Sabeel Wave of Prayer: Segregated buses, end of school year

Wave of Prayer: This prayer ministry enables local and international friends of Sabeel to pray over regional concerns on a weekly basis. Sent to Sabeel’s network of supporters, the prayer is used in services around the world and during Sabeel’s Thursday Communion service; as each community in its respective time zone lifts these concerns in prayer at noon every Thursday, this “wave of prayer” washes over the world.

Last week the Prime Minister of Israel announced the freezing of a plan that would stop Palestinians from travelling in the West Bank on Israeli buses, thereby segregating passengers based on race or national identity. Lord, we pray for an end to this discriminatory application of the law during this time of occupation. Lord in your mercy…

During clashes in the Shuafat refugee camp in Jerusalem a 10-year-old boy was shot by Israeli forces with a rubber bullet, causing fractures to his skull and jaw and the loss of his left eye. Lord, embolden us to stand with the vulnerable and oppressed, never forgetting the innocence lost in the midst of occupation. Lord in your mercy…

Students across Palestine and Israel are finishing the school year, and many who are completing secondary school are taking national exams that will determine their future. Lord, please give these students the clarity of mind— despite the uncertainties that surround them— to perform well on their tests, and let the summer holiday be a welcome rest for all the children. Lord in your mercy…

Lord, we pray for our programs this week, including a women’s retreat in Ein Karem reflecting on Mary’s Magnificat and the recent canonization of two 19th-century Palestinian nuns, the first two Palestinian saints of modern times. Lord in your mercy…

We pray alongside the World Council of Churches for the countries of Botswana and Zimbabwe. Lord in your mercy…