Today we, along with other churches, are being asked to focus our thoughts and our prayers on those living in the Holy Land – we’ve all been invited to join this call to prayer and public witness to bring peace to that area and to the many, many people living in daily fear.   

A report called: Life on the edge of annexation written just 10 days ago by EA Lynda gives this eyewitness account:  

‘I first saw the smoke from the car. My teammates and I were driving home after a meeting in a Bethlehem village when we spotted two large plumes of black, acrid smoke rising up into the air from land on a hillside a few miles away.

The land belongs to Mohamed Yassin who lives with his wife, their three adult sons and their wives and children. They are members of a small shepherding community of about 60 people living in a village in Bethlehem district, in the occupied West Bank.

When we visited the family the following day, they told us that this was just the latest in what had become regular attacks from Israeli settlers, who had established a settler outpost at the top of the hill overlooking their land. Early the previous morning, a group of about 20 settlers, all armed, had, unprovoked, started to throw stones and rocks at the family’s house and shouted threats towards the family members sheltering inside.

Mohamed said: ‘We’re very scared. When the soldiers arrive with the settlers, they threaten to kill the women. We need help to make the house safer, but people are scared to come here.’

The fact is, the lives of many people in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory have been characterised by fear, oppression and poverty for decades, leading to deep inequality in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. 

Christian Aid has been working with the poorest people in the region since the early 1950s and the recent war in Gaza has intensified poverty and created a humanitarian crisis for Palestinians right across the Middle East.  

The injustice of farmers not being allowed to collect rainwater on their own land to water crops; the injustice of being forced to use specific roads, created only for Palestinians, where safe passage is almost unheard of; the injustice of not being able to plant on your own land for fear of attack; the cruelty of seeing your home and business razed to the ground by settlers who first used it as an outpost. This daily reality is shocking and so far from what we understand as fair or acceptable, but it is happening. 

We know as Christians, that in its simplest form, we must love our brothers and sisters, we must love our neighbour as ourself – but how do we live that out when this is happening thousands of miles away and it feels distant and disconnected? It might also be that we don’t understand the politics and laws that have kept this rumbling on for so many years – however, all of us are God’s children, made in His image, one family on earth, therefore as Christians we must find a way to help. 

In our reading from 1 Timothy, Paul asks us to pray for everyone, especially for those in authority – because God is Creator and Saviour and desires that every human being should be saved. Prayer for the ‘emperor’ would have been difficult in those days as both Jews and Christians refused to recognise his authority which could lead to terrible persecution, however isn’t this the same today? We might find it terribly easy to pray for those suffering, however if we don’t pray for those causing the fear and distress, for those taking lives in conflict, then how will it cease? And Paul gives us a range of ways to pray – he makes no distinction between them, so however or whenever we do it, prayer matters! Never worry that your prayer is different to someone else’s, that it isn’t formal enough or long enough – where prayer is concerned my take on Paul’s words would be ‘just go for it’, it’s so very needed. 

Both the Palestinians and Israelis need a just peace, that not only ends the fear and violence but upholds the rights of all people. In Timothy, Paul asks us to pray for all, including Kings and Queens and all in authority so that we, as well as everyone else, can live a ‘quiet and peaceable life’ – and if we do, we can then focus our lives on God and our duty to pray.

It’s up to Israelis and Palestinians to decide on what a political settlement for peace looks like, however we can pray that the conditions for a just peace are created. This means praying for the occupation to end and for Palestinians to be treated as equals. We must also pray for accountability; all who hurt and maim, violating international law, must be accountable for their actions. Christian Aid believes that only accountability can provide a solid foundation for freedom and security for all. 

Is there more we can do? As Christians we believe that we are all created equal and should be able to live life in all its fullness, what more can we do to stop this injustice and help ensure that Palestinians can live in dignity free from poverty? We have a responsibility to help support those brave Palestinians and Israelis who campaign for an alternative existence based on dignity, equality and respect for all. A just peace must serve Palestinians and Israelis equally. However, Palestinians experience deep poverty driven by oppression and racism, therefore more support is needed for them.

Their experience is so far from our own day to day lives, but we must consider how we can stand with people in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory to bring peace. It can feel overwhelming and it’s very easy to turn away, so let’s consider what we can do: 

We can focus on scripture, there are many passages on justice, we can study these and allow them to lead us into prayer. I’ve talked about prayer, however letting the word of God speak to us can open us up to his will for our prayer and draw us closer to Him as we pray.

In our reading from Amos we are reminded that God wants us to care for those in need; in our gospel we heard about how easy it is to end up serving the master of money, rather than our true master, how, if we are faithful in the small things, we will be faithful in much bigger things and this starts with taking responsibility for our actions, being faithful to one another – including our brothers and sisters across the globe, and of course to God. We can talk to others, share our concerns, challenge perceptions and ask others to pray – you might feel uninformed, worried about getting it wrong; however, there’s helpful information from agencies such as Christian Aid, please just ask, and I can share some with you. We can contact our MP and ask them to campaign strongly for peace and bring our concerns out into the open, in a space where government has been complicit in allowing things to stay the same.

We can challenge racism, share our Chrisian belief that we are all made equal in God’s image, and demonstrate active allyship to all those who face racist oppression. If we have the means, we can give to causes that support, such as Christian Aid. You might meet with those of other faiths in public places, showing your support for those of all faiths.  

In our gospel reading Jesus says, ‘for the children of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the children of light’. Jesus trusts us to be flexible in our approach, rather than being too ‘religious’ or self-righteous, therefore with Jesus’ walking beside us, guiding and trusting, what can we choose to do to support peace? 

Why not start today? You’d be very welcome to stay on in church to make use of the focused prayer resources. We are open until 4pm, or take some away to use over the coming weeks and months.

Service: Revd Rebecca Yates 21st September 2025. (St John the Baptist Church Peterborough UK)

Readings: Amos 8:4-7 / 1 Timothy 2:1-7 / Luke 16:1-13