Am IBeingUnfairto You?

Volume XLIII—A Publication of the World Day of Prayer International Committee

WORLD DAY OF PRAYERJOURNAL

2017

WRITTEN BY WDP WOMEN OF THE PHILIPPINES

Check out the WDPIC Websitehere: www.worlddayofprayer.net

Like us on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/WDPIC

World Day of Prayer 2 Journal 2017

FEATURES

03 From the ChairpersonNow we know the meaning of‘dagyaw’

04 Worship Service Bible TextMatthew 20:1-16

05 From the Writer Country“Am I Being Unfair to You?”

42 Leading Together

44 From the Executive DirectorInternational Committee Meeting Report

48 WDP at a Glance

WDP AROUND THE WORLD

07 Asia

10 Africa

15 Caribbean/North America

20 Europe

33 Latin America

38 Middle East

40 Pacific

World Day of Prayer Writing Committee, Philippines

Contents

To read and share these storiesonline, visit www.worlddayof-prayer.net/journals.html

On the Cover: A Glimpse of the Philippine Situation, painting by Rowena “Apol” Laxamana-Sta.Rosa for the program written by WDP Philippines.

World Day of Prayer 3 Journal 2017

Dear World Day of Prayer sistersand friends, I greet you warmly

on behalf of the World Day of PrayerInternational Committee!

As I’m writing this greeting, hurri-canes, earthquakes, and floods areamong the breaking news stories. Be-sides this, politicians and electionsbring more fears for tomorrow thanpeace or hope.

I share this prayer from the Presbyte-rian Church, USA: Holy One, you areour comfort and strength in times ofsudden disaster, crisis, or chaos. Sur-round us now with your grace andpeace through storm or earthquake,fire or flood. By your Spirit, lift upthose who have fallen, sustain thosewho work to rescue or rebuild, and fillus with the hope of your new cre-ation; through Jesus Christ, our rockand redeemer. Amen.

Like the Philippine sisters overcameTyphoon Yolanda-Haiyan, we shallovercome other storms called hatredor disasters. The 2017 theme “Am Ibeing unfair to you?” allowed us toconclude that the vineyard owner (ormaster) was fair from the beginning:the salary he has promised was paid asit was decided together. Finally, the

theme sounds like a promise of God’sjustice, peace, tenderness, and abun-dance to us.

In Brazil, “Seeking wisdom to care forGod’s Creation” was the theme of the International Committee Meeting(20-27 August 2017), and indeed, weare invited to continue seeking wis-dom! On Thursday, we were all invitedto dress in black, to support the WorldCouncil of Churches campaignagainst sexual and gender-based vio-lence and violence in general. “Thurs-day in black” is affirming that we aremarching “towards a world withoutrape and violence.” Let us continue towear black every Thursday and to sayNO to violence against women. Let usbe the ones who will bring peace and

happiness, tenderness and light to ourworld!

Now, we are preparing our communi-ties for the 2018 Suriname theme “AllGod’s Creation is very good.” Ofcourse, we will ask ourselves “Whathave we made for the creation?”“How can we heal or repair what wasvery good from the beginning?”—Butbefore action, let us take time to real-ize that we are all made like God. Ilove this quotation from Hans Ursvon Balthasar: “What you are is God’sgift to you, what you become is yourgift to God.” As God’s creatures, let usdo our best to care for God’s creation.

You are holding the Philippines Journalwith photos, reports, and experiencesfrom all over the world. It is anoverview of the global experiences likea marvelous and colorful bouquet offlowers. Let us take the time to readand discover all the experiences, testi-monies, and commitments made byWorld Day of Prayer leaders in theirown local context. Thank you to all thecommittees and groups who preparedWDP. Thank you to our Philippine sis-ters. Now, we all know the meaning of“dagyaw” in terms of sharing work,suffering, and hoping together!

Now we know the meaning of ‘dagyaw’

BY LAURENCE GANGLOFF

FROM THE CHAIRPERSON

Peace and blessings to you. Thanks for your commitment to World Day of Prayer!

Laurence Gangloff, Chairperson,World Day of Prayer International Committee

For the kingdom of heaven, is likea landowner who went out early

in the morning to hire laborers for hisvineyard. After agreeing with the la-borers for the usual daily wage, he sentthem into his vineyard. When hewent out about nine o’clock, he sawothers standing idle in the market-place; and he said to them, ‘You alsogo into the vineyard, and I will payyou whatever is right.’ So they went.When he went out again about noonand about three o’clock, he did thesame. And about five o’clock he wentout and found others standingaround; and he said to them, ‘Whyare you standing here idle all day?’They said to him, ‘Because no one hashired us.’ He said to them, ‘You alsogo into the vineyard.’ When eveningcame, the owner of the vineyard saidto his manager, ‘Call the laborers andgive them their pay, beginning withthe last and then going to the first.’When those hired about five o’clockcame, each of them received the usualdaily wage. Now when the first came,they thought they would receivemore; but each of them also receivedthe usual daily wage. And when theyreceived it, they grumbled against thelandowner, saying, ‘These last workedonly one hour, and you have madethem equal to us who have borne theburden of the day and the scorchingheat.’ But he replied to one of them,‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong;

did you not agree with me for theusual daily wage? Take what belongsto you and go; I choose to give to thislast the same as I give to you. Am Inot allowed to do what I choose withwhat belongs to me? Or are you envi-ous because I am generous?’ So the

last will be first, and the first will belast.

* New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright© 1989 the Division of Christian Education ofthe National Council of the Churches of Christin the United States of America. Used by permis-sion. All rights reserved.

World Day of Prayer 4 Journal 2017

Worship Service Bible TextMATTHEW 20:1-16*

PHILIPPINES

PHILIPPINES

World Day of Prayer 5 Journal 2017

When we were notified that wewere the writer country, I was

just starting my term as chairperson.My first reaction was, well, of course!Then there was this realization thatthis is a big responsibility. The task tolet the world know about our countrylay before us. Little did we realize thatwith this opportunity came the greatburden to study, to come together, toput our shoulders together and topray for patience and discernment.

Finding a common time among themembers of the writing committeewas difficult. Participation of those inthe provinces was limited to emailsand phone calls and courier services.Resourcefulness and creativity helpedus through. When work was finished,we heaved a sigh of relief.

AM I BEING UNFAIR TO YOU?

God’s abounding grace is bestowed onboth the worthy and unworthy. Thequestion posed by the meditationspeaker during our celebration was di-rected to the church: Is the churchbeing fair to its church worker? Thecongregation responded with a mur-mur of agreement to the question butin fact, in many places, pastors andchurch workers cannot sustain theneeds of their families, and equal op-portunity is denied to most femalepastors.

During the worship, many were movedto tears as the liturgy portrayed the situation of women in our country.The youth gave life to the songs andthe scripture text. The local hosts

mobilized their members to preparethe venue and the food, make decora-tions, and welcome the women atten-dees. Participants were delighted andinspired when singing the songs offaith and worship. We rediscoveredthat the deep wounds inflicted byforces within and without the commu-nity can be laid before God, and thatthe community of faith can help

“Am I Being Unfair to You?”BY WDP WOMEN OF THE PHILIPPINES

FROM THE WRITER COUNTRY

PHILIPPINES

PHILIPPINES PHILIPPINES

World Day of Prayer 6 Journal 2017

heal the wounds spawned by hate andselfishness. The participants were verythankful that more than a 100 coun-tries stood in solidarity with the Philip-pines through prayer and action.

INFORMED PRAYER ANDPRAYERFUL ACTION

The WDP has long been in thePhilippines. However, it has beenpracticed as a celebration of one day,and has not seeped into daily life. Cel-ebration is a way of thanking God forwhat has been done the past year andto move forward to the next year ofaction. The Philippines is so full ofGod-given natural beauty. The peopleare so warm, hospitable, resourcefuland strong. The varied cultures fromnorth to south are one reason to cele-brate. This multiplicity is not at all astumbling block to ecumenism, but itallows us to see ourselves as a colorfulgarden of cultural and religious diver-

sity that enriches the wonderful worldGod has given us.

Our ecumenical relationships shouldnot be limited to churches, but canand must be shared among neighbors.Filipinos are a prayerful people, yetthese prayers are often personal and

private. We must learn to engage thecommunity in prayer. This will leadpeople to use information for prayer-ful action, finding common groundon community concerns. When theWorld Day of Prayer comes again,there will be true cause for celebrationof unity.

We must learn to engage the community in prayer. This will lead people to useinformation for prayerful action, finding common ground on community concerns.

PHILIPPINES

PHILIPPINES

PHILIPPINES

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AsiaINDIA

HONG KONG

As we prepared for worship, weread out stories of Filipino

women who are victims of domes-tic violence, migrant domesticworkers in the country or abroad,and survivors of disasters in theenvironment or development poli-cies. These stories called our atten-tion to the sinfulness of structuresthat consolidate economic in-equality; alerting our awareness of ourethical responsibility to answer God’scall for justice.

The worship commenced with theprocession of 5 women carrying typicaldaily necessities of the Philippine peo-ple: water, oil, rice, fruits and bamboo.A young lady performed a dance car-rying a Chinese Scale, reminding thecommunity and churches to supportand engage in the continuing strugglefor justice for all of God’s creation.

Filipinos constitute the largest ethnicminority in Hong Kong, numberingnearly 200,000. We prayed for the Fil-ipino women mothers and wives whowithstand the pains and loneliness ofbeing away from family.

Website: www.hkcc.org.hk

INDIA

The World Day of Prayer programprovided the opportunity to re-

flect on and create awareness abouthuman trafficking. The story of Mary

Jane Veloso, a Filipina migrantworker who was used as a drugmule and trafficked to Indonesia,inspired The Women’s ConcernMinistry (All India Council ofChristian Women) and womenfrom member churches to launcha signature and prayer campaignto pressure the Indonesian Presi-dent to not penalize Mary JaneVeloso.

Indian women also contextualized theworship and discussed the plight ofthe indigenous and dalit women inIndia who are the most vulnerable totrafficking. We agreed on the need toengage in advocacy and education inthe church about human trafficking,and to empower mothers and teachersabout child protection policies to pre-vent human trafficking and protectpeople at risk.

HONG KONG

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JAPAN

Although the Philippines are famil-iar to us and many Filipino peo-

ple live in Japan, we were not aware ofsome of the issues that were lifted up.It is difficult to understand why manypeople are suffering from poverty in acountry that is 80% Christian. Thereare many non-profit and Christian or-ganizations that support Filipino mi-grants in Japan as well as groups in thePhilippines. The WDP JapaneseCommittee encouraged our church

members to join and support their ac-tivities.

The WDP worship itself is always ourjoy. Some churches baked cookieswith the WDP logo and shared thenwith participants after the worship.They also wore Filipino dresses orwraps. Many Filipino people and chil-dren joined WDP service and some ofthem gave their message during wor-ship or tea time.

Website: http://cloister171.blog.fc2.com

MALAYSIA

This year, the children were ex-cited to do the worship service,

since they were given the opportunityto participate and were eager to dram-atize the passage Matthew 20:1-16.Their enthusiasm was reflected intheir prayers: ‘Lord, be the protector andrescuer of children who are tortured andsuffering anywhere on earth.’ ‘Lord,blessthe country and help them in their need.Provide them food. Help them to im-prove their studies and protect them withhealth and wonderful weather.’ ‘Jesus,

please bless the Philippines people.’ ‘OGod, please protect the children. Keepthem safe. Give them food and water,help them in any trouble.’

In our program, the plight of foreignworkers was identified. If we know ofworkers being treated unjustly orabused, we agreed to refer them to anNGO that can assist them. We iden-tified with the plight of domesticworkers who are overworked, underpaid and abused.

SINGAPORE

Our service showed and demon-strated the unity and bonding

of love and service. It brought joy andit was awesome to bring togetherwomen of various denominations, traditions, and cultures. During theprocession, women dressed as farmersand peasants and placed farm prod-ucts and water on the altar table. Wealso printed the national flag ofPhilippines. Relating to the items onthe altar, it was excellent and motivat-ing to know and understand the needsof the women in the Philippines, andto pray for them. It really helped us to

SINGAPORE

MALAYSIA

JAPAN SRI LANKA

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think about others outside our every-day life. We came to know their suf-ferings, situations, and we were ableto lift them up to God in our prayers.

SRI LANKA

The speaker at our main serviceheld in Colombo challenged the

participants to let justice and peacework side by side in society and in thehome as well. She shared a story: A father with two sons and two daugh-ters wills the only house he possessesto his two sons. Daughter #1 is unmarried; daughter #2 is divorcedwith one child. Fighting and displeas-ure ensue. The daughters had to leavetheir home and work as domestic aids in foreign lands. There was no

justice and there-fore no peace inthe family.

After 30 years ofcivil war in SriLanka, there isstill a feeling thatsome of us arenot being treatedfairly. There isstill persecution

of Christians in remote areas of Sri Lanka. This is something thatWDP members need to address andhelp our brothers and sisters act accordingly.

TAIWAN

We stressed in the worship thateveryone should reflect on

if he or she has really led life by the command of Christ—Love yourneighbor as yourself. We need to understand the suffering and needs of the Filipino people, followed by taking action. In 2015 thousandsof teachers, students, and nuns gath-ered in the streets of Manila to advo-cate anti-violence against women.Similarly in our country, religious

sects and community centers beganuniting to strengthen publicity byforming effective networks with re-lated government agencies (e.g. do-mestic violence centers) and workingon anti-violence against women andchildren agendas.

We learned that fairness is not only as-sessed from the acquired resources orwealth, but from a broader perspective—God’s love for all mankind. Wehave a new vision and understandingand need more transitions from self-centeredness to God as the center.

Website: http://women.pct.org.tw/ministry.aspx, www.ywca.org.tw

THAILAND

Many social issues were lifted upin our service—such as domes-

tic violence or sex trafficking, migrantdomestic workers, and environmentaldisasters. How can we hear thesestories and not realize the sinfulness ofstructures that consolidate economicinequality? We are called to confessand take on our ethical responsibilityto answer God’s call for justice.

World Day of Prayer is not just a sin-gle day on our calendar. We will keepthe women and children of the Philip-pines in our hearts all year long. Wewill keep them in prayer and continueto donate to women and children inthe Philippines. Thank you to theWorld Day of Prayer women in thePhilippines who wrote the programthis year.

TAIWAN

THAILAND

BOTSWANA

We were moved to talk openlyabout abuse and injustice, par-

ticularly gender abuse and sexualabuse of women and girls. Injustice is not only in the Philippines; even in our country it is there and we arequiet about it. The prayer was an eyeopener to us. We feel the need to prevent more young girls from gettingraped. Many women challengedthemselves to start raising awarenessabout these issues in their communi-ties by openly talking to their neigh-bors and women in their respectivechurches. We must help those who aredisadvantaged and show love to allpeople. We were asked to go and live the life that reflects the theme of 2017.

CAMEROON

This year’s theme has a powerfulmessage that in God’s scheme of

things; all those in need will find ade-quate work to provide for their fami-lies. The parable is a challenge to thosewho have a hand in shaping the struc-tures of work in today’s world. Thechallenge is whether we, as Christians,can do anything to advance this aspectof God’s Kingdom right here and now.

The program also generated feelingsof empathy about core issues we alsostruggle with. We are blessed withabundance of natural resources, butlike the Philippines, poverty is wide-spread, and healthcare is problematic.We are deprived of clean water,

sanitation and infrastructure, and ex-perience high unemployment and un-deremployment. Women and youngpeople seek greener pastures at greatrisk. The program helped to releaseburied emotions of pain, hurt, frustra-tion and understanding. This made itendurable for us—knowing that weare not alone.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OFTHE CONGO

We had an intense conversationas a Committee about the Bible

story. As human beings, it seems rea-sonable that the farmers who workedlonger were upset they received thesame wage as those who worked lessbut God does justice to everyone in hisown way. God does not judge us basedon race, sex, or class.

Relations between women of differentdenominations are going well. First of

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Africa

BOTSWANA CAMEROON

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF THE CONGO

GABON

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all, the preparatory meetings are withmembers of all confessions. As wewear uniform by denominations, wedecided to exchange the uniform orcarry another one’s cloth. This showsunity in diversity. The celebration is agreat feast where women celebratewith joy.

As the motto suggests us to be in-formed for praying, we learned aboutthe hunger in the community, thenwe went out to distribute food to thesick and prisoners.

EQUATORIAL GUINEA

We were all very enthusiastic tocelebrate this service because

we felt it really affected all of us. Wewore Filipino dresses to feel closer toour sisters. The situations faced by theFilipino women are the same for us sowhen they suffer we suffer. However,ideas and experiences for women fromdifferent communities can also be dif-ferent so we must actively acknowl-edge and connect with others. Thetheme resonated with us as we learned

that each one of us has our blessingsfrom God and we must not pay atten-tion to what others receive. God isjust and we need to recognize what heprovides for us.

GABON

We had two services in the threedays devoted to the celebration

of WDP with about 200 participants.We had a celebration on Thursday atthe Catholic Church for an openingMass, and a worship on Friday, March3, and other activities for the closingworship. The bible story was materi-alized into a small dramatization andduring all this we felt a prayer unionwith our sisters of WDP Philippines.

The theme for this service really high-lighted for us the difference betweendivine justice and human justice. Ourjustice is based on established rulesmade by men and when they decidethose rules have been broken. Divinejustice is based on spiritual ethics,which is based on our equality in theeyes of God. Our God provides for us

as he sees fit and He always providesfor us.

GHANA

The program presented a criticalperiod for reflection on the con-

cept of being just and supportive of avulnerable person or group. Oneyoung woman shared an exemplarypersonal story about her former em-ployer’s treatment of her and her col-league hired for domestic work.

The joy of the ecumenical space wasin the beauty of unity in diversitywhere each church was brought tobear on the service. The different uni-forms and different languages all cre-ated a great relationship. Domesticviolence was very much discussed andidentified as an area where churchwomen should be concerned. The ec-umenical commitment to jointly ad-vocate against domestic violenceshowed how this social cancer affectsall of us. Participants were happy tolearn about the Filipino people andtheir history.

The bible story was materialized into a small dramatization and during all this we felt a prayer union with our sisters of WDP Philippines.

GABON KENYA

KENYA

Everybody was impressed as thetheme touched the home rela-

tionship between a husband and wife,the children and their parents, alsothe relationship between you andyour co-workers, your neighbors,your friends, the National Commit-tee members, or even your church.How do you relate with them? Howmany times have you been unfair to them? How do you cope withthem? It changed the lives of so many

people because they altered their waysof interacting with each other. Eventhe children said that they learnedthat when we are unfair to our play-mates, it does not please God. We re-ceived so many comments frompeople individually and from thechurches. Learning about the Philip-pines was also an eye-opener. Weshould pray for each other worldwidebecause the problems that reallytouch women and children are nearlythe same locally.

MADAGASCAR

We learned that God loves us all;that there is no partiality, and

we have to love one another. The chil-dren were very enthusiastic to learnabout the Philippines, saying, “It ismarvelous to know about childrenaround the world!” and “What is thenext country?” The actions suggestedwere to give clothes and food to pris-oners and spread the good news. Afterthe worship service, participantsshared the lunch meal together. As anecumenical community, we often goon excursions together, hold worshipservices, and meetings to live out ourWDP Madagascar motto “that theymay all be one” (John 17:21a).

MAURITIUS

On our island we had 11 serviceswith over 500 participants. The

service was held in churches, schools,villages, and in some people’s homes.We were all happy to be part of aprayer chain for the Philippines.

At the beginning of the services therewas an icebreaker moment where every-one stood up to welcome each otherwith the greeting “Mabuhay.” Thenthere was an explanation of the artistand her artwork, along with a look intothe cultural practice of dagyaw. Ourparticipants were amazed by the art-work and appreciated the idea ofdagyaw because it is practiced for theconstruction of a healthy society.

There was also a parade where thechildren carried the Filipino flag, aFilipino native sang the national an-them, the children sang “We Are theWorld,” and teenagers mimed the

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MADAGASCAR

MAURITIUS

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parable. The overall atmosphere of thecelebration was that of generosity, solidarity, sharing, and love. One per-son said, “this day without jealousy orselfishness is like a reflection of thelight of the kingdom of God.”

NIGERIA

The atmosphere was electrifying asthe service started. We learned fromthis year’s theme to be fair to peoplein spite of challenges that confront us. We should be strong in the beliefthat God is there for us. God is fairand just. One should endeavor to be

obedient, humble and contented withone’s lot, spiritual ‘wages’ inclusive.Being in prayer with the Filipino peo-ple, we feel moved by the conditionsof the people, especially the naturaldisasters such as typhoons whichcause losses of many lives and prop-erty. Their economic imbalance andprevailing injustice cross reference thestory of Merlyn, Nicole, Celia, andEditha. We feel very much concernedas Christians to pray with others whoare suffering ill-treatment. We imag-ine ourselves in their shoes eventhough we have similar challenges in

our country. We prayed from deepdown in our hearts.

REPUBLIC OF CONGO

We had 10 services and about800 participants across our

country. The theme and celebrationaroused a great deal of enthusiasm.The joy is always in coming togetherfor a single cause and sharing it withthe world. The subject of justicewithin a society was an importanttopic throughout the service and thewomen focused on lifting up the in-justices faced by the women of theirown country and the Philippines. Wemust advocate for justice every chancewe get. We felt the strength andcourage of the Filipinos through theirwords in the worship. They combatinjustice with dignity and self-respectand are an example to us all. We un-derstood their suffering and in that wefelt united and sympathized withthem greatly.

SEYCHELLES

As we celebrate WDP somethingmarvelous is revealed. This year

we experienced the deep love of Christin motion. Small bags of rice preparedin advance were shared amongstmembers of the congregation. No un-fairness. Rice was available for every-one even though it was in a small bagas a sample and gift. Contacts withFilipino women in Seychelles ex-pressed sharing of Christ’s love. Theyshared prayers in the service and a tes-timony. Their presence, together withthe decoration at the altar (fruits, veg-etables, salt fish), revealed the Philip-pines within Seychelles. ManyFilipino women immigrate to othercountries as for better opportunities.

REPUBLIC OF CONGO

NIGERIA

Additional prayers were said for thePhilippines and those in authoritythere that peace may prevail.

SOUTH AFRICA

The groups in our country couldrelate completely with the cir-

cumstances of the women in thePhilippines. Ladies dressed up like thewoman in the artwork. The symbolicuse of the rice packets made a hugeimpact, and a lot of discussion in theprogram focused on the sharing of re-sources. Many congregations distrib-uted packets of rice, fruit, and foodparcels to the needy as part of the cel-ebrations. Children took part indances, song, and Scripture readings.A 9-year-old girl sang the Lord’sPrayer, and a 3½ year old little girlsang “Jesus loves me”. To address theepidemic of violence against womenand children, WDP donated to or-ganizations that focus on the wellbe-ing of women and children.

Website: www.wwdp.co.za

ZAMBIA

The worship area for our celebra-tion was well decorated with

many colors. Most people said it wasa new Garden of Eden. The theme al-lowed for good reflection on fairnessand how we have treated our familiesand community. Even the childrenenjoyed learning about being fair and

sympathizing with others throughpoems and sketches. The programprompted discussion on the variousaspects of injustices against women.Suggestions were made to lobby foradvocacy on women rights. As an ec-umenical community, we have imple-mented some women empowermentprograms in the communities as a wayto put “wheels to prayer.” It was goodto know about the Filipino cultureand their daily life, including the po-litical sphere.

ZIMBABWE

Our decorations reflected theoneness of the Filipino people

and the challenges they face as they

work on the farms. The money theyget is not enough to sustain them sothey share among themselves the littlethey get. We felt that most of the peo-ple in the Philippines are facing thesame problems we are facing in ourcountry. Despite the country beingblessed with natural resources, mostof the people are poor. Participantsraised that women and children arethe ones who feel the effects of thecountry’s problems. The childrenloved the history of the children ofPhilippines. They now know thatthere is a country named Philippines,and how they live on all the small andbig islands.

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SOUTH AFRICA

ZIMBABWE

We felt that most of thepeople in the Philippines

are facing the sameproblems we are facing

in our country.

ANTIGUA & BARBUDA

We conducted three worshipservices with approximately

500 participants in all. The childrenreported, “We look forward to beinga part of the World Day of Prayereach year—taking part in the skits,dancing or even doing a reading orhelping to give out the programs.”

The social issues lifted up in ourWDP services and activities wereabuse of women and children. As a so-lution, some suggested that womenand children should be taught inde-pendence, and that young childrenshould be encouraged to stay inschool. Currently we have classes inarts and crafts and sewing for ouryoung people. These skills will helpthem prosper later in life.

BAHAMAS

As we prepared for the day ofprayer, the excitement grew, espe-

cially among the Filipino women who

attended committee meetings. Wewere all elated and looked forwardwith great anticipation to the day ofprayer. When our Filipino sisterslearned that their country wrote theservice for this year and that we wouldbe praying for the Philippines, theywere filled with joy and enthusiasm.

The very first reader, a young womanfrom the Philippines, began to readand broke out in loud sobs, crying forthe people of her country. The wholecongregation was visibly moved, andthis set the tone of the service. Thecongregation responded with thesong, “In times like these, we need asavior; In times like these, we need ananchor; Be very sure your anchorholds and grips the solid rock. Thisrock is Jesus...”

BARBADOS

“Am I being unfair to you?”caused the women joining the

celebration to look closer at them-selves. The stories of the Filipinowomen went deeper than wages.Some women in the services sought to take their power back due to unhealthy situations in which theyfind themselves.

Being in prayer for another country,feels as if you are trying as hard as youcan to help from far away. I alwaysimagine the hundreds of persons pray-ing from the distant countries andcausing change to come about. Ourchallenge is to build ecumenical rela-tionships, and it is one that we shouldnot back away from. When women of different denominations come

BAHAMAS

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Caribbean/North AmericaANTIGUA BAHAMAS

BARBADOS CANADA

together to worship it is ajoy. The building of theserelationships should beencouraged more thanonce a year.

CANADA

In Canada, there aremany people with con-

nections to the Philip-pines through personalheritage, faith communi-ties, caregiving relation-ships, seafaring, andactivism on issues such as labor andmining. Tagalog is the fastest growinglanguage here and Canada is the thirdlargest destination for overseas Fil-ipino workers. The close connectionsbetween Canadians and Filipinosbrought great energy to the celebra-tion and a deep sense of connectionto the World Day of Prayer this year.

Our organization has been abun-dantly blessed to steward the WorldDay of Prayer in Canada and to help

the voices of all women be heard. Theservice in turn gave us connections towomen working for justice through-out the world. Leonora Obara ofKenya best captured the essence ofWorld Day of Prayer saying that thework she and other women are doingin their community is not a project ofresources, but a project of love.

Website: www.wicc.org

Facebook: WIC Canada

Twitter: WICC_CA

DOMINICA

By following the orderof service closely we

were able to become ac-quainted with the Fil-ipino lifestyle and theirhardships and related it toour life in Dominica.Being in prayer withthem was a good experi-ence as we are all peopleof God no matter ourrace or what part of theworld we live in. We are

all connected and can relate to one an-other. The theme allowed us to reflecton how there are many people in needin various parts of the world and if wecan work together and share ourgoods their needs can be met. Welifted up the issues of poverty and ill-nesses during our service and decidedto donate part of our offering to theCancer Society, which allows the peo-ple who cannot afford it to receivecancer care.

GUYANA

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GUYANA

World Day of Prayer 17 Journal 2017

GUYANA

It was enlightening to be in prayerwith the people of the Philip-

pines—as if we are one with them andtheir culture, struggles, and greatness.The women are strong and passion-ate, and really work hard to overcomethe hardships in their life. We willkeep them in our prayers as we con-tinue to pray for each other.

We prayed that people will not be leftin poverty due to the many typhoonsthe country is faced with yearly. Weprayed for the eradication of childabuse and domestic violence, and weprayed that the government wouldput systems in place to provide for theless fortunate.

Children from the different Sundayschools present also recited prayers forthe children and families of the Philip-pines. The children also participatedin a fun dagyaw harvesting activitywhere they realized the importance of

working together to achieve a com-mon goal.

JAMAICA

We share similar concerns andsituations as the Filipino peo-

ple, and so when we pray we are es-sentially seeking to find the sameanswers and solutions to the commonproblems we face. Social issues such asviolence against women and children,human trafficking, and homelessnesswere lifted up in our WDP services.Actions such as social interventionand public awareness seminars weresuggested.

A special children’s service was alsoheld at one location. The childrenconducted the service based on theorder provided. One activity waspainting of the flag. They participatedvery enthusiastically.

The basic challenge in our ecumenicalwork is that of being from different

denominations, everyone has theirown projects and commitments. Timeconstraints are another matter, andthe difficulty to attract younger mem-bers. However, in the end we areworking towards the same end tomake a difference in our church andcommunities.

MONTSERRAT

We held a spiritual retreat in January to reflect on the theme

with the help of two speakers from thePhilippines. They spoke about thecountry, the presence of the CatholicChurch, and their passion for food.They cooked for us and we left the retreat well informed. It is truly a pleasure to continue building ecu-menical relations amongst the Chris-tian denominations on Montserrat. Atotal of twelve organizations or churchgroups most of which are womengroups participated in this year’s activities.

JAMAICA MONTSERRAT

We felt connected with the Filipinopeople. We have experienced hurri-canes and typhoons. Natural disastersdisrupt societies through destructionof life and property. Prayer helps inthe healing process. We lifted up inprayers the economic situation facedby workers especially women, domes-tic workers, seasonal agriculturalworkers, women suffering from abuseand rape, and people recovering fromtyphoons.

SURINAME

It is a challenge to prepare the serv-ice with different denominations

because everyone has their own tradi-tions and programs to follow in theirown churches but through this wepersevere and we learn new thingsabout each other every year. We stillhold preparatory meetings where westudy the background information,the bible study, and the other re-sources provided. When it was time todecorate we hung a theme bearing

banner above the cross and drapedcolored cloths down it to emulate theflag. During the service, the social issues lifted up were honesty and justice. How do we stay honest andjust when we face difficult times? Itwas good to share the story of the Fil-ipino women with each other and tobe reminded that the righteousness ofGod is not to be compared with thatof humans.

Website: http://wgdsuriname.wixsite.com/wgdsuriname

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

The worship theme made usaware of the need to constantly

engage in reflection as we act and in-teract with others. We must addressissues even if they do not directly af-fect us but which are oppressive toothers. God’s love is not unfair butrighteous! His love is universal andunconditional.

Being in prayer with the Filipino peo-ple gave us a strong sense of solidarity.Domestic violence, minimum wages,and neglected children are all issueswe deal with in our communities andwe lifted them up in our prayers.Based on the motto, Informed Prayer.Prayerful Action, it was suggested thatthe creation of safe spaces be our toppriority in order to provide moral andpractical support to others, as we aredoing with the craft classes, wherewomen come together and learn skillsthat can be used to generate income.

TURKS & CAICOS

Our service came alive with thepresence of native Filipinos.

They read parts of the service, gave a

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

World Day of Prayer 18 Journal 2017

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO

SURINAME

brief description of their islands, sangindigenous songs, wore their tradi-tional dress, and even brought tradi-tional food items to share. We wereable to get a better understanding andclearer picture of what life is like in their country. Their presence madeus feel like we were truly one in Godand one in mission. Our people trulyenjoyed the service and many com-mented on how they thought it wasone of the best we ever had. Due tothe scattered nature of our islands it isdifficult to get members together to begin preparations but we work ourhardest to spread the service across the islands as many churches enjoyparticipating!

US VIRGIN ISLANDS

Although the preparations for thecelebration were difficult this

year, the service was well attended andjoyous. The space was decorated withpalms, a Bible, a cross, and a bowl forthe rice—which was distributed to thecongregation by children. It was agood experience for us to be in prayerwith our Filipino sisters as we liftedup some of the issues we also face onthe islands. Our women also sufferfrom domestic abuse and sexual traf-ficking and under our local laws thereis little to no statistics or complaintskept. There is a small organization in our area that supports people who have endured domestic abuse

and we hope to work with them inthe future.

UNITED STATES

The many islands of the Philip-pines were celebrated and up-

lifted during the services all across thecountry. Since there are many Filipinoimmigrants in the US, many churchesinvited Filipino members of churchesor members of the community tospeak during their services. In thisway, the women were able to trulyconnect with the Filipino culture andhistory. For example, the sharing ofrice and the discussion of dagyaw wasa part of many services. It sparked dis-cussions on how to give back and par-ticipate on a daily basis and how toshare our gifts with others.

The ecumenical aspect of World Dayof Prayer continues to be a major rea-son participants enjoy the program.One person shared, “this service islooked forward to every year by ourcongregation. It is one of the fewtimes where we get together withother women from different churches.Learning about a different countryeach year adds to our prayer practiceand reminds us that we are not alone.”

Website: www.wdp-usa.org

Facebook: WorldDayOfPrayerUSA

World Day of Prayer 19 Journal 2017

UNITED STATES

One person shared, “this service is looked forward to every year by ourcongregation. It is one of the few times where we get together with other women

from different churches. Learning about a different country each year adds to ourprayer practice and reminds us that we are not alone.”

World Day of Prayer 20 Journal 2017

EuropeAUSTRIA

ALBANIA

BELGIUM

ALBANIA

We feel very near to the Filipinowomen when we pray for

them, we lift up their problems andthe injustice they face. We love them.We are a poor country with a lot of problems such as corruption andothers. This year’s theme prompteddiscussion about how we treat eachother. Participants brought up manyexamples of how they are treated intheir work places by their bosses andsupervisors. In Albania, there are a lotof companies who use Albanian work-ers like slaves. We also experience a lotof discrimination against women. Wedecided to prepare a letter to our

government about how to treat work-ers in the work place.

AUSTRIA

The WDP of Austria, especially ofSalzburg is 65 years old. So, for

the first time, the service was held inthe Cathedral of Salzburg with 500Christians, women, men, and chil-dren attending. It was ideal that thePhilippines had prepared this year’sliturgy as there are many people of thePhilippines living in Salzburg. A chil-dren’s music group of the Philippinesdelighted the visitors with their per-formance. In the liturgy, women ofthe Philippines parish in Salzburg

gave their voice to the “Filipinas” andafterwards served delicious dishes oftheir home country for the group. Agreat number of Filipinas participatedat the congregations and therefore astrong bond emerged.

Website: www.weltgebetstag.at

Faceboook: weltgebetstagderfrauen

BELGIUM

The service was held at theLutheran Church and the other

denominations were invited to joinus. Through the program we learnedabout the needs from the people of

Philippines and the challenges theyface in their everyday life.

Facebook: Wereldgebedsdag Belgie

BULGARIA

One of our participants, who hasbeen in Moscow, shared her im-

pressions about Filipino workers inrich Russian families—their kindnessand vulnerability. Her account madeus love them and thus added strengthto our prayers.

The pastor of the Methodist churchin Sofia, where WDP 2017 was held,shared some photos he had taken dur-ing his visit to the Philippines a cou-ple of years ago, reporting about oneof the tropical typhoons, which hadseriously damaged the place he wasvisiting with other people. Of course,this made us more sensitive to the sit-uation in that country.

Our prayer for Bulgaria specificallywas about the needs of the Roma pop-ulation, especially children that arenot in school. They live in povertyand are easily manipulated by politi-cians. A change of mind is needed atall levels of the Bulgarian Society andwe pray for that.

CROATIA

We felt connected to our Filipinosisters and their fight for equal

rights, against poverty and the needfor change. We became aware of thefact that we are all invited to work inGod’s vineyard when we feel the invi-tation—which might come at differ-ent periods of our life. We realizedthat lay people should be more en-gaged in social and political life, try-ing to be a seed of change.

The most important social issue raisedin the service referred to the problemof women’s inequality and the needfor active involvement in the environ-ment. We also related to the fact thatworkers do not receive their deservedsalaries, and most of them are ex-ploited because a small percentage ofrich people own the land.

Website: www.wdp-croatia.com

Facebook: SMDhrvatska

CZECH REPUBLIC

The Philippines is close to ourpeople. Some Filipino women

live and work here, got married andhave had families in the Czech Repub-lic. They have joined churches here.Some of them also joined WDP services and shared their life experi-ences and facts about their country.They really enjoyed the Philippinerice cakes made by Czech women! Atour monthly prayers meetings, weprayed for the women who balancemultiple jobs to feed their children,people working abroad, and familiesseeking investigation of their lost orkilled relatives.

World Day of Prayer 21 Journal 2017

BULGARIA

CZECH REPUBLIC

CROATIA

World Day of Prayer 22 Journal 2017

DENMARK

The children who partici-pated were significantly im-pacted by the small portion of rice that was to be sufficientfor the whole day. They notedthe contrast to our countrywhere children generally donot suffer from lack of food.In the town Orlová, they re-ceived a small amount of ricein a little packet to rememberthis disparity in the future.

Facebook: Světový den mod-liteb - český výbor

DENMARK

It is very enriching to be “face-to-face” with the writer country. We

got first-hand information about thePhilippine culture and the experiencesof leaving ones country and adjustingto a new culture, a new language, and a whole new environment fromthe Filipinos who came to our service.This made us very aware of the injustice they face daily and how wemust stand against these injustices.There are many au-pair girls living in

Denmark and, as we lifted them up inour prayers, we vowed to monitortheir situations when possible so theymay not face any injustices.

We believe that we can learn with oursenses, so we decorated the space withvarious Filipino items that peoplecould touch, see, and smell. It was agreat way to learn without a singleword being said.

Website: www.kvindebededag.dk

ENGLAND, WALES & NORTHERN IRELAND

As well as our usual preparationdays, the National Committee

for England, Wales and Northern Ireland also ran a weekend conferencefor younger women. Here is one attendee’s comment: “Bible study re-ally opened up a parable I always dis-liked in a new and fascinatingway—absolutely inspiring.”

