Join the call to pray at 7pm this Sunday

We have now reached the fifth week of joint calls by Scottish churches to pray at the same time in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Thousands of people across Scotland have been answering the call to pray during this time of sacrifice, difficulty and bereavement.

Once again, this weekend, 13 Christian churches and organisations across the country, including the Church of Scotland, are taking part.

Rt Rev Colin Sinclair, Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, said:

"Prayer has become increasingly a valued time for Christians as they pause to pray, conscious that many others will be sharing the same prayer at the same time.

"It helps create a sense of community when we are isolated through lockdown."

Churches Together in England will also be praying each Sunday at 7pm and will be using the hashtag #prayersofhope to share the message on social media.

The churches have issued a letter with this week's prayer that reads:

"As we continue to journey through this challenging time, we are conscious that the course of our journey will take us to different places.

"At some points, we will have greater clarity as to where that journey is taking us. At other points, we will be less sure.

"The two disciples who left Jerusalem to journey to Emmaus were definitely in the latter category (Luke 24: 13-35).

"As they journey, they try to make sense of all that they are currently experiencing and, in truth, they are finding it difficult. It is as if the source of their hope has gone.

"Unexpectedly, they then find themselves in the presence of someone whom they do not recognise.

"The unrecognised presence listens to their story and, having listened, begins to offer a new way of understanding that story.

"As they come towards the end of their journey, the unrecognised is revealed as the risen Lord: ‘The Lord has risen indeed'!

"The Lord is always with us on our journey and so we pray…"

We pray:

Lord, we are those who journey
And who find that journey hard today.
We are those who journey
And long to find our hope renewed.
Lord in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, whether in our own company or with companions beside us,
We journey on.
Whether sure, or unsure, as to our journey's end,
Come beside us through the risen Lord.
Lord in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we pray for others;
For carers of the living and of the dying;
For the bereaved and for the anxious;
For those fearing loss of work and of business.
Lord in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we pray for scientists and researchers;
For those seeking to understand the challenge we face;
For those creating potential vaccines;
For those advising decision-makers.
Lord in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we pray for those who shape our common life:
In local Councils and in Scottish Government
And in the Government of the United Kingdom.
Grant to them wisdom, compassion and understanding.
Lord in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

Lord, we pray for your Kingdom to come
And for your will to be done,
On earth
As it is in heaven.
Lord in your mercy,
Hear our prayer.

The statement and prayer is signed by:

• Rt. Rev. Colin Sinclair, Moderator of the General Assembly, Church of Scotland
• Most Rev. Leo Cushley, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, Roman Catholic Church
• Most Rev. Mark Strange, Primus, on behalf of the College of Bishops, Scottish Episcopal Church
• Rev. John Fulton, Moderator, United Free Church of Scotland
• Rev. Dr David Pickering, Moderator, United Reformed Church (Scotland)
• Rev. Martin Hodson, General Director, Baptist Union of Scotland
• Rev. Mark Slaney, District Chair, Methodist Church (Scotland)
• Rev. May-Kane Logan, Chair, Congregational Federation in Scotland
• Lt. Col. Carol Bailey, Secretary for Scotland, Salvation Army
• Adwoa Bittle, Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)
• Rev. Jim Ritchie, District Superintendent, British Isles North District, Church of the Nazarene
• Pastor Chris Gbenle, Provincial Pastor, Province of Scotland, Redeemed Christian Church of God
• Bishop Francis Alao, Church of God (Scotland)/Minority Ethnic Churches Together in Scotland (MECTIS)

A Gaelic version of the statement and the prayer can be found here.