Women and men in more than 170 countries and regions will come together on March 3 to celebrate World Day of Prayer once again.
Here in Tyrone, individuals will meet at Epworth Manor at 2 p.m.
Services will also be held at Simpson Temple Church in Altoona at 1 p.m. and Zion Lutheran Church in Williamsburg at 7:30 p.m.
World Day of Prayer is a worldwide movement of Christian women of many traditions who come together to observe a common day of prayer each year, and who, in many countries, have a continuing relationship in prayer and service.
Through World Day of Prayer, women around the world affirm their faith in Jesus Christ and share their hopes and fears, their joys and sorrows and their opportunities and needs.
The World Day of Prayer is a movement initiated and carried out by women in more than 170 countries and regions, symbolized by an annual day of celebration which is held the first Friday of March. All people are welcome.
The worship service has a special annual theme. Through preparation and participation in the worship service, individuals can come to know how women of other countries, languages and cultures understand the biblical passages in their context.
This year’s theme focuses on the women of South Africa and “Signs of the Times”.
In a recent press release, the WDP Committee invites everyone to join the women of South Africa in prayer and song to support women’s Ecumenical ministries toward justice, peace, healing and wholeness.
An offering to support the work of WDP and HIV/AIDS ministries in South Africa and the USA will be taken.
Founded in 1941, Church Women United is an Ecumenical movement reaching 25 million Protestant, Roman Catholic, Orthodox and other Christian women. More than 1,200 local and state units work for peace and justice as followers of Jesus, according to the WDP press release.
The World Day of Prayer website, located on the web at www.worlddayofprayer.net describes its mission, “Through World Day of Prayer, women are encouraged to become aware of the whole world and no longer live in isolation, to be enriched by the faith experience of Christians of other countries and cultures, to take up the burdens of other people and pray with and for them and to become aware of their talents and use them in the service of society.
“Through World Day of Prayer, women affirm that prayer and action are inseparable and that both have immeasurable influence in the world.”
