Pope calls for Oct. 7th to be day of prayer, fasting for peace

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Thursday, October 03, 2024

A couple with children looks at portraits of Israeli hostages held in Gaza since the October 7 attacks by Hamas terrorists, on billboards in Jerusalem as a truce between Israel and Hamas entered its second day on November 25, 2023. Hamas is expected to release another 14 Israeli hostages in exchange for 42 Palestinian prisoners on November 25, as part of a four-day truce in their seven-week war. | JOHN MACDOUGALL/AFP via Getty Images

Pope Francis has called for Oct. 7, the first anniversary of when Hamas attacked Israel, killing nearly 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages in Gaza, as a day marked for prayer and fasting for peace.

The head of the Roman Catholic Church called for Oct. 7 to be a day of fasting and prayer while speaking after a Mass held in St. Peter’s Square for the opening of the second session of the General Assembly of the Synod.

“In this dramatic hour of our history, while the winds of war and the fires of violence continue to devastate entire peoples and nations, [the Christian community should] put itself at the service of humanity," Francis said, according to Vatican News.

The pontiff also invited all synod members to accompany him on a visit to the Basilica of Saint Mary Major on Oct. 6, where he will “address a heartfelt petition to [the Virgin Mary]” for peace.

Pope Francis presides over the Corpus Christi ceremony outside Saint Mary Major basilica after a procession arrived from Saint John in Lateran basilica, on June 2, 2024, in Rome, Italy. | TIZIANA FABI/AFP via Getty Images

“Let us walk together,” the pope urged, as quoted by Vatican News. “Let us listen to the Lord. And let us be led by the breeze of the Spirit.”

This is not the first time that the pope has called for fasting and prayer on behalf of a region experiencing war, having previously done so in 2013 on behalf of Syria and in 2017 on behalf of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and South Sudan.

Recently, the pontiff called for an immediate ceasefire in the region, as well as the release of the remaining hostages in Gaza and for humanitarian aid to be distributed.

On Oct. 7 of last year, Hamas launched coordinated attacks on southern Israel from the Gaza Strip, killing nearly 1,200 people, including some 40 Americans, and taking over 254 others hostage.

Israel struck back with several air strikes in Gaza and then a ground offensive by the Israeli Defense Forces, which had the stated goals of destroying Hamas and freeing the hostages.

The ensuing conflict has been centered on highly populated areas of Gaza, with large numbers of civilians being killed or displaced as a result of the fighting between the IDF and Hamas.

According to claims made by the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, over 40,000 people have been killed in the conflict since August, although the number does not distinguish between unarmed civilians and combatants.

Late last month, Israel began an offensive in southern Lebanon against the Iran-backed group Hezbollah, having already killed much of its senior leadership, including its leader, Hassan Nasrallah.

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