During services, branches used differ-ent ways of helping those present tounderstand the Bible passage better;some dramatized it, others read it in a modern transcription. At leastone branch acted out a modernretelling of the story. They were alsoencouraged to arrange their worshipspace so that those present were seatedin a circle, as requested by the Chris-tian women of the Philippines. One

ESTONIA

ENGLAND, WALES & NORTHERN IRELAND

branch worshipping in achurch with fixed pews deviseda novel solution: they passed aribbon round for people tohold for the circle. A memberof the congregation com-mented on how effective andmeaningful this was.

Website: www.wwdp.org.uk

Facebook: Women’s WorldDay of Prayer—England, Wales andNorthern Ireland

Twitter: wwdp@WWDPforEWNI

ESTONIA

The theme sparked interesting and lively discussions before,

during, and after the service at the18th century church we held the pro-gram in. The service became very per-sonal and touched everyone deeply. Inthe sermon, the Pastor stressed howimportant it was to take the theme,“Am I Being Unfair to You?”, and askif we are the ones being unfair. Toooften, we feel we are the victims of sit-uations and we must take a momentto analyze our roles. In connection

with the Filipino people we prayed forthem and for the Estonian people.

There is an event that is held all overEstonia on Good Friday called“Crossroad.” Participants chooseprayers and carols then travel fromchurch to church performing them.The event is ecumenical and bothadults and children participate so itwas a great way to come together.

FAROE ISLANDS

The service this year took place inthe Catholic Church and we were

lucky to have a lot of Filipino womenparticipate. During the procession, thewomen were wearing their traditionaldresses and came dancing in thechurch one by one with the different

objects—a pitcher of water, abunch of leaves similar to a ricestem, and a bottle of oil. Onewoman carried an indigenouscloth and another dressed likethe woman in the art work,holding a scale with one of hereyes covered. Three others helda basket with a platter of dryfish, raw rice, and fruits. An-other one held the art workwhere everybody could see it.

It is really great to come together toprepare the service, forgetting what orwhere we belong to, all having thesame Lord, praying to the same Lordand serving the same Lord. It gives usso much joy and strength.

FINLAND

WDP in Finland was celebratedin five locations: Helsinki (the

capital), Jyväskylä, Tampere, Sysmä,and Kuopio. We did a pantomimethat portrayed getting equallypaid/saved. The theme about the firstand the last getting paid exactly thesame wages after the workday reflectsthe absoluteness of God’s grace. Noone can boast and refer to her/his own

FAROE ISLANDS

World Day of Prayer 23 Journal 2017

FAROE ISLANDS

FINLAND

merits. We all get saved by graceonly. This was felt strongly dur-ing our pantomime.

Our offering will go toward pro-grams against trafficking inhuman beings, especially women,and to protect young people inSyria from traffickers. The Com-mon Responsibility Campaign isa nationwide social movementbased on the philosophy “lovethy neighbor,” and is the annualfundraising campaign of the FinnishLutheran Church. It helps those inneed irrespective of their origin, faith,or political convictions both in Fin-land and in developing countries.

Website: www.ywca.fi/00010707 -maailman-rukouspaiva

FRANCE

When you read the parable forthe first time, the initial reac-

tion is to identify with the workerswho worked all day and got rewardedthe same as those who worked less.However, we must remember thatGod is just and His justice is not likeours. The relation between equality

and justice is more complex in God’skingdom. God gives according to theneeds of each person. We felt that theFilipino tradition of dagyaw truly rep-resented this story and is great exam-ple of solidarity.

Another part of the service that stoodout to us was the confessional textwhere the Philippine women repeatedthe notion of making excuses for whywe as a whole have not done as muchas we can for justice and peace. Theyhad the courage to say what we alltend to do sometimes—hide behind“good excuses.” We must not remaininsensitive to the issues around theworld. We must stay vigilant and act!

Website: http://jmp.protestants.org

Facebook: Journee Mondiale DePriere France

GERMANY

The Philippine ambassadorwas invited to speak at a

WDP regional preparatory work-shop. She was quite pleased tonote that her country was thefocus of women’s groups through-out Germany. She later reported

that the Philippine embassy per-formed its own WDP service, usingthe official liturgy!

We are alarmed at the abuse of humanrights in the Philippines. Through theWDP activities, we received informa-tion from Amnesty International andother activists in the civil society.Some women lent their signatories toa letter of protest addressed to thePhilippine embassy in Berlin. The let-ter urged the Embassy to use its influ-ence to make sure that the deathpenalty not be re-introduced and thatthe abuse of human rights be cur-tailed.

Website: www.weltgebetstag.de

Facebook: weltgebetstag

World Day of Prayer 24 Journal 2017

FRANCE GERMANY

GREECE

World Day of Prayer 25 Journal 2017

GREECE

The Sunday school children wereexcited and eager to learn new

things about a different country, a dif-ferent creation of our Lord, thePhilippines. A week after our chil-dren’s service, we went on a picnic andthe children played the traditional“Pitik Bulag” game. Needless to say,they loved it and laughed hard duringthe play. They even asked to play itevery Sunday before the service.

It is always so delightful to teach theselittle creatures about a different partof the world, which our Lord has cre-ated in such a perfect way. And themost important thing is that throughthese WDP programs, they realizethat they should not be afraid of diversity. Because after all, it is muchmore interesting to be different—theyalways have something to discoverand learn!

HUNGARY

During the celebration, we had theexperience of interconnectedness

in the world God created. In the prayer,the spiritual unity came into being. Itis highly powerful that we use the sameliturgy and pray at the same time allover the world. Among the prayers ofmany thousands of people, our prayergoes up to God as if we had handed theCreator a beautiful and colorful bunchof flowers.

A report on the celebration from asenior citizens’ home said: “Seniorsoften have the feeling that they are su-perfluous. The WDP means a confir-mation for them, namely that throughprayers they can do something impor-tant for a lot of people although their

visual perception and their hearinghave deteriorated and they cannotlook after themselves.”

Website: http://www.meot.hu/noim

Facebook: Ökumenikus Világimanap—WDP HUN

ICELAND

When we consider the WDPmotto Informed Prayer. Prayer-

ful Action, the information part is veryimportant. We do feel that the prayersare more powerful and earnest whenwe understand the realities behind theprayer requests. Thus, we always tryto show the slides and reflect on thesituation in the writer country. Thisyear, the chair of the Icelandic BibleSociety, Ragnhildur Ásgeirsdóttir, wasour speaker, and she connected themessage of Matthew 20 with somereal situations she had experiencedtravelling for the Bible Society.

Since the early 1960s, this interchurchcooperation through WDP has the

HUNGARY

ICELAND

longest story of all ecumenical worksin Iceland. Women and men fromvarious denominations often partici-pate in the services, and thus there isa truly ecumenical spirit hovering overthe prayer meetings. This has onlybrought us joy.

Facebook: Alþjóðlegur bænadagurkvenna

IRELAND

Our services were well attendedand very successful! There are

many Filipinos living and working in our country and some of them

attended the services. Sharing our cultural experiences certainly helped us create a better understanding and a greater bond with one another. Oneof our services was televised and we had a Filipino choir sing. Themembers brought objects and instru-ments that represented their cultureand we added them to our prayerspace. This gesture gave us all a greatsense of inclusivity. When we learnedmore about the Filipino culture we realized we had certain similarities.For example, meitheal is an old Irishtradition where people in rural communities gathered together on a neighbor’s farm to help plant and

harvest crops, a tradition very similarto dagyaw.

ITALY

For the first time, a FilipinoCatholic nun was involved in the

preparation of a local WDP. Shecomes from the city of Cebu, thesame city of the project which will re-ceive the offering of the Italian WDP.She was happy for two reasons: forhaving met new sisters and a new ec-umenical movement, and for helpingher country with a concrete action.

We are aware of the difficult situationof the migrants who arrive to ourcountry, so we suggested contacting thewomen migrants who live in our citiesand try to get to know each other bet-ter. One of the enemies we need to de-feat is the fear of the stranger, so wewelcome every occasion to build com-munion between people from differentcultures and religion.

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IRELAND

ITALY

LITHUANIA

World Day of Prayer 27 Journal 2017

Website: https://sites.google.com/site/gmpitaliana/home

LITHUANIA

We translated all the resourcematerials and sent it to local

teams to use for Bible studies andpreparations for WDP services. Wefollowed the suggestion of the Filipinowomen and put “rice” on the table forthe celebration, but instead of rice, weshared bread. Bread is the basic fruitof people’s labor in Lithuania, like riceis in Philippines.

The notion of common work, ordagyaw in the Philippines, taught usthe wonderful sustaining practice ofcommunity building—doing it with-out any institutions, just working to-gether. Whatever our activities mightbe, the ecumenical spirit always pre-vails: Roman Catholics, Lutherans,Orthodox, Reformed, Methodists celebrated WDP in one spirit.

LUXEMBOURG

The stories of the different womenin the liturgy were a highlight for

us this year. When we prayed with thewomen of the Philippines, we felt thatspecial connection that we feel everyyear with the women of WDP. Chil-dren were very keen to participate.There was a lot of discussion and theywere very interested to learn aboutchildren who must work to supporttheir families.

We live out the WDP motto by tryingto build the committee and celebrat-ing everything we can. We try to beactive as much as we can, wherever we can. We learned that in one regionof our country, someone who knowsabout WDP prepared an independentcelebration with some women. Oncewe learned of it, we told her to be in contact with us for our materialsnext year.

Website: http://www.acfl.lu/de/weltgebetstag

MACEDONIA

The WDP service is mainly theonly ecumenical service for

women in the year, so many womencan´t wait to attend it together withneighbors and friends from other de-nominations. After the service, in al-most all congregations we gather,having tea, cake and good talks.

In Strumica, we always have nicedecorations. This year we had an old

MACEDONIALUXEMBOURG

Whatever our activitiesmight be, the ecumenicalspirit always prevails:Roman Catholics,

Lutherans, Orthodox,Reformed, Methodists

celebrated WDP in one spirit.

scale on the altar, flowers and napkins in the colors of the Philippines, andbaskets with packages of seeds, whichwere given to the women as a gift.Many women said later that the seedsgrew fruits and nice flowers. That’s a good lesson: even from very smallseeds grow nice things. Even if we area small group who loves ecumenicalevents, the seed will grow into nicefruits.

THE NETHERLANDS

In our country it’s so difficult toreach out to people from every de-

nomination. We all think ours is theright one and the others are not ‘thereal thing’! We are so pleased when wesee women connecting through ourinformation days, as they would nevertalk to each other in their everyday

life. We—as members of the Dutchcommittee—really believe we cancross borders and realize in fact we areall the same, and we are able to listenand talk about difficulties together!

We have tried to find a way to be ableto support projects and people di-rectly in their communities. We willchannel our offering to those projectsand peoples.

Website: www.wereldgebedsdag.nl

Facebook: Wereldgebedsdag-Neder-land

NORWAY

WDP in Norway celebrates its90th anniversary this year,

with an unbroken line of prayer

celebrations all over the country. Weheld approximately 100 celebrations.The tradition of praying around theworld is deeply rooted in Norway, asis ecumenism. WDP gives all of us an opportunity to invite and cooperatewith people from different denomina-tions, and even women outside ofchurches. One Christian newspapergave us good attention on the WorldDay of Prayer.

This year was special because so manyFilipino women live in Norway. Inone service, Filipino women from theneighborhood were invited to comeand cook spring rolls. The aspects ofjustice, solidarity with others, takingcare of the environment and includ-ing others in loving and serving com-munities were drawn out from thetheme. We emphasized the Bible versewhere Jesus, before he died, invitedhis crucified neighbor.

POLAND

In the preparatory process for ourcelebration, we met a Roman

Catholic sister who worked in a homefor women in Manila led by her con-gregation. She introduced us to thePhilippines and all aspects of lifethere. We saw many pictures and felt

World Day of Prayer 28 Journal 2017

NETHERLANDS NORWAY

POLAND

World Day of Prayer 29 Journal 2017

PORTUGAL ROMANIA

her love for the country and its peo-ple. We heard “first hand” about theFilipino people and their daily lifewith all its problems and joys.

We find that often the problems, sor-rows, and joys presented by the writ-ing country are very similar to ourown. Participants to the celebrationbegin to be aware of problems men-tioned in the liturgy which are veryclose to them. People begin to help in their own contexts, not just give an offering for the writing country.They begin to see problems in theirown families, working places or theircommunities.

PORTUGAL

We decorated the liturgical spaceaccording to the suggestion of

the Filipino women. It conveyed thesensation that all the displayed ele-ments were created and worked bymen and women with much effortand even tears. They work very hard,many hours a day, to earn money tosupport their families.

The material sent by the Filipino sisters was so rich in information thatit seemed as if we were there in thePhilippines. We could live the situa-tions and difficulties as if they wereours. To be in prayer with Filipino sisters made us one, made us stronger.

