A World Day of Prayer service will bring locals together for informed prayer and prayerful action on preservation of Creation in solidarity with Christians in Suriname.
On the first Friday of March each year, Christians of many traditions gather for the World Day of Prayer, a prayer movement that invites people to enrich their faith experience with the experience of Christians from other countries and cultures and to bring hope to women who face injustice.
Since 1887, on or near the first Friday in March every year, millions of Christians have gathered worldwide to pray for the issues of family violence, child abuse, human trafficking, and other forms of injustice.
In 2018 that prayerful support will be directed at the 540,000 inhabitants of the Republic of Suriname, on the northeastern coast of South America.
Despite a history of slavery and political coups, the tiny nation has achieved remarkable progress since its independence in 1975.
Suriname enjoys multi-ethnicity and biodiversity, freedom of religion,
free primary and secondary education, and free
medical care for children and seniors.
But behind closed doors, family violence, abuse and neglect are ongoing issues. Children are particularly vulnerable, many growing up in orphanages or one-parent families. While education is free, there is not compulsory school attendance. Child labour in the form of street selling is common, but of far more serious concern is the fact that many children are labouring in the gold mines of Suriname.
In Flin Flon, World Day of Prayer service will be held at the First United Lutheran Church at
7:30 pm on Friday, Mar. 2.
