The Bible tells us to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and the international church community seeks to honour that call each year by joining hearts and minds during two different winter events.
During the week of January 30, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and then on March 6th for the World Day of Prayer, special services and celebrations were held all over the world.
Two Presbyterian congregations wanted to share their experience in these events. Here are their stories.
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2015, Calvin, Kitchener, Ont.
Christians are reminded of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples “they may be one so that the world may believe” (John 17:21). From January 18 to 25, we joined with the ministers in our neighbourhood and celebrated our Christian unity through worship and song.
The theme for our week of prayer came from John 4:7: “Jesus said to her: ‘Give me a drink.’” Five churches in Kitchener joined to celebrate. The week started with a Sunday afternoon service at the Highland Baptist Church with worship and singing. Calvin Presbyterian served as the host church under the leadership of Dr. Rev. Frank Szatmari. Over the next five days, ministers from the Baptist, Roman Catholic and United churches took turns preaching the message at Calvin. The sermons focused on the theme under the headings of Testimony, Annunciation, Renunciation, Denunciation, and Proclamation. It is our hope that in future years all churches will join in worship, celebrating our Christian unity.
In heaven there will be no Presbyterians. It will only matter that we loved our Lord Jesus Christ and that we served him well during our time here.
—Bonnie Street, Calvin, Kitchener, Ont.
World Day of Prayer, St. Andrew’s, Duncan, B.C.
“Through our participation in the World Day of Prayer, we affirm that prayer and action are inseparable and that both have immeasurable influence on the world,” says the website of the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada.
The World Day of Prayer service in Duncan B.C., in which seven churches took part, was hosted by the Ladies Guild of St Andrew’s Presbyterian. It was an ecumenical service with participation from Duncan United, St. John’s Anglican, St. Peter’s Anglican, Duncan Christian Reformed, New Life Baptist, St. Edward’s Roman Catholic and St. Andrew’s Presbyterian. The service is hosted on a rotation basis each year, with at least one representative from each church taking part in a section of the service. Our pastor, Rev. Christopher Clarke, gave the homily.
The World Day of Prayer began when Presbyterian women in the United States called for a national Day of Prayer in 1887, and Anglican women in Canada established a national day of intercessions for mission in 1895. On Oct. 19, 1918, Presbyterian women in Canada called together representatives of five Women’s Missionary boards—Anglican, Baptist, Congregational, Methodist and Presbyterian —“to promote the spreading of Christ’s kingdom through united prayer and action.”
Today, after going through several changes and iterations, the Women’s Inter-Church Council of Canada coordinates the World Day of Prayer in this country and aims to speak to issues that concern women of faith. Services are held all over the world on the first Friday in March.
Each year, the prayer service is written by the women of a different country. This year, it was the Bahamas. At St. Andrew’s, the Ladies Guild decorated the sanctuary with flowers and fresh fruit, and after the service guests were served traditional foods of the Bahamas.
We encourage more Presbyterian women’s groups all over Canada to consider hosting a service and to encourage women from other denominations to join with them.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Philippians 4:6).
— Donna Einarsson, St Andrew’s, Duncan, B.C.
