it is like to witness your son killed. Be with the family of Fadi and Goma, who bear the unfathomable pain of losing two children. As we grieve the many named and unnamed souls in Gaza, we hold on to our faith that “you will hear the cries of the oppressed and the orphans; you will judge in their favor.” (Psalm 10:18)
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
November 29 was the International Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian people. This day is observed by the United Nations each year, a date chosen for its significance. On Nov. 29th in 1947, the General Assembly adopted resolution 181, which came to be known as the Partition Resolution. Nearly 80 years later, the Palestinian people have yet to attain their inalienable rights as defined by the General Assembly, namely, the right to self-determination without external interference, the right to national independence and sovereignty, and the right to return to their homes, from which they have been displaced.
God who dwells with the oppressed, continue to illuminate to the world the realities of our people, and increase in us the steadfastness, creativity, and determination to confront all forces and actions that seek to deny dignity, life, and freedom.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayer
We join the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the people of Brunei, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers