This week’s Kumi Now focussed on Bedouin Rights. We were joined by www.sidreh.org who spoke about the topic and highlighted the plight of the Bedouin.
Gracious God, we are thankful for all those who are willing to stand up for the rights of the Bedouin communities. These communities work hard to protect their way of life, care for the land around them, and maintain their traditions in the face of imminent expulsion from their lands. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.
23rd September, Sabeel and the local churches held a special event. Christians came together in the Old City of Jerusalem to highlight the existence of local Christians and to celebrate together the feast of the Raising of the Cross, after celebrations were limited by the Israeli occupation forces during Easter.
Lord, we thank you that many Palestinian Christians were able to come together for a time of prayer, worship, and fellowship in the Old City of Jerusalem. We thank you that they were able to spend time in the Church of the Resurrection (Holy Sepulcher) and to enjoy a bonfire gathering in the Armenian Quarter. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.
September 26th and 27th mark Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. During this time, Jews celebrate with prayer and sweets to bring in a new year full of sweetness and good fortune. At this time of year, the Israeli authorities also restrict further the movement of Palestinians by closing the checkpoints from the West Bank and Gaza over the days of the holidays and limit Muslim access to al-Aqsa Mosque to allow Jewish settlers to pray in the area.
Lord God, we wish a sweet year and happiness to our Jewish brothers and sisters. However, as they celebrate, Palestinians are once again restricted. To start a new year with more restrictions and control on another people whilst you celebrate is injustice. The constant closure of checkpoints and aggression over Jewish festivals must end. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayers.
Israeli settlers destroyed water pipes in the village of as-Sawiya to the south of the West Bank city of Nablus. They also plugged a spring which supplied the village. Control of water is just one of the multitudes of ways in which settlers try to control the land in the West Bank, closing off springs and re-directing water courses to serve settlements or outposts rather than the Palestinian villages.
Lord of nature, this closure of water pipes and a spring not only deprive local communities of much needed water, but also affect the natural landscape around them. In a part of the world where water is becoming a scarce resource, these attacks not only endanger the lives of Palestinians but all those living in the land. We pray that the residents of As-Sawiya will have their water pipes restored and that the spring has not been completely destroyed. Lord, in your mercy…hear our prayer.
New UK Prime Minister, Liz Truss, told Israeli PM Yair Lapid that she would “review” moving the British Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Palestine’s Ambassador to the UK, Husam Zumlot remarked that ”Any embassy move would be a blatant violation of international law and the UK’s historic responsibilities. It undermines the two-state solution and enflames an already volatile situation in Jerusalem, the rest of the occupied territories and among communities in the UK and worldwide.”
Dear Lord, we see governments around the world becoming more and more right wing and less and less just. This new move to consider the relocation of the British Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem is just another sign of this move rightwards, and a signal to the Israeli government that they can do what they like and the rest of the world will turn a blind eye. We pray that the UK government will see the injustice in this proposed move, reconsider, and look more closely at the injustices carried out by the occupation on a daily basis. Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers.
We join with the World Council of Churches in their prayers for the countries of Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Peru.
Lord in your mercy…hear our prayers.
Om Sabeel´s Wave of Prayer
Sabeel inbjuder varje vecka till bön för aktuella ämnen i regionen. Bönerna, som sprids i Sabeels nätverk, används under Sabeel Jerusalems reflektion och mässa varje torsdag och i församlingar runt om i världen. Då människor lyfter dessa böner 12.00 lokal tid varje torsdag, sköljer denna ”bönens våg” över världen.
Det har inte funnits möjlighet att översätta bönen till svenska denna vecka.
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