Independence Mall Vigil for Peace

Report #10: 11 June 1999

On Sunday, June 6th, Friends gathered for the tenth prayer vigil for peace in the Balkans since the bombing in Yugoslavia began. We were joined by about eighteen participants from a Training for Social Action Trainers weekend led by George Lakey. They came from this country and from many other parts of the world, including Burma, Ghana, Russia, Germany, and Croatia. A couple of them wept during the vigil.

There had been talk that a peace accord might be signed by that day, but it was not. Immediately after the vigil, and in conversations and emails messages since then, participants of the vigils have been asking what comes next. Do we stop holding these vigils when a peace accord is signed? We decided to agree to meet at least one more time, June 13th, recognizing that even if an agreement is signed, there is still need for prayer, for peace, for reconciliation, for healing. Friends also recognize that these vigils have not only been about praying for peace in the Balkans, but about praying for peace in our own hearts and in this nation. As the weeks have passed, we have become more accutely aware of the fact that our country is continuously preparing for war. We are aware of violent conflict and genocide taking place in many parts of the world, much of it not given headlines in the daily news. Friends are asking each other: what kind of witness are we called to make on an ongoing basis?

Friends have also been sharing the many different ways that participation in the vigils has had an important role in their lives during these long weeks of war. Some have noticed an inner work of transformation taking place in them through this regular act of praying together, publically, for peace.

Here are some reflections by Kathryn Gordon from one of the vigils in May:

We held many signs.... One of these read, "Rely on truth and love." My eyes when I opened them kept falling on it, and I reflected on a conflict in my home life, and how I might, by relying much more on truth and love, turn around what I felt to be a hopeless situation.... God's will be done, I prayed: through our power, through our leadership, through our economy, through our education, through our religions. And let the transformations such harmony would necessitate be no more painful than they need to be. What can be more painful than living so far out of accord with the Divine will?

I do believe in the peace testimony, now more than ever.

[A] baby girl, in a carrier on her father's back, practiced her few words while we prayed. For a stretch all I heard was "huh, huh?" As if she could almost hear the thoughts of our minds and wanted us to pray a little louder, a little harder.

Was our praying loud enough? Were our signs large enough? Do we have any impact at all? My guidance says pray for peace. My faith says a new kind of leadership will come onto the world stage—leaders who rely on truth and love, leaders who, like the girl on her father's back, strain to hear the prayers of the world.

Love,
Jorge and Marcelle

BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON THE Independence Mall Vigil for Peace

Please 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