On April 9th, we will celebrate ONE FULL YEAR of holding the weekly prayer vigils for peace in the world.
On March 26, 2000, ten Friends gathered for the weekly prayer vigil for peace in the world. The vigil began just after the close of the 320th annual sessions of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting (the corporate body of 105 Friends' meetings in the Philadelphia region), and many of the participants came directly from those sessions to the vigil, including a Friend from Harrisburg meeting, Ken Woerthwein, who shared an encouraging story with us about a vigil in York, PA.
It was a warm but very windy day. Eleven-year-old Renata collected rocks to hold down our flyers and brochures, but one big gust of wind sent several people scurrying to collect papers. Words from a favorite hymn kept running through my (Marcelle's) mind as I prayed for peace in the world:
Blow, blow, blow til I be,
But breath of the Spirit
Blowing in me.The Spirit, it seemed, blew large tourist groups and smaller family groups past us, flowing across the pavement in both directions. They reminded me of schools of fish or flocks of birds. Many people read our signs as they passed by. It was delightful to exchange smiles with some of them, or to return a peace sign. As usual, several people stopped to photograph us, ask questions, or to accept flyers about the vigil. One six-year-old boy seemed fascinated. He stared for a long time, wavering between awe and laughter, reluctant to respond to his parents' calls to turn away.
Jorge talked with a man from Egypt who seemed particularly interested. Speaking very little English, the Egyptian struggled to understand and Jorge struggled to communicate what the vigils are about. He wasn't familar with the word "peace," so Jorge attempted to explain (with gestures) that the vigils are about love between people. That was confusing. Pointing out the Hebrew word "Shalom" on one sign seemed only to cause more confusion. The man left with some of our literature, and came back a little while later, after having studied it. "No war!" he said, and Jorge confirmed this understanding of what we are praying for. There was joy in communicating.
Our first vigil was held on April 4, 1999. On April 2nd we will complete a year's worth of Sundays. Recently we mistakenly reported that we'd celebrate our anniversay that day, but the celebration will be on April 9th, after we've completed a full calendar year. One vigil participant has offered to bring a cake to share afterwards on the 9th.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE
Independence Mall Vigil for PeacePlease join us at our weekly prayer vigils for peace in the world, held in front of the Liberty Bell on Market St. between 5th and 6th, every Sunday from 4 to 5 PM. For more information, contact cityquake@aol.com.
In our reports, participants share their experiences of the prayer vigils and explore beliefs related to their participation. Reports reflect the experience of each author and do not necessarily represent the beliefs or practice of all vigil participants. We welcome your responses, which are forwarded to the individual authors (when possible). We sometimes include part of a response in a future report, unless you ask us not to.
It is meaningful to us that you share in the vigils by reading these reports and in other ways, such as joining us in prayer.
Last modified: Wednesday, February 18, 2004 at 08:18 AM