Reformed church group calls for week of prayers for Sudan amid signs of progress in negotiations

["Daphne Martin_Gnanadason" <Daphne.Martin_Gnanadason@wcrc.ch>]

World Communion of Reformed Churches  
News Release
30 June 2011
 
Reformed church group calls for week of prayers for Sudan amid
signs of progress in negotiations
 
News of progress in efforts to reduce violent confrontation
between opposing forces in Sudan has been welcomed by the General
Secretary of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC).  
 
“We are heartened by news of positive developments,” Setri Nyomi
says in a statement issued today from WCRC’s office in Geneva.
“It is urgent that terms for sustainable peace be found.”
 
Nyomi was referring to media reports from the African Union (AU)
on an agreement to create a demilitarized buffer zone between
north and south Sudan. The AU is seeking to defuse tension in the
period leading up to the 9 June declaration of independence of
Southern Sudan. In recent weeks violence in the South Kordofan
and the Blue Nile border states has led to civilian deaths and
destruction of property.
 
In a message to the 230 member churches of the global
organization of churches, Nyomi encourages prayer and advocacy
for Sudan leading up to 9 July. The Presbyterian Church of the
Sudan and the Africa Inland Church Sudan are among the 66 WCRC
member churches in Africa.  
 
“We call on all WCRC member churches and area councils to pray
for the people of Sudan between Sunday July 3 and Sunday July 10,”
Nyomi writes.
 
“We ask especially that worship services on Sunday, July 3 and
Sunday July 10 include times of prayer for a peaceful transition
into nationhood for Southern Sudan and peace for all the people
in both Southern Sudan and Northern Sudan.”
 
Noting that prayers need to be accompanied by action, Nyomi is
urging church leaders to use whatever leverage they have to
influence the peace process. In some cases, Nyomi says, this may
mean contacting government officials asking them to “expose the
forces of death and destruction and to support all efforts that
bring life, peace and justice.” 
 
The full text of the general secretary’s message follows.
 
WCRC was created in June 2010 through a merger of the World
Alliance of Reformed Churches (WARC) and the Reformed Ecumenical
Council (REC). Its 230 member churches representing 80 million
Christians are active worldwide in initiatives supporting
economic, climate and gender justice, mission, and cooperation
among Christians of different traditions. 
 
Media Contacts: 
Kristine Greenaway
Office of Communications
Email: kgr@wcrc.ch 
tel: +41 (0)22 791 62 43;fax: +41 (0)22 791 65 05
www.wcrc.ch ( http://www.wcrc.ch/ )
 
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World Communion of Reformed Churches
Message from the General Secretary
30 June 2011
 
Call for a week of prayer and advocacy for Sudan
 
In solidarity with the celebration of Southern Sudan’s
Independence on July 9, we call on all WCRC member churches and
area councils to pray for the people of Sudan between Sunday July
3 and Sunday July 10. We are aware that many of you have been
praying for years for peace in this troubled country and urge you
to continue to do so.
 
We ask especially that worship services on Sunday, July 3 and
Sunday July 10 include times of prayer for a peaceful transition
into nationhood for Southern Sudan and peace for all the people
in both Southern Sudan and Northern Sudan.
 
July 9 is the Independence Day for Southern Sudan.  We thank God
for the birth of a new nation and pray that this will indeed
bring lasting peace to a people who have known no peace for more
than 50 years.  
 
In recent weeks we have been disturbed by what has been
happening in some border areas in particular.  In South Kordofan
there have been atrocities against civilians committed mostly by
the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and their militias.  Earlier this
month, we heard that the very homes, schools and churches that
should have been places of refuge have been burned and destroyed.
We are outraged by this and will continue to lift up our voices
against such evil.  We pray that in this period leading up to the
Independence Day and in the months after independence, such
violence will cease, giving way to peace.
 
In addition to our prayers, we ask that our church leaders use
every opportunity at their disposal to advocate for peace and
justice for the people of Southern Sudan, as well as for people
of all faiths in Sudan to live in peace and harmony.  In some
cases this may mean contacting government officials asking them
to expose the forces of death and destruction and to support all
efforts that bring life, peace and justice. 
 
We thank you for setting aside time to keep Sudan in your
prayers in the coming weeks. 
 
Setri Nyomi, General Secretary