Bishops in Canada answered Pope Francis’ call for a Day of Prayer and Fasting for Syria, but another day of prayer is scheduled for this Saturday.
The Sept. 14 feast of the exaltation of the cross was already scheduled as a day of prayer for Syria. It is to culminate a three-month joint campaign by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) and the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CCODP) to raise emergency aid for Syrian refugees.
At the launch of that campaign in June, in a letter addressed to the Catholics of Canada, Archbishop Richard Smith of Edmonton, president of the CCCB invited Catholics to be in solidarity with the people of Syria in their many sufferings from war, violence and displacement. “As a community of faith, let us pray to God to bring justice, peace and healing to the region. Let each of us do what we can to provide assistance and aid to our suffering brothers and sisters in Syria and its neighbouring countries.»
