Women’s World Day of Prayer
Women's World Day of Prayer is a global, ecumenical movement of informed prayer and prayerful action, organised and led by Christian women who call the faithful together on the first Friday in March each year to observe a common day of prayer and who, in many countries, have a continuing relationship in prayer and service. The service is written by a different country each year and that country then becomes the focus of the world's prayers on the day itself.
The symbol of the Women's World Day of Prayer was designed in 1982 for the service prepared by women of Ireland, both north and south, and was then adopted as the International Logo.
The design comprises arrows converging from the four points of the compass, four figures kneeling in prayer, the Celtic cross and a circle representing the world and our unity through all our diversity.
Click on a subheading below to see the report of the services held in Petersfield.
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This year the women of Malaysia lead us on the theme “Let Justice Prevail”. Malaysia is a nation of diverse cultures, races and religions. There are modern cities, among which Kuala Lumpur is ever growing outwards and upwards. These are striking contrast to idyllic resorts, historic cities such as Melaka and Penang, colonial hill resorts, longhouses of Sabah & Sarawak, and an expanse of rainforest which covers around 70% of the land area. Parts of this dense jungle are still unexplored because of their inaccessibility. Malaysia is also a land of rice paddy fields, rubber and oil palm estates, human settlements on river banks and sea shores, and high rise condominiums. Malaysia, located in South East Asia, lies north of the equator. It consists of two parts – Peninsular Malaysia (West Malaysia) and East Malaysia comprising of Sabah and Sarawak (in North Borneo). Peninsular Malaysia is joined to the mainland Asia by a narrow isthmus – Isthmus of Kra. Thailand lies to the north of Peninsular Malaysia while the island of Singapore lies at its southern tip. The South China Sea (600km – 370 miles) separates Peninsular Malaysia from East Malaysia. The two parts of Malaysia covers a total land area of 127,284sq miles (329,750km). Malaysia’s name derives from its former name Malaya which comes from the name of its dominant race the Malays, and earlier still from the seventh century Kingdom of Melayu in Sumatera. |
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This year the women of Chile lead us on the theme “How many loaves have you?”. On Friday March 4th 2011 women from around the world celebrated the Women’s World Day of Prayer. The service has been written by the women of Chile. It is an appropriate theme for bread is eaten at every meal and is very much part of every day life. The women of Chile offer what it means to them as they share this service with us. Stretching from Peru to Antarctica, the Republic of Chile occupies a long, narrow strip of land 2,640 miles long and 110 miles wide. It is a land of incredible contrasts. It also has the highest incidence of domestic violence in Latin America and most women suffer from discrimination in some form or other. Equal opportunities are being pursued. |
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2010: Cameroon
This year the women of Cameroon lead us on the theme “Let everything that has breath praise God”. Cameroon is set almost on the equator, between Nigeria and Equatorial Guinea, just where the West African coastline ‘turns’ southwards. Inland, it has extensive frontiers with, among others, Chad, the Central African Republic and Congo, and it has more than 240 ethnic groups and languages. A very diverse country, its people are presented with many challenges. Although the constitution promotes equality between men and women there is still a long way to go to achieve it. |
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