Interfaith Groups Call for Prayer and Reflection to End Darfur Genocide

A wide array of interfaith and ecumenical groups, including the National Council of Churches and the National Association of Evangelicals, is calling upon people of faith to pray for Darfur this weekend

By Pauline J. Chang, Christian Post Reporter Friday, July 15, 2005

A wide array of interfaith and ecumenical groups, including the National Council of Churches and the National Association of Evangelicals, is calling upon people of faith to pray for Darfur this weekend.

The National Weekend of Prayer and Reflection, slated for July 15-17, will be observed in churches and communities of Christians, Jews and Muslims across the nation to mark one year after Congress declared the atrocities in western Sudan a “genocide.”

According to the Save Darfur Coalition of New York, which represents about 120 religious and secular organizations, more than 2.5 million Sudanese have been displaced from their homes, and more than 200,000 have fled to Chad.

Humanitarian groups say 400,000 people have died since government-sponsored militias began their attacks against civilians two years ago.

Some of the organizations supporting the weekend of prayer have also launched a petition that calls for an end to violence in western Sudan.

The petition drive hopes to raise 400,000 signatures of "persons of faith and conscience" by September 9th - exactly one year after President Bush declared the events a genocide - on a petition that will be sent to Bush.

The petition urges "international intervention" to protect the people of Darfur and specifically calls on U.S. and UN leadership to establish a mandate for an international force to protect civilians and to deploy that force in support of the existing African Union efforts in Darfur.

For information on the National Weekend of Prayer, go to www. savedarfur.org.