Week of Prayer for Syria: Day 2

Here is the prayer for Day 2 for a Week of Prayer for Syria. The prayer campaign is being organized by the Catholic charity Aid to the Church in Need.

Day 1 is here.

(Phrases in quotes in the prayers have been sent to Aid to the Church in Need from people in Syria. Some of the authors are named, others must remain anonymous.)

Prayer and Intercession for Peace in Syria

God of Compassion,
Hear the cries of the people of Syria
Comfort those who suffer violence
Console those who mourn the dead
Give strength to Syria’s neighbouring countries to welcome the refugees
Convert the hearts of those who have taken up arms
And protect those who are committed to peace.

God of hope,
Inspire leaders to choose peace over violence and to seek reconciliation with their enemies
Inflame the Universal Church with compassion for the people of Syria
And give us hope for a future built on justice for all
We ask this through Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace and Light of the world.

Amen

Second day: Comfort those who suffer because of violence

Syria, a battleground: “The workplace, destroyed. Children’s innocence, destroyed. Families and homes, destroyed. Schools, places of worship, hospitals, destroyed. … A cruel tragedy stretching out beneath the silent onlooking of so many. A small nation that carries the harsh and heavy image of Jesus with the Cross. ‘Simon of Cyrene’ has yet to appear.”
6.8 million people affected by the conflict in Syria. The “time of silence is approaching … silent, tearful looks with broken hearts are a language that unites us to the Immaculate Heart of Mary at the foot of the Cross…”

For all those who suffer because of this violence. We pray that after such suffering and so many horrors, they will not lose their hope in a peaceful and just solution. We pray that many “Simons of Cyrene” might appear, ready to carry the cross and lighten the load of this people. Mary, Queen of Peace, pray for Syria, pray for us.