A NEW set of resources on responding to spiritual persecution has been published on the Church of England website.
The pages include information, prayers, and reports on freedom of faith or belief, and links to international anti-persecution charities and campaigns.
These have been collated in response to a motion carried by the General Synod, in July, which called for a day of prayer and motion for the persecuted Church (News, 12 July). During the talk, it was identified that an International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, an ecumenical initiative by which the C of E took part, already existed.
No latest date has been created, but churches and individuals are encouraged to participate, particularly, in the prevailing annual “Red Wednesday” prayer campaign on behalf of persecuted Christians. It was began by the international Roman Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need in 2016 (News, 18 November 2022), and this 12 months falls on 20 November.
Actions for this present day include signing an open letter to the Government urging it to secure higher protection for persecuted Christians abroad. They also include floodlighting church buildings in red. A press release confirmed that Lambeth Palace and Westminster Abbey would participate.
People are also encouraged to take part in other significant days all year long, including the ecumenical International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church, which this 12 months falls on Sunday 3 November, in addition to Contemporary Martyrs Day (15 February) and the UN International Day Commemorating Victims of Acts of Violence Based on Religion or Belief (22 August).
The Bishop of Winchester, the Rt Revd Philip Mounstephen, who chaired the Independent Review of Christian Persecution (News, 5 November 2021), said: “Religious persecution stays one among the gravest problems with our time, affecting tens of millions of individuals world wide. Through prayer and advocacy, we will stand alongside those suffering for his or her beliefs, working together for freedom of faith or belief for all.”
Aid to the Church in Need’s national director (UK), Dr Caroline Hull, said: “It is significant that motion is taken to arise and support countless people who are suffering a lot for his or her religious faith — including sexual violence, physical and mental torture, detention for free of charge, and even murder. #RedWednesday gives them a voice and calls on all of us to unite behind them.”
