Ecumenical Accompaniers pray for peace

On the eve of today's worldwide day of prayer and fasting for peace in the Holy Land called by Pope Francis, last night the Ecumenical Accompaniers gathered to pray together online.

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Ann Farr writes:

All of us had served as Ecumenical Accompaniers* living in communities under severe threat of violence.

Into the silence, we gathered with us:

the teams we served with;
the families we lived alongside, who shared so much with us;
the women and children we sat with in the taboun as bread was baked;
the children we worked and played with in homes, schools and kindergartens;
the young people who teased us and tried to teach us their songs and dances;
the men who invited us into their circles around the fires at the end of day;
the shepherds we walked alongside as their sheep and goats followed them to the fields;
the farmers who taught us how to plant olive trees and collect the harvests;

those who told us their stories of unimaginable pain, suffering and displacement;
those we sat with in the rubble of their demolished homes;
those waiting at checkpoints, waiting and waiting;
the babies in their incubators, the sick in the hospitals;
those who taught us about nonviolent resistance, resilience, Sumud;
those who talked to us of 'hope where there is no hope';
the peacemakers we worked with;
the human rights workers we met with;
the communities we prayed with…

The silence was full of memories, pain, gratitude and an overwhelming hope that there will be justice, freedom and peace for everyone who has shared so much and so generously with us.

No words were needed or adequate. We left in silence, grateful for our shared experiences and for this time together as we continue to call for a ceasefire and an end to the siege in Gaza, the return of all hostages and an end to the occupation of Palestine.

"Our word is a cry of hope, with love, prayer and faith in God. We address it first of all to ourselves and then to all the churches and Christians in the world, asking them to stand against injustice and apartheid, urging them to work for a just peace." (Kairos Palestine)

*The World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical Accompaniment Programme in Palestine and Israel, based on an appeal from local church leaders to create an international presence in the country, accompanies the local people and communities, offering protective presence and witnessing their daily struggles and hopes. For more information see: https://eappi.org/en/