United In Prayer

Together We Ask God to Help Humanity Overcome the Coronavirus Pandemic; #PrayTogether

The Higher Committee of Human Fraternity (HCHF), which includes leaders from across Muslim, Christian and Jewish communities has called for 14 May to be, as detailed in The Hill, “a day dedicated to ‘fasting, works of mercy, prayers, and supplications for the good of all humanity’ so that God ends the pandemic.”

• FB-ISAO would like to encourage members join our staff in a moment of prayer on 14 May at 11 a.m., ET. Wherever you may be, we encourage you to pause and pray for unity of spirit and effort as we strive to thoughtfully and effectively respond to this ongoing threat and as we move towards resuming physical gatherings across the country and around the world.
• While we believe in the importance of active and participatory security, we also believe that God hears our prayers and responds to them. On 14 May, let us share in another way, and let us pray together.
• Consider sharing this message of collective prayer with your FBO and community and let us come together in unity on the 14^th. #PrayTogether

“The committee called on religious leaders and people around the world to respond to this call to safeguard humanity.”

The HCHF

The Hill continues, “the HCHF urged people worldwide regardless of language, color or faith to implore God through acts such as fasting, prayer or charity to ward off the pandemic. ‘We implore God to help us overcome this pandemic, to restore security, stability, health, and prosperity so that our world may become, after this pandemic, a better place for humanity and fraternity to live in,’ the statement said. The committee called on religious leaders and people around the world to respond to this call to safeguard humanity.”

Pope Francis has supported that call for unity and prayer. As noted here, “Pope Francis has endorsed the call to ‘the believers of all the religions to unite together spiritually on May 14 in a day of prayer and fasting, to implore God to help humanity overcome the coronavirus pandemic…’ In his address, he repeated the call for an interreligious day of prayer saying, ‘Remember, May 14, all believers together, believers of the different [religious] traditions, to pray, to fast, and to do works of charity.’” The Pope stated “since prayer is a universal value, I accepted its proposal.” Beyond religious leaders the UN’s Secretary-General, António Guterres, tweeted his support for the “moment for reflection, hope and faith.”

“Remember, May 14, all believers together, believers of the different traditions, to pray, to fast, and to do works of charity.”

Pope Francis

The HCHC was established in September 2019 as a “concrete response” to the Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together signed by Pope Francis and Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, during the pope’s visit to the United Arab Emirates in February 2019.