As global conflicts and tensions soar, Catholic religious leaders throughout the world — from Ukraine’s Greek Catholic bishops to women religious to a pontifical charity — have called for a day of prayer and fasting for world peace on Aug. 14, the vigil of the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The International Union of Superiors General, which represents more than 1,900 congregations of women religious, issued a “Declaration for Peace” urging the day of prayer and fasting, stating, “In a world torn apart by war and inhumanity — in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Myanmar, Syria, Haiti, Democratic Republic of the Congo and in so many other countries wounded by both visible and invisible conflicts — we cannot remain silent spectators.”
‘A light can still shine’
The union, known by the acronym UISG, added, “As women who keep watch in the night, we continue to believe that even in the darkest hour, a light can still shine — the light of the Gospel, of justice, and of fraternity.”
UISG urged the faithful to engage on Aug. 14 in “moments of prayer and reflection on the Word within your communities, in light of the present suffering in our world, allowing ourselves to be inwardly transformed.”
In addition, the organization highlighted the need to “engage with civil and ecclesial authorities” on opening “paths of reconciliation, disarmament, the defense of human rights, and the protection of victims.”
The group also advised supporting “concrete acts of global solidarity, through networks of humanitarian aid, welcome, and prophetic advocacy on behalf of the most affected peoples.”
Prayer to ‘Mary, Mother of Peace’
UISG also posted a prayer invoking “Mary, Mother of Peace” and entrusting to her “all peoples torn apart by hatred” and asking, “Teach us how … to remain close to those who suffer, to pray even when words are no longer enough.”
Aid to the Church in Need International, a pontifical charity serving the persecuted church, took up the USIG call, with executive president Regina Lynch saying, “Wherever there is conflict, women and children are marginalized, and it is often they who suffer most.
“Religious sisters are often on the frontlines of wars, helping the innocent in whatever way they can, without regard for their own safety,” said Lynch. “It is therefore very commendable that this group of women should be leading the way in denouncing warfare and calling for peace and reconciliation.”
May Mary ‘touch the hearts of decision-makers’
She added, “Mary is the Queen of Peace. Let us pray that she may touch the hearts of decision-makers all over the world, that they may yearn for the peace of her son, Jesus Christ.”
With the day of prayer and fasting also taking place on the eve of a face-to-face meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska — part of what Trump has called an effort to broker a ceasefire in Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine — the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church has also joined in the effort.
The UGCC’s Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk exhorted the faithful to observe the day of prayer and fasting, noting the timing of the Trump-Putin meeting and saying, “We believe that those who fast, pray and work will be heard by the Lord.”
In a message to the faithful, the Ukrainian Catholic bishops of the U.S.– led by Metropolitan Archbishop Borys A. Gudziak of the Ukrainian Catholic Archeparchy of Philadelphia — said, “Our Ukrainian people, of every confession, have been praying for years for an end to the unjust brutal war and the establishment of a just peace.”
Russia’s war on Ukraine a genocide
Russia’s war in Ukraine, which continues attacks launched in 2014, has been declared a genocide in two joint reports from the New Lines Institute and the Raoul Wallenberg Center for Human Rights. In addition, the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab has issued multiple reports on Russia’s abduction and forced transfer of thousands of Ukrainian children, a violation of multiple international laws, including the Genocide Convention.
Read more: https://www.osvnews.com/ahead-of-feast-of-assumption-catholic-leaders-call-for-day-of-prayer-fasting-for-peace/
By Gina Christian | osvnews