The ecumenical relationships builtthrough WDP bring women andcommunities together, and tightensthe bonds of friendship, trust andsharing among women. ThroughWDP, our faith and relationship withGod grows and we increasingly sur-render to others.

ROMANIA

This year’s theme inspired us tosay: We have to speak about in-

justice! It is an important task of oursto undertake the fight for social justiceevery time and everywhere, especiallywith regard to sisters and brothers liv-ing with discrimination. God opensour “spiritual eyes” to see this, andurges us to pray for those who experi-ence oppression. No one is better thananother in the sight of God. God’s

justice is not according to our humanmeasures; therefore God gives every-body a chance for a new beginning.Mercy wins over injustice!

During our celebration, we made asuggestion to support the local smallproducers who sell organic food on themarket. More people should buy foodfrom them, and not from multina-tional companies. We should use nat-ural remedies, the pharmacy of God,and the recipes of the grandparents.

RUSSIA

We tried to unite two themesthis year: the theme of Philip-

pines and the 500th anniversary of theReformation. The Reformation cameto Russia in 1544 with the firstLutheran settlers in Moscow whocame to work as merchants, officers,and soldiers. The theme of Philip-pines was up-to-date because thetheme of being fair, the theme of jus-tice is an eternal issue for all the na-tions. People will ultimately findjustice in God who liberates, teaches,consoles, and nourishes.

In Moscow this year, we celebrated theWDP together with the CatholicChurch. The director of St. Thomas’Jesuit University preached at the serv-ice. There were also sisters from Caritaswith us. The WDP together withPrayers for Christian Unity is a goodopportunity for both churches to buildgood relationships not only personally,but also on the ecumenical level.

SCOTLAND

Overall there were approximately30,000 participants in the cele-

brations around the country! Activi-ties were held in churches, schools,hospitals, and homes. We work in-tensely to promote WDP. Nationally,there is an overnight retreat that en-courages building relationshipsamong the committees. Regionally,we share bible studies together and lo-cally, meetings are held to beginpreparations. We had the pleasure ofsharing the service with some of ourFilipino sisters who enjoyed the serv-ice and longed for a visit back home.

The theme highlighted the link be-tween prayer and action. We must beproactive and address wrongs rather

than turn a blind eye. We have toshare resources and build a societyfounded in unity. For example, inOrkney, the fishermen are not used tothe extreme cold weather so the com-munity knitted hats for them to wearwhile they work.

Website: www.wdpscotland.org.uk

SERBIA

The WDP liturgy was read in 5languages. We very much en-

joyed preparing the celebration andbeing together in various ecumenicalevents. The main challenge for us ishow to involve Orthodox women (themajority Church in Serbia) and liveecumenism fully. When we achievethis, it will be an example of unity inour country.

During the preparation of the celebra-tion we noted that nearly the same is-sues affecting the Philippines arepresent here in Serbia. The most ur-gent issue besides the economic crisisand poverty is a brain drain. The chil-dren of many of our women left Ser-bia and went to the western region.Some of these children work on cruis-ers together with young Filipinos.

Thanks to our Savior, the Holy Spiritmakes us closer to the Filipino womenand suddenly, somebody, who lives sofar from us becomes very close to usand one of us.

SLOVAKIA

The problems of the Philippinesare to a certain extent also prob-

lems of families in Slovakia. Especiallywhere women are exploited and theirvalue are underestimated. On theother hand, the strength of Filipinowomen is in their solidarity and theirmutual support and hope. The Philip-pines are rich in many beauties, abun-dant fauna and flora, that can´t befound in Slovakia, but also thepoverty is extreme, mostly because ofthe lack of good-paying jobs. Manyfamilies suffer due to their mothers´absence.

When we talked about growing rice,Matúš—a ten-year old boy—said:“From now on I will eat more rice sothat parents in the Philippines havework and can stay with their kids.”

Website: https://sites.google.com/site/sdmslovensko

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RUSSIA SERBIA

World Day of Prayer 31 Journal 2017

SLOVENIA

At a national TV station we pre-sented the WDP as an interna-

tional movement, as we have peoplefrom abroad. We shared about WDPin Slovenia and Croatia, as well as theidea of the service’s main Biblical textand what it means in our everyday life.We had an open discussion of how aChristian woman lives her values in asecularized and material world.

What kind of economy should Chris-tians support? How does a Christianlive in this materialistic world? Thelogic—“not only me, also others canhave”—does not work today. To changethis market logic is very difficult. But

God’s justice is mercy. Living justiceas a Christian means to live it everyday. A portion of our offering will besent to Pag-asa in Tagaytay, Philippinesto support dental machine repair. Pag-asa operates different facilities for chil-dren and families that face financialproblems.

SPAIN

In Madrid we invited Filipino people of different denominations

who gladly attended the service andparticipated actively in it. Afterwards,they wrote to us thanking us. Theyshared the poster, photos, and infor-mation about the service on theirFacebook page, and received responses

and photos from friends from WDP inBolivia, Canada, and France. It was awonderful experience to feel united inspirit in diverse parts of the world.

The bible studies helped us becomemore aware of the importance of hospitality and embracing migrantsand refugees, especially young people,who have left their communities because of war and hunger, and whocome to our country in hopes of find-ing a better future. We have to createspaces for them. To encourage thisidea we decided to support trainingfor young Filipino women.

SWEDEN

World Day of Prayer gatheringswere held in lots of locations

from the polar circle in the far northto the southern tip of the country.

The World Day of prayer provides anatural way of connecting with thewomen in immigrant churches. Withthe help of the New York office andour sisters in Palestine and Egypt, wewere able to provide programs in Ara-bic for services in several cities. Syr-ian-Orthodox churches hostedecumenical services in Enköping andSödertälje.

SLOVAKIA

SLOVENIA

SWEDEN

Dried fruit from a Filipino organiza-tion that works against sexual ex-ploitation of children was sampledand sold at the service in Kumla. Atthe service in Linköping the organiz-ers reported, “Our speaker, a formermissionary to the Philippines, empha-sized that it is the Filipino womenwho carry their society, exactly asshown in Rowena Laxamana-SantaRosa’s theme poster.”

Website: http://www.sek-vbd.se

SWITZERLAND

There were about 800 celebrationsacross Switzerland. Many com-

munities celebrated WDP togetherwith Filipino immigrants, who wereoften involved with the preparations.The personal contact helped us to feelclose to the Filipino people and to un-derstand better their situation.

Through interviews, we were shownthe typical problems Filipinas face: de-struction of the home by a hurricane,abuse as a domestic worker, and ex-ploitation as workers on a plantation.

One of the projects we support is a workshop for women, which givesthem the chance to earn money byproducing different products madefrom reed. They produced writingcases especially for us, which we putup for sale. In the Philippines, we are supporting ecological agriculture,education in gender justice to avoidviolence, a project to protect childrenfrom abuse and human trafficking,handicraft workshops for women toimprove their financial situation, andhelp for abused young women to regainself-confidence.

Website: www.wgt.ch

UKRAINE

This year’s theme—justice—proved to be very relevant for our

people. The theme of justice is alwaysacute in all countries, especially inpoor ones. Because of the war in theeast of our country, we have plenty ofhomeless people who had to leavetheir homes and move to other cities.Our communities are doing our bestto collect food, clothes and money tohelp them.

The World Day of Prayer united all of us because we have similar prob-lems and can understand the Filipinopeople very well. This made ourprayers more sincere and thus moreefficient.

World Day of Prayer 32 Journal 2017

SWITZERLAND UKRAINE

The World Day of Prayer united all of us because we have similar problems and can understand the Filipino people very well. This made our prayers

more sincere and thus more efficient.

World Day of Prayer 33 Journal 2017

Latin AmericaCHILEBRAZIL

ARGENTINA

The WDP community is wherewe most see ecumenism flourish.

We work on the preparations for theservice all year long by havingmonthly meetings and a retreat, andby reaching out to remote communi-ties. Prayer unites people and we al-ways work with the WDP motto“Informed Prayer. Prayerful Action”in mind. We seek God and teach oth-ers to seek him as well for true justicewill come from Him. We also pray forworld peace every Monday.

One of our services was interruptedby excessive heat and a sudden black-out, and in that moment we saw our-selves reflected in what the women ofthe Philippines face every day. Weprayed and vowed to work towardsdefending the rights of women and,above all, to combat gender violence.We chose to support an organizationdedicated to helping those living withdisabilities.

BRAZIL

The celebration was inspiring andit reminded us of our mission to

serve God, who is of justice, and doesnot tolerate injustice. The theme andservice from the Philippine womenshowed us that the structure of economic inequality is everywhere.However, we see that there are ways to combat this that are simple yet important.

We learned about the traditional cul-tural practice of dagyaw as a way ofworking within a community in anequitable way, where all can benefitfrom the harvest. It is a good way tobuild and maintain a community thathas compassion and respect amongresidents. Rice was distributed duringthe worship and it served as a symbolof justice that sustains our hope andour commitment, inspiring us to con-tinue fighting injustices despite thedifficulties.

Website: www.dmoracao.comunid-ades.net

CHILE

We felt we were the “Filipinovoice in Chile.” Even though

we are from different cultures, we feltclose to our Filipino sisters as we sharecommon experiences in terms of injustice and lack of love in this glob-alized world. We still have familyfarms, but we also have agricultureproduction in the hands of the pow-erful. The seeds are being monopo-lized by this powerful sector whowants to appropriate the distributionand storage of those fruits that are thefuture food of our people. It is a mat-ter of food security. The problems thatthe Filipino people suffer are not ex-clusive to them. We are also being“globalized,” so in praying we are cre-ating a spiritual force to continuefighting together.

Facebook: DMO Chile

COSTA RICA

We invested time in gatheringthe groups together to cre-

atively study and prepare the services.It enriched ecumenical relations andbuild capacity of the committee. Weprepared dramas about situations ofinjustice and how to respond to it.The space was decorated as our Fil-ipino sisters suggested bringing uscloser to the writer country. Therewere three children services in whichthe children wore harvesting hats andbore the Philippine flag as they partic-ipated in the readings.

The sister who delivered the sermonin Limon called our attention to the

importance of raising our voices forour rights. As we face physical and social exclusion we are to work to-gether, in unity, for the betterment of our communities. For example, ad-vocating for women leadership in decision making in the church and in our community, or for protectionto Nicaraguan migrant workers inCosta Rica.

CUBA

We had an interesting teamworking experience. We had

to explain to some Filipino residentsin Cuba that by highlighting theproblems in the country we are ableto pray for transformation. This

exchange made us value the impor-tance of entering into a dialogue withpeople from the writer country in ourcommunities. Their participation andassistance made for a more fulfillingservice.

One of the most exciting results of theprogram was the renewal of leadershipas young women engaged in the coor-dinating teams in their province.With that we will promote campaignsfor NO violence against children, andwe will use the art to reach out to fam-ilies in vulnerable situation. We alsocommitted to not limit the prayer to one day, and to continue the mate-rial and spiritual support to women in Cuba.

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

The service space was decorated asthe Philippine women suggested,

creating an inviting atmosphere. Weespecially made sure to have oil,which we know is a symbol of theHoly Spirit, who comforts us and re-minds us of all things. On our altar wealso had water as the symbol of lifeand cleanliness, rice, the symbol offood in our country, a cross as a sym-bol of redemption, and a candle as asymbol of light.

The parable really highlighted the so-cial justice theme and reminded us thatour God is a God of justice. The story

World Day of Prayer 34 Journal 2017

COSTA RICA CUBA

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

World Day of Prayer 35 Journal 2017

is an invitation from Him to the wholeworld to practice justice with one an-other. The issues faced by some of theFilipino women are issues we also face,including devastation by natural disas-ters, such as hurricanes. We must re-member we are all united.

GUATEMALA

For us, the service was a call to re-flect on whether we are being un-

fair to other people. In Guatemalathere is a feeling that there is no jus-tice at the social and economic leveland laws are not implemented. We fo-cused on these issues and lifted themup in prayer.

A Filipino woman who has lived in our country for 10 years was verysurprised to see so many womenaround the world gathered to pray for her country. She learned manythings that she was not aware of like the politics, the exploitation ofchildren, and the suffering of women.We want to follow up on educatingabout migration. Migration is not acrime. We are connecting with an or-ganization dealing with children whohave been deported back to theircountries.

HONDURAS

Even though it seems that womenare beaten constantly in all

spheres of their live, we rise and faceit. That is how we felt identified withthe situation of women in the Philip-pines. Their voices in the service im-pacted the participants and thissimple activity in our small groupmakes us feel that we can do some-thing and that somehow it will affectthe mechanism of injustices.

In Itibucá, the worship service andchildren’s program are integrated. It is

a small group and it is very hard toform an ecumenical group that bringstogether catholic and evangelical. Weare stressing to the members of thegroup to keep informed aboutwomen’s situation locally and globally,so we can continue to lift them up onour personal prayers.

