Sabeel Wave of Prayer: Week of June 26, 2023
This week Kumi Now considered Israel as a nuclear power. Next Tuesday marks the halfway point in the Kumi Now calendar. It gives us an opportunity to take stock and look back over the issues covered in the first half of the year by referencing the Kumi Now calendar on the website.
- Lord, we give thanks for the faithful perseverance of those who continue to challenge the injustices Palestinians suffer living under Israeli occupation. May they know the light of your presence as they seek to fight oppression with nonviolent means. Lord, in your mercy..
On Friday, the 23rd of June, the High Commissioner for the United Nations, Volker Türk, spoke out about the Israeli raid on Jenin refugee camp on Monday night . He stated that, ‘the violence risks spiraling out of control, fueled by strident political rhetoric and an escalation in the use of advanced military weaponry by Israel.’ Israeli helicopter gunships were deployed in the Jenin raid, which left seven Palestinians dead and more than ninety seriously injured.
- Lord, we pray that the Israeli government will heed the UN warnings to scale back its military raids and use of heavy weaponry which is causing many Palestinian deaths and casualties. Lord, in your mercy..
A day after the deadly Jenin raid Palestinian gunmen retaliated by killing four Israeli settlers at a petrol station not far from Nablus. Only hours after that incident Israeli settlers took revenge into their own hands by storming through Palestinian towns, torching property and smashing cars. The Israeli authorities were slow to respond to these outbreaks of settler violence and there was widespread damage to properties, terrorizing Palestinian residents and one Palestinian, Omar Qattin, was killed by Israeli army fire.
- Lord, we pray for the family and friends of Omar who lost his life during a violent settler attack. We cry out to you, Lord, as we see more and more revenge attacks between Palestinians and Israelis in an escalating cycle of violence We pray that the Israeli authorities will stop illegal Israeli settlers from causing mayhem in the occupied West Bank. Lord, in your mercy…
Eid al-Adha is the most important feast in the Moslem calendar and it will be celebrated for several days in Palestine, beginning on Tuesday, the 27th of June. One of the main traditions practiced during this festival is the charitable giving of food, money and clothes to the poor.
- We pray for Moslems as they gather together with their family and friends to celebrate during this festival. We are thankful for the care they take to provide support for those less fortunate than themselves. Lord, in your mercy…
A fifteen-year-old Palestinian teenager, Sadil Ghassen Turkman was caught up in the Israeli Jenin raid on Monday night. During the assault she was critically injured when she was shot in the head by an Israeli soldier. Sadly, she died just two days later.
- Lord, we pray for those who grieve for the violent and untimely death of Sadil, as well as for those who mourn the deaths of the other Palestinians. We pray for an end to these frequent raids, presented by the Israeli government as enforcing law and order, but leading instead to more Palestinian deaths and the provocation of violent retaliation. Lord, in your mercy..
On Sunday, the 18th of June, hundreds of protestors turned out in the city of Haifa to demonstrate against the targeting of St Elias’ Church and Monastery by Israeli extremists. The religious extremists had entered the church on Thursday and prayed out loud there, claiming they had a right to do so as the tomb of a Jewish figure lies in the church courtyard. They were ejected from the church by a young Christian from Haifa. The Israeli police took no action against the irreverent actions of the extremists, but arrested and interrogated the young Christian claiming he had assaulted them. Residents from Haifa, Christian Clergy and Moslem Imams joined the protest in solidarity with one another.
- Lord, we are deeply saddened by the frequent attacks by Israeli religious extremists on Christian and Moslem sacred sites across the Holy Land. We pray that the Israeli authorities will respect the sanctity of these religious places and stop giving support to the extremists bent on profaning them. Lord, in your mercy…
• We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Kenya and Tanzania. Lord, in your mercy..