WCC News: Global prayer will commemorate World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel

A global ecumenical prayer on 18 September will commemorate the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, being observed this year from 16-23 September. The World Council of Churches (WCC) is inviting online or in-person participation for people to pray, advocate, and stand in solidarity with people in the Holy Land. Photo: Albin Hillert/WCC 13 September 2023 The global prayer will explore the theme of the 2023 World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, “No place to lay my head,” a theme that reflects the challenge for Palestinian families as well as other people facing difficulties to a uniting home. WCC general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay will open the prayer with a greeting. His Beatitude Patriarch Theophilus III of Jerusalem will share a reflection.  During the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel, which includes the International Day of Prayer for Peace on 21 September, church organizations, congregations, and people of faith are encouraged to bear a common witness by participating in worship services, educational events, and acts of support in favor of peace and justice for Palestinians and Israelis. Congregations and individuals around the globe who share the hope of justice will unite during the week to take peaceful actions, together, to create a common international public witness.  Watch the Global Prayer live on 18 September, 15:00 (CEST) at www.oikoumene.org/live Learn more about the World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel See more

The World Council of Churches promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. An ecumenical fellowship of churches founded in 1948, today the WCC brings together 352 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 580 million Christians in over 120 countries, and works cooperatively with the Roman Catholic Church. The WCC general secretary is Rev. Prof. Dr Jerry Pillay from the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern Africa. Media contact: +41 79 507 6363; www.oikoumene.org/press Our visiting address is: World Council of Churches 150 route de Ferney Geneve 2 1211 Switzerland