MEXICO

Each day God gives us blessingsand provides us with everything

we need. We must be grateful thatGod never leaves us. Everything as awhole is the fullness of God’s love foreach one of us.

Every WDP celebration gives us thesense of unity in the presence of God.The situations faced by the Filipinowomen are familiar to us; thereforewe do not feel disconnected withtheir pain. During the service, we di-vided ourselves into small groups,and reflected on the life of the Fil-ipinos based on the photos we re-ceived. How does it relate to us? Howcan we support one another? Somesuggested actions were sharing re-sources, visiting the sick, supportingfamilies with children, and sharingthe love of God.

GUATEMALA HONDURAS

MEXIC0

World Day of Prayer 36 Journal 2017

NICARAGUA

We welcomed a new sister thisyear and she was overwhelmed

by the love and acceptance she foundat the celebration. We encouraged herto share the WDP service in herchurch. It is our hope to bring morewomen and churches to the WDPcommunity. For women attendingWDP for the first time, it is a veryspecial experience.

During the service, it was mentionedthe story of a woman in Nicaragua,who was thrown into a bonfire by herpastor on the assumption that she was‘possessed by the demons.’ This hadcreated a commotion in Nicaraguaand church women. Then it was pro-posed that we do something like pro-mote unity and human rightseducation so women can fight fortheir rights and resist injustices evenwhen practiced by church leaders.

PANAMA

This year, women used a globe,putting their hands on the Philip-

pines while making powerful prayers,

clamoring for solutions to the prob-lems and necessities of the country.

We used a game to show how unequalwealth distribution impacts people.There is a story of a man who owned90% of all property. We used chairs torepresent his possessions. Those with-out chairs had to stand, while “theman” had almost all of the chairs. Thisgame showed how the minority ben-efits while the majority suffers in var-ious ways. People are suffering fromhunger, sickness, violence, and othersocial problems.

Some of our women have visited com-munities and provided medical assis-tance, helping children, pregnant

women, and adults that live in placeswith little resources. We suggestedmaking an appeal to get other womento join (preferably young women) inthe urgent need.

PARAGUAY

We have a weekend long retreat-workshop at a camp site every

year. There the writer country is madeknown, the material, and the biblestudies are reviewed, seven monthsahead of the day of prayer. Women allover the country participate in antici-pation of the worship service. This re-treat has been taking place for the last30 years. There is a scholarship pro-gram that allows women who havenot been able to attend this annual re-treat come and get informed.Through this we are able to spreadawareness about WDP and the issuesthe writer country is experiencing. Wefound many similarities between whatwomen in the Philippines and womenin our country suffer: injustice, dis-crimination, and lack of work. Wemust begin to openly discuss these is-sues with one another.

NICARAGUA

During the service, wedivided ourselves intosmall groups, and

reflected on the life of theFilipinos based on thephotos we received. How

does it relate to us?

PANAMA

World Day of Prayer 37 Journal 2017

During the service it was proposedthat we help one community in thecapital that suffered a flood, andwhose members were about to returnto their homes. To do this, theirhomes needed to be fixed andcleaned. Women who lived nearby, orrelatively close, decided to form asquad of aid and cleaning work,which operated on several occasions.It is important to help others in theirtime of need.

Facebook: dmo.paraguay

URUGUAY

Reports from different celebrationsacross the country reflected dif-

ferent interpretations of the theme:the emphasis on justice and equality,the concepts of time, human ways ofmeasuring time, the quality of God’stime, and the need to share opinions.One person said, “I found it impossi-ble to accept the parable as an imageof the Kingdom of God. Thanks toour study it ‘caught’ me and now Ilove it.”

It is still an adventure and a motive ofspecial joy to perceive the newness ofecumenical contacts in this occasion.Celebrating together intensifies oursensitivity for “others.” It helps us tocome out of our own spiritual bubble.It makes us aware of the fact that theworld we live in offers so many diver-sities; it helps us to overcome the bar-riers which separate us from spaces ofspirituality that used to be “forbiddenspaces.”

VENEZUELA

We had three main, successful,services in our country! Our

committee is full of excellent ecu-menical collaborators who all partic-ipate with enthusiasm and positiveenergy, making for a wonderful cele-bration. Every year we feel strength-ened in the Lord knowing that somany countries are united for a singlecause. We feel the strength not only bypraying with the women of the Philip-pines but with the other women fromaround the world who have, withouta doubt, experienced or know of theissues we lift up in worship.

During the preparations in Caracas,we visited the Philippines Consulatein order to expand on the informationgiven to us by WDP Philippines. Wespoke to someone who shared theirknowledge on the situations Filipinosare facing within and outside theirborders. This encounter along withthe worship service written by our Fil-ipino sisters made for a truly enrich-ing experience.

PARAGUAY

VENEZUELA

URUGUAY

World Day of Prayer 38 Journal 2017

EGYPT

This year’s theme had a two-foldimpact: (1) It has led some to do

something positive to help eliminatesocial injustices and (2) It has incitedmany attendees to start examiningtheir own lives, to see if they have beenunjust to others.

In Egypt, a major attack had just beenlaunched in Sinai against all Christianswho had to flee, penniless and deprivedof everything they possess. Most ofthem took refuge in churches in Is-maelia. We sent relief to help therefugees in these churches. It felt thatmany of the Filipino needs and prayerrequests were not exclusively Filipino,but were actually shared by the peopleof Egypt.

The children were excited to dress likeFilipinos, and enjoyed looking at themap of the Philippines and learningabout that country. More than onechild asked: “What games do Filipinochildren play?”

Website: http://www.bethelem-manuel.com

LEBANON

Through the service we learnedabout the lives of women, the

challenges they face, and how similarthey are to our own.

There are many Filipino women liv-ing in our country working as domes-tic helpers. Sometimes they are treatedunfairly and this service opened oureyes to the situation we face right inour homes. In one of our celebrations,three Filipino women participated.One sang the Lord’s Prayer in her

native tongue and the other two readin the worship service. It was anemotional experience having themparticipate and they were grateful tohave been included.

More than 150 children were gath-ered from five different churches tocelebrate and pray for the children ofthe Philippines. The lesson of the day

was about having compassion andsharing what we have with others.

PALESTINE

We learnt that God compensateseverybody equally, contrary to

systems and governments. The Gospelreading prompted us to reflect on theunjust conditions in our countryPalestine. Sharing the plight of our sis-ters in the Philippines brings us closerin the WDP movement.

Being in an area of conflict ourselves,we show solidarity with any countrythat suffers from natural, social, orother problems through letters and

Middle EastEGYPT

LEBANON

PALESTINE

World Day of Prayer 39 Journal 2017

statements and sharing informationwith those around us. We write spe-cial prayers for the regions: Syria,Iraq, Libya, Yemen, and Palestine/Is-rael so that peace can prevail. We havecondemned all forms of violence andterror that lead to the deaths of inno-cent people and we are very muchconcerned about refugee issues allaround the world.

Thank you, Philippine Sisters.

TUNISIA

We were deeply touched to readof the difficulties faced by our

sisters in the Philippines. The text re-flected the strength of their faith toface up to these challenges and in-crease hope for better days ahead. Un-fortunately, we didn’t get as far assuggesting actions, but we were cer-tainly impacted by the stories of strug-gle to overcome unfair practices,perhaps most poignantly those of do-mestic workers, which is also an issuein Tunisia.

During the service, the Anglican com-mittee provided the music, much of itin Arabic, and this was a very reward-ing contribution to the joint service.

There was good attendance by youngerChristian adults, although (as is oftenthe case) the fact that the WDP cele-bration 2017 was on the first Friday ofLent (when many attend Stations ofthe Cross) was an impediment to theattendance of Catholics.

TURKEY

The theme highlighted the justiceof God, the acceptance of God

for everyone, and the generosity ofGod. This helped us focus to becomelike God. We used Turkish songs inthe service, and there was a hugegroup of Filipinos praying togetherwith us.

Being in Turkey, which is a multicul-tural country, the western and easternchurches learn from each other whenwe work together in our WDP Com-munity. Of course there are challenges(different languages, different cultures,

different dominations), but the chal-lenges become a joy for us. We gatherevery year in a different church (west-ern or eastern), and we learn a lot fromthe different ways of worship, knowingthat Jesus Christ is the Lord.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES

Despite having a large migrantFilipino population here in the

UAE, we had very few people attend-ing our service. Time off is very diffi-cult for migrant workers, and Fridayis a weekend when most Filipinoswould have been working. Locally, wecommitted to find ways to help thoseFilipinos who are struggling, workingaway from family and friends and liv-ing hard lives economically. Usuallytheir wages are sent back home to carefor ageing parents and educating theirchildren left behind.

We have 44 congregations that meetin our church premises, from approx-imately 20 different nations. Commu-nication is a big challenge. It takestime and commitment to understandother cultures, and for them to under-stand you. The greatest joy is whenyou do, and you successfully work andworship together.

TUNISIA

UNITED ARAB EMIRATESTURKEY

AUSTRALIA

World Day of Prayer 40 Journal 2017

AOTEAROA/NEW ZEALAND

The theme was very well received.We have many hundreds of Fil-

ipino people working here. Many haveleft their families behind and are work-ing to gain a better life for them. At oneservice, a woman told of the difficultiesof being a single parent after her hus-band left the Philippines to work, andbefore she and her children were able tojoin him. We lifted up the need for sup-port and welcome for those who are farfrom home. Many in attendance feltempathy for lonely people and hopedto be more welcoming.

Children took several parts in theWDP service like dramatizing theGospel reading, but also participatingin the children’s program held atchurch schools or Sunday schools.

Website: www.worlddayofprayer.co.nz

AUSTRALIA

We had great children’s participa-tion. They read the young peo-

ple’s parts and assisted with handing

out service sheets, taking up collec-tions, and helping with morning teas.Some sang in the service, or took partdancing and making decorations.One suburban center hosted 23 pri-mary school students who mimed theGospel story. By all accounts this wasa great partnership between the or-ganizers and the local schools.

Several service centers advised that at-tendances were up—possibly due to the local Filipino women attend-ing. One country service reported thattheir town has a strong connectionwith the Philippines. ‘Each year oneor two groups work with a Churchand Orphanage in Cebu. Manyyounger members have also partici-pated in Mission trips to Manila aspart of their Senior Years at the localChristian School.’

Website: www.worlddayofprayeraus-tralia.org

COOK ISLANDS

At first we were asking ourselveswhy the women of the Philippines

chose the theme “Am I Being Unfair toYou?” Then we realized that they hadbeen treated unfairly, and that it washappening here in the Cook Islandstoo. There were many constructive dis-cussions held on the theme, and a lotof stories being told.

This year’s theme really carved a path-way for all of us to reflect and go backto the Bible. The Bible verse fromNumbers 27 was well and clearly dram-atized on the night of the worship.Dramatizing the Gospel of Mark at-tracted those that are in the work force.The congregation was all in silence anddiscussion continued even after theservice. Here in the Cook Islands ourecumenical relationship is gettingstronger and stronger every year.

FIJI

We came together from differentdenominations to deeply re-

flect on the theme. The general at-mosphere was that each one presentasked their neighbor, “Am I being un-fair to you?” We felt that we shouldreach out to the Pacific and to Asia

PacificAOTEAROA/NEW ZEALAND AUSTRALIA

COOK ISLANDS

World Day of Prayer 41 Journal 2017

with our fight against climatechange and ask the big coun-tries, “Are we being unfair toyou?” Like the Philippines, weare also facing the impact of cli-mate change. We are in solidar-ity with the Filipino people.

Child abuse, child protection,and climate change were three is-sues that were identified as areasof action lift up on our comingtogether. Our children partici-pated in the drama and actionsong and dressed up in Philippine dress,making it a lovely celebration.

KIRIBATI

Women and children are seen asvictims and the most vulnerable

people in the stories given by Meryln,Tiria, and Esther. “Am I being unfairto you” pinpoints exactly those peoplewith power. However, this brings us to-gether to share the challenges faced bychildren and women in the stories told,and at the same time empower us in away that it affirms our faith in knowingthat God is good all the time and iswithin us always.

Our government is working hard todevelop its training manual on childprotection, as is our church. Thewomen’s fellowship has visited all the

islands to train women and others inparenting skills, child protection,budgeting skills, gardening—relatingthem to biblical texts. We hope it willhelp families work for their own living.

NEW CALEDONIA

Although we are a small countrywe had very successful celebra-

tions with about 16,000 participants.Currently, the participants are mem-bers of the protestant churches but weare actively inviting and working on sharing the WDP movement withmembers of the Catholic Church.During the service we felt the pres-ence of the Holy Spirit with strongemotion and love for the Filipino people. We experience many of thesame issues our Filipino sisters liftedup. Through WDP we are able tolearn about the situations women face

across the world, and we dis-cover that we are not alone.There are many injustices andwe must be strong women andturn towards justice when the opportunity arises. UnderGod we are all the same, for hehas no preferences and sees nodifferences.

SAMOA

Throughout the country,services were held ecu-

menically in the villages. After hearingthe voices of the Filipino women cry-ing for education and economic jus-tice, we pray that the governmentleaders prioritize the needs of poorfamilies. Church leaders also must dothe same. We have to inspire andmove ourselves and others into action.We need to be seeds of justice thatflourish to bring hope to the world.

We realized that solidarity is oursource of strength. Ecumenical rela-tionships bring happiness in the mys-tery of seedtime and the joy ofharvest, which is a time of plenty. Itinspires us to continue despite the ob-stacles, and to bring hope to the worldby using our hands to continue plant-ing and nurturing.

COOK ISLANDS KIRIBATI

NEW CALEDONIA

CENTROAMÉRICA

Como parte del seguimiento alfortalecimiento de los comités

nacionales en Centroamérica iniciadoen 2015, realizamos otro taller enCosta Rica con 21 mujeres de 9provincias. Eso resultó en 9 celebra-ciones en 2017 bajo el tema delDMO Filipinas con un total de 302participantes en Costa Rica.

En Guatemala, el taller del 2015 llevóa la formación del comité nacional yla realización del segundo Taller de Fortalecimiento en Centroaméricacon 39 mujeres participantes siendo 5 provenientes de El Salvador, 3 de Costa Rica y 31 de diferentes

provincias de Guatemala. Muchas de las participantes por primera vezescuchaban del movimiento. Sequedaron asombradas por la variedady calidad del material del que sedispone y salieron animadas a llevar asus congregaciones y país todo elaprendizaje del DMO y en particulartodo lo aprendido de Filipinas.

El tema “¿Acaso te estoy tratando Injustamente?” es muy importantepara la región pues la realidad del de-sempleo y las injusticias son cotidi-anas. Se trabajó el tema de la trata demujeres y sus efectos en las víctimas.La invisibilidad y silencio alrededorde esta realidad y el aumento de casosen la región, en particular en

Guatemala nos han impactado pro-fundamente.

La participación de las mujeres indíge-nas de Guatemala nos ha llevado aproveer interpretación del taller a susidiomas. La creatividad y comuniónnos permitieron sentir el espíritu deDios de una manera especial. Todo esocontribuyó para que en Guatemala sedieran 16 celebraciones con 428 par-ticipantes.

Las mujeres Salvadoreñas, muy ani-madas, llegaron a su país a organizarsepara hacer las celebraciones. Aunquesin un comité nacional formado, lasrepresentantes de las Iglesia Bautista y Luterana lograron realizar 5 cultos

Leading Together

World Day of Prayer 42 Journal 2017

World Day of Prayer 43 Journal 2017

en diferentes regiones con partici-pación de 300 personas. Esperan en el 2018 poder tener un Taller de Fortalecimiento y preparatorio delDMO de Surinam, y lograr formarun comité.

Encontrar maneras de enfrentar lasinjusticias, marginación, explotaciónque viven las mujeres en Filipinas yen nuestros países es todo un reto.Nos animó la manera como creanformas de solidaridad y apoyo antelas necesidades. Seguimos conmucho entusiasmo para los tallerespreparatorios del 2018 y buscandomaneras de orar y actuar.

Agradecemos a Dios y al CIDMOquienes han hecho posible que po-damos fortalecer el DMO en laregión.

Informe y fotos por la representanteregional de América Latina—RebecaCascante.

The Latin America Regional Representative, Rebeca Cascante, reports on the Strengthening National Committeeworkshops with women from Costa Rica, Guatemala, and El Salvador, supported by WDPIC Funds. The activitieshave resulted in the formation of National Committees, increasing of number of celebrations and participation,better understanding of the WDP movement, and awareness of women’s situation to inspire prayer and action.

World Day of Prayer 44 Journal 2017

Seeking wisdom to care for God’s creation in Portuguese, written on the

conference hall banner, set the context ofthe International Committee Meeting ofWorld Day of Prayer, held in Foz doIguaçu, Paraná, Brazil from August 20-27,2017. The theme was an invitation to col-lectively commit our prayer and action to-wards environment care, which is thefocus of the 2018 WDP program writtenby the Suriname committee.

We had an intense and participatory program. It was collaboratively led by

delegates, guests, and the executive com-mittee members. We were 188 partici-pants representing 81 countries. Wecame together to continue building theWDP movement and make decisionsabout the international leadership andprograms for the next term.

WDP Brazil as hosting country welcomedthe participants and gave us a sense of thethree frontier states (Brazil, Paraguay, andArgentina) with a cultural presentation bya group of young dancers and musiciansfrom Paraguay.

Buscando sabedoria para cuidar da criação DeusInternational Committee Meeting Report

BY ROSÂNGELA S. OLIVEIRA

FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

The opening celebration was based onthe Suriname worship service with thetheme “All God’s creation is verygood!” Silvia Regina Lima e Silva introduced the Bible Study based onGenesis 1:2.1-4 during the medita-tion moment and concluded thestudy the next day. The hermeneuticperspective that crossed the reflectionwas hope. The hope proclaimed, af-firmed, and experienced in the midstof pain, the denial of life, and in themidst of chaos.

Sarah de Roure gave a presentation onthe environmental context and com-munities in Brazil, telling the storiesof the indigenous women in the Ama-zon and the indiscriminate exploita-tion of the rainforest throughpredatory economic practices such asmining, large-scale logging, water andsoil contamination by livestock andsoybean plantations.

The WDP program is grounded inthe Bible, and that always makes the

Bible study sessions a key moment inour formation process. Besides SilviaSilva, there were two other theolo-gians guiding the Bible Study. DoraArce Valentin chose the text ofProverbs 31:10-31 to challenge WDPwomen to see the potential that thismovement can represent globally andlocally when wisdom inspires trans-formation.

Ulrike Bechmann led the Bible studyon Luke 14:15-24 introducing the

World Day of Prayer 45 Journal 2017

Young dancers from Paraguay Silvia Regina Lima e Silva

Sarah de Roure Dora Arce Valentin

World Day of Prayer 46 Journal 2017

theme of the 2019 program writtenby WDP Slovenia: “Come—Every-thing is Ready.” There is a moment ofjustice—when the poor is empoweredto come to the table and the rich to bechanged. The slave is an enabler of thetransformation and we can ask our-selves, how can WDP be an enabler?

There were two set of workshops.One day the focus was on the themeof the meeting, and the next day wasfocused on ways to renew andstrengthen the WDP movement.Also, twelve small thematic groupswere previously formed on a variety of

topics to allow for meaningful conver-sations that would impact WDP ac-tion and response in the communities.

A community building session invitedthe participants to share and pray together. A choir was formed by the

participants who sang new songs withthe help of the song leaders. Plus, wecelebrated the meeting of women fromthe Reformation and WDP women,telling the story of women’s leadershipin the past and today. A prayer roomwhere any participant could spendsome quite time praying and meditat-ing was set and available at all times.

We are collecting the outlines, presen-tations, or reports of each activity, andthey will be available for download onthe WDPIC website. We expect youto use those resources in your com-munity and WDP committee.

Ulrike Bechmann Ancestral wisdom: land, identity and food security workshop

Facilitators of young women leading the unity in prayer and actions workshop

Organizing the Reformation & WDP women’s presentation

World Day of Prayer 47 Journal 2017

On Thursday, we wore black in soli-darity with the Thursday in Blackcampaign to say no to rape and vio-lence. It was powerful! We will bringthat awareness to our WDP commit-tee and community.

Finally, we want to inform you of the newly elected members of the executive committee and the new calendar of themes and writercountries.

ChairpersonLaurence Gangloff (France)

TreasurerSusan Jackson-Dowd(USA)

AfricaHenriette Mbatchou(Cameroon)

Joyce Larko Steiner(Ghana)

AsiaMoumita Biswas (India)

Vino Schubert (Sri Lanka)

Caribbean/North AmericaRuth V.E. Phillips (Barbados)

Lauren Wilks (Canada)

EuropeEmmanuelle Bauer (Luxembourg)

Senka Sestak Peterlin(Croatia)

Latin AmericaRebeca Cascante (Costa Rica)

Esther Susana Renner(Brazil)

Middle EastMaral Barzkian Haidostian(Lebanon)

Nora Carmi (Palestine)

PacificVicki Marney (Australia)

Henrica Nio Marona (Cook Islands)

Thursday in Black Campaign! WDPIC Executive Committee members, staff and guest

Newly elected WDPIC Executive Committee

The working group on themes andwriter countries revised all the submis-sions received, and based on the areasof concern of the worldwide move-ment, the urges of our time, the basicstructure and capacity of the nationalcommittees, the geographic balance,and with prayers, they have designedthe following program:

On the last day, the outgoing andnewly elected executive members metto pass along information about theirregion and to encourage the new lead-ership. Also, the delegates of the se-lected countries met with the newchairperson and executive director tohave a brief overview of the writingprocess and timeline.

The closing worship service is the moment of entrusting the new lead-ership with their responsibility andprayers for guidance. The offering collected was dedicated to the Fundfor Tomorrow, which enables youngwomen and national committees withlimited resources to be part of the in-ternational meeting. The committeesin Greece, Lebanon, Palestine, Swe-den, and Uruguay gave their offeringin honor of a leader in their country.Their story will be posted on theWDPIC website.

2022—I know the plans I have for you, by WDP England/Wales/ Northern Ireland

2023—I have heard about your faith, by WDP Taiwan

2024—I beg you… bear with one another in love, by WDP Palestine

2025—I made you wonderful, by WDP Cook Islands

2026—I will give you rest: come, by WDP Nigeria

World Day of Prayer 48 Journal 2017

In God’s beautiful garden building just and inclusive communities workshop

Outgoing WDPIC Committee Newly elected WDPIC Committee

World Day of Prayer 49 Journal 2017

We, the participants, traveled from all corners ofGod’s given home—the earth. We were women

and young women from the seven regions of the world. Itwas an intergenerational conversation!

3 We came from the Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestanttraditions. It was an ecumenical dialogue!

3 We shared our stories, we heard the pain of God’s cre-ation, we listened to God’s words and as women of faithwe grow stronger in our commitment for transforma-tion. It was a prayer and action moment!

3 In the midst of the environmental crisis, climate change,exploitation, violence, and xenophobia, we insisted onthe goodness of creation. Goodness to be recoveredthrough our prophetic-transforming action. “All God’screation is very good!”

3 Focused on the life giving strategies of Quilombolas, inBrazil, or Maroon, in Suriname, we got inspiration in

women’s leading role in the transmission of knowledgeand community values to tie together food security andsustainable local development. We learned with eachother!

3 In the Mayan cosmology, forests and lands are sacred,and the earth is the mother where the home and gardenare for the community’s co-existence and collectivework. We are to take care of our mother earth!

3 The parallels between the destruction of the Earth andthe evils of anthropocentrism with oppression, racismand discrimination, came out when confronted by eco-feminist theology. We see it clear now!

3 Over fishing! Plastic shopping bags, fertilized seeds, car-bon-monoxide generators, wood and charcoal fuel,stone crushing, waste disposal, deforestation, non-eco-logical office supplies, human trafficking—all came intolight as we named the ecological context of our communities. Women are boycotting, campaigning,

WEAVING TOGETHER THE CONVERSATIONS

recycling, gardening, petitioning, rallying, changing lifestyles, advocating, educating, shopping responsibly,holding vigils to raise awareness, even abstaining fromeating fish during certain seasons. We are for environ-mental justice!

3 Humans move from one place to another, and some-times they are called refugees and they are living incamps, unemployed, subject to violence, and alwaysvulnerable. Inclusiveness! What a witness, we engagewith our churches and non-governmental organizations.

3 One young woman from each of the seven regions leadthe unity in prayer and action through art, social media,and song to reflect on their experience and to emphasizethe value of those practices to reach out to young peoplefor an intergenerational movement. A friendship acrossthe globe flourished!

3 Japanese women wear kimonos in hope of peace andreconciliation, including amongst women in the regionwhere the violence of war has left a wound. In a smallgroup, stories of conflict and violence were shared.Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be calleddaughters of God.

3 In the exchange about women leadership roles in thechurches, we could see that women are the backbone ofthe churches in their respective parishes and homes,even when the patriarchal structure limits the publicrole of women in worship and hierarchal functions.Women’s empowerment is still a blessing to churches!

3 Children’s rights are human rights and it should be thefocus of the children’s ministry. This is being acknowledgedas we nurture and care for children. Church, home, andgovernment agencies must work together to transform thelife of children.

3 In a pilot project with young women, a research demon-strated that less structured and interactive event, whereyoung women can contribute their knowledge and isrelationship driven, may be more successful than tradi-tional lecturing meetings. Keep that in mind!

