DECLARATION FOR PEACE: AUGUST 14 – DAY OF PRAYER AND FASTING
In a world torn apart by war and dehumanization — in Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Myanmar, Haiti, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and in so many other countries wounded by visible and invisible conflicts — we cannot remain silent spectators.Every day we see faces marked by pain, lives destroyed, peoples deprived of their dignity and peace, especially women and children.
As women of hope, rooted in faith and immersed in the wounds of our time, we feel the deep need to raise our voices and unite our hearts.
As women on the borders, who walk alongside those who suffer, listening to the cry of the poor and the earth, we have the responsibility to build communion, protect life and demand justice.
For this reason, we invite you, in a spirit of communion and evangelical co-responsibility, to unite in a collective act of prayer, discernment and witness, so that peace may not be just a wish, but a reality built among all.
In particular, we propose that the August 14 be lived as day of fasting and prayer, invoking the intercession of the Mother of God, Our Lady of Peace, whose feast we celebrate on August 15.
Let us entrust ourselves to her, so that she may tenderly accept the cry of the peoples and teach us to be a humble and prