Women from England, Northern Ireland and Wales prepared this year’s World Day of Prayer program and have focused on Jeremiah 29:1-14, well-known for the line “I know the plans I have for you.”
Church of Our Lady Roman Catholic Church at 566 Vaughan Street will host the World Day of Prayer event on Friday, March 4, at 2 p.m. It will follow all existing COVID-19 protocols to keep attendees safe.
Access Communications in Saskatchewan will broadcast the World Day of Prayer video on its AccessNow TV channel, available in nearly 100 communities and online. It will show the video on March 4 and then again on March 11, 18 and 25 at 3 p.m.
The World Day of Prayer is an event organized under the umbrella of the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada (WICC). The organization includes representatives of several denominations.
More information about this year's World Day of Prayer can be found at https://wicc.org.
Each year since 1927, a different host country has prepared the content of the World Day of Prayer service, highlighting its country’s culture and regional justice issues. The weekend of prayer begins in Samoa and travels in many languages throughout 170 countries — in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Europe, Australia, and the Americas. Together, participants pursue justice, peace, and reconciliation by standing together in prayer and action.
Last year was the first time that WICC put together a video to share across the country. Due to the video’s popularity — and the ongoing pandemic — the organization has created a second film that groups can view together.
“We are encouraged to reflect on the changes and challenges faced by these countries as they have evolved independently and collectively over hundreds of years,” WICC’s website says. “The writing team has shared the injustice obstacles that immigrant women to the UK have met … and the hopes for the future.”
Besides adults, children are also encouraged to participate in World Day of Prayer, the website says. Some ways that kids can take part include:
- Sitting in a circle and passing around a stone. When each child holds the stone, he or she is asked if they need to apologize for something and then ask God to forgive them
- Drawing a hopscotch grid on the ground with numbers 1 – 6 and throwing a pebble or stone into each number. When it lands, the child must hop to each number and pray for a topic such as thankfulness, forgiveness, hope, or prayer for others
- Using a sheet or length of fabric as a “parachute,” children hold an edge and raise it together, saying, “We lift our thanks to you! We thank you for … .”
Offerings received during World Day of Prayer events go toward project grants to empower women and children in Canada and throughout the world, the website added. All regions share the grants, with consideration given to the greatest need.
Through WDP offerings, WICC has distributed around $3 million for small projects in the past 40 years. The vision is to restore hope to women and children touched by injustice.