3 The environmental crisis is also a crisis of global justice.God’s justice always meant loving and sacrificial self-giv-ing. We, as Christians cannot be silent. We live with thehope and belief that people have the means, and increas-ingly, the will to focus on justice, peace, and integrity ofcreation.

3 To recycle is to give a new use to objects, thus reducingthe consumption of resources that may degrade the planet.We may use the way we do WDP activities to educate andcampaign for climate justice. Reduce, Reuse, Recycle!Simple as that!

3 What a precious opportunity to listen the writer coun-tries! Philippines, Suriname, Slovenia and Zimbabwe,each one gave a glimpse into the theme and the situa-tion of their country. We are enthusiastic about the pro-grams!

3 A question to Katherina von Bora—Can you see anysimilarities between the women in the ReformationMovement and the women in the Word Day of Prayer?She may say that the Reformation Movement rediscov-ered the value of women and we can add that throughInformed Prayer. Prayerful Action for peace and justice,WDP women live out solidarity.

World Day of Prayer 50 Journal 2017

World Day of Prayer 51 Journal 2017

A GLIMPSE OF THE PROGRAM AND LEADERSHIP

Talking wisdom and care @ 10

3Mujeres indígenas y el cuidado por la tierra, Bianka PazCarrera (Guatemala)

3 Reciclaje como acto de cuidado, Coromoto Jimenez deSalazar (Venezuela)

3Women leading change, Catherine Akale (Cameroon)

3 Kimono dressing for peace,Maymi Hara and Megumi Mae-jima (Japan)

3 Empowering Orthodox women, Saramma Varghese (India)

3 Reaching out to children, Janice Soyer-Delaney (Trinidadand Tobago)

3WDP pilot project with young women, Catherine Mackeil(Canada)

3Welcoming refugees, Inge-Lise Lollike and Lene Johnson(Denmark)

3 Ecumenical response to crisis, Marija Parnicky (Serbia),Senka Peterlin (Croatia)

3 Situation of Roma people, Nataša Egić (Slovenia)

3What is happening in Middle East? Nora Carmi (Palestine)

3 Community’s responses to climate change, Fetaiai Pepa Monaand Elizabeth Lanuola Asiata (Samoa)

Workshops Focused on the Theme and WDP

3What is climate justice? Dora Arce-Valentin (Cuba)

3 Ancestral wisdom: Land, identity and food security, Mar-ilia Alves Schüller (Brazil)

3 In God’s Beautiful Garden Building Just and InclusiveCommunities, Moumita Biswas (India)

3 Connecting worship and prayerful action, Marilyn Pagan-Banks (USA)

3 Young women leading the unity in prayer and actions,Tlamelo Kebatenne (Botswana), Hungreiphy ZimikAwungshi (India), Lauren Wilks (Canada) Sona Galsty(Greece), Ruth Trueba (Cuba), Sally Ibrahim Ajar(Palestine), and Anne Lizqina Lehauli (Tonga).

World Day of Prayer 52 Journal 2017

Every International Committee meeting a new chairperson, from thepool of current and available regional representatives, is elected. I,

Corinna Harbig, pass to Laurence Gangloff the light for guidance and wis-dom in the role of chairperson from 2017 to 2022.

At the closing worship service, I reflected on Jesus’ commissioning of thedisciples, highlighting three aspects most meaningful to WDP women.

First, we as women of faith are called and empowered to follow the footstepsof Jesus. We all are God’s creation “regardless the color of our skin, our de-nomination or religion, or if we are young, a mother or grandmother, mar-ried or single, lesbian or bisexual, we are valued and we are wisdom. We areGod’s creation!”

Second, we as women of faith are empowered to pray together. “It is a pow-erful prayer because it leads us to change our view and open our eyes to-wards the world. Our Informed Prayer leads us to see the destruction ofcreation, the injustice, the gap between the rich and the poor, the violence,and the chaos in God’s good creation.”

Lastly, we as women of faith are empowered to act. “We are empowered toreconstruct communities, empowered to form new communities, empow-ered to act together for justice and peace.”

Outgoing chairperson Corinna Harbig withelected chairperson, Laurence Gangloff

A WORD FROM THE OUTGOING CHAIRPERSON

PRAYERFUL ACTIONS

3 Support the communities by disseminating the infor-mation that communities want to share about thethreats upon them and their environment;

3 Raise support by promoting connections between different communities with common environmentalchallenges;

3 Promote global awareness by engaging with communi-ties, building solidarity, participating and strengtheningthe alliances between the Churches and women’sgroups;

3 Wear black on Thursday to say NO to rape and genderbased violence.

3 Finding women’s voice in the Bible Study, Ulrike Bech-mann and Irene Trokarski (Germany)

3 Talking to writer countries from 2017 to 2020, MaralHaidostian (Lebanon), Dorothy Castro (Philippines),Rosana Pindon (Suriname), Tanja Povsnar (Slovenia), andSylvia Marowa (Ziimbabwe)

3 Promovendo DMO no Brasil, Leda Witter (Brazil)

3Women Leading History: Reformation and WDP, GrietjeCouperus (Brazil), Christina Takatsu Winnischofer(Brazil), Lore Raudonat (Germany)

World Day of Prayer 53 Journal 2017

Empowering women, children, youth, and people with disabilities through education, mentoring,shelter, food programs, trauma counseling, hospital care, orphanages, and prison visitations;

Sustaining the socio-political commitment for women’s empowerment and race/ gender justice; supporting migrant children, people displaced by war or natural/human made disasters;

Providing care and medical supplies for people living with HIV and AIDS, cancer, drug addiction,diabetes and dementia; and victims of domestic violence and human trafficking;

Promoting Christian education for children and youth and women’s theological formation; sponsoringprograms of ecumenical council women’s desks and Bible Society;

Building organizational sustainability of the WDP in local communities, in the writer countries, andprovide for the regional and international coordination of the movement. Tell the WDP story by honoring a leader through the Fund for Tomorrow.

WDP at a GlanceWorld Day of Prayer is a global ecumenical movement led by

Christian women who welcome all to join in prayer and ac-tion for peace and justice on every first Friday of March and through-out the year.

The 2017 Journal is based on the 99 country reports received, eventhough more countries have promoted the program. It is estimatedthat 95,829 services were held in 113 languages, including versionsin Braille and large print. The worship service’s attendance was esti-mated at around 1,618,869 persons. The celebrations were held inchurches, schools, hospitals, prisons, convents, and elderly homes.

In a few countries, the worship service was broadcasted on nationalTV, radio, and via live stream. WDP activities were announced inthe city or church’s newspapers, posters, fliers, Facebook, website,and Twitter. Around 24 activities, especially for children and youth,were held in many schools and churches across the seven regions.

HOW WILL WDP OFFERINGS MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN THE PHILIPPINES AND AROUND THE WORLD?

WDP Philippines will ecumenically support training on risk reduction in communities vulnerable to the effectsof climate change and natural/human made disasters; enable young women leadership; promote adult education

in the rural indigenous communities; sponsor livelihood training for urban poor women and build an organizationalcapacity for Church Women United-Philippines and WDP ecumenical campaigns.

WDP National/Regional Committees develop their partnership directly with projects locally or abroad, including inthe Philippines. They have reported that the offering will be dedicated to:

Countries:99

Regions:7

Languages: 113

Participants:1,618,869

Worship Services:95,829

World Day of Prayer 54 Journal 2017

WDP 1927–2021

THEME TIMELINE

The timeline of World Day ofPrayer Worship service themes

and writers is based on Blessed, the artpainting, done by Chantal E.Y. Ben-tel, for the 2015 Bahamas celebration.The poster tells the story of women’sglobal concern and theological approach through a movement of Informed Prayer. Prayerful Action.

Use the poster to tell the story ofWDP in your community! Invite thechildren to find the writer country onthe map! Ask the young people toidentify the social justice issues on thetimeline! Envision new themes andwriters that ecumenically welcome allto join in prayer and action for peaceand justice.

To order the poster, please emailadmin@worlddayofprayer.net. Thecost of the posters is as follows:

1 to 10 posters = $ 5.50 each posterplus shipping;

11 to 99 posters = $ 4.50 each posterplus shipping;

over 100 posters = $ 3.50 each posterplus shipping.

EDITORIAL TEAM

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBERS

The WDP Journal is an annual publication of the World Day of Prayer International Committee (WDPIC). It is based on the Annual Reports

written by the WDP National/Regional Committees. It offers an overview ofthe global movement from its local context, and includes expressions of prayerand action based on the annual theme. WDPIC promotes the sharing of in-formation, therefore the Journal can be freely downloaded from the WDPICwebsite, and it can be reproduced provided acknowledgment is given to thesource of information.

EditorialRosângela S. Oliveira (Staff )Samantha Figueroa (Staff )Jessica Tulloch (Consultant)

PhotosWDP Committees and WDPIC

DesignLaura Lee (Consultant)

Cover ArtworkRowena “Apol” Laxamana-Sta.Rosa (WDP Philippines Committee)

World Day of Prayer International Executive Committee Laurence Gangloff, France (Chairperson)Susan Jackson-Dowd, USA (Treasurer)Africa:Henriette Mbatchou, CameroonJoyce Larko Steiner, GhanaAsia:Vino Schubert, Sri LankaMoumita Biswas, IndiaCaribbean and North America:Ruth V.E. Phillips, BarbadosLauren Wilks, Canada Europe:Senka Sestak Peterlin, CroatiaEmmanuelle Bauer, LuxembourgLatin America:Rebeca Cascante Gómez, Costa Rica Esther Susana Renner, BrazilMiddle East:Maral Barzkian-Haidostian, LebanonNora Carmi, PalestinePacific:Vicki Marney, AustraliaHenrica Nio Marona, Cook Islands

World Day of Prayer 55 Journal 2017

AFRICA ASIA

CARIBBEAN & NORTH AMERICA EUROPE

LATIN AMERICA MIDDLE EAST

PACIFIC BRAZIL

See you at the next International Committee Meeting in 2022!SAVE THE DATE! RAISE FUNDS BY TELLING A WDP STORY!

REGIONAL DELEGATES AND HOST COUNTRY—WDP BRAZIL

SURINAME 2018

All God’s Creation is Very Good!A heri grontapu di Gado meki bun doro, dóro!

As in the beginning, God created from chaos. But everything thatwas created found its place in creation. All were related to each

other—the earth with the light, the waters with the sky, the tree seedswith the living creatures, and the humankind with God. None couldexist without the other, and the source of all was God.

There was goodness in that integrated system of relationships. But es-sential to that was the commitment to care. And we know that we arefailing!

Women from Suriname lift up their voices to remind us that we arecaretakers of God’s creation! They are bringing to our attention theurgent need for caring at a time when more than 180 countries havesigned the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. A commitment tokeep the earth cooler depends on public policies implemented by gov-ernments, but also on our personal lifestyle.

As one of our Guiding Principles affirms “prayer is rooted in listeningto God and to one another.” Through the worship service, we listento the multicultural and multi-ethnic people of Suriname. They takeus to their communities and through their concerns. History is beforeour eyes! The flora and fauna are remarkable! The everyday life isweaved into the prayers.

How good is God’s creation? That is the question to meditate and re-spond to with a personal commitment to care for creation. But it canalso be an opportunity for the WDP motto “Informed prayer andprayerful action” to be affirmed in the community. What is it that we,as the WDP movement, can do to keep God’s creation good?

SLOVENIA 2019

Come—Everything is Ready!

This year the program was written by women in Slovenia, one ofthe smallest countries in Europe and a pretty young committee

in the WDP movement.

At the core of the theme, an invitation—Come. And to enable the re-sponse—Everything is ready. Come to praise, thank, and proclaim thekingdom of love.

The invitation is grounded in the parable that Jesus told about a greatdinner which was attended by the ones called off the streets, as theones invited excused themselves. The community formed around thetable is not enough to fill the house—there is still room. Who aremissing from the table in your community? How would you inviteand prepare the feast?

Throughout the worship service, we hear the stories of those who arecoming to the table of bread, wine, water, and salt. Their stories reflectthe political and economic situation from the time Slovenia was a so-cialist-communist state to today. Their stories are the voices of therefugee and migrant workers, the mothers, the grandmothers, thewives, and the Roma people. While listening to their stories, we askfor forgiveness for being silent in the face of injustice, and we praythat God open our hearts to compassion and understanding and weleave with a blessing prayer to mutually support one another on thepath of freedom, justice, and peace.

For more information about World Day of Prayer please write to:World Day of Prayer International Committee

475 Riverside Drive Suite 729New York, NY 10115

USATel: 1-212-870-3049

Email: admin@worlddayofprayer.net/Facebook: World Day of Prayer—International Committee

To download the Journal, visit our website:www.worlddayofprayer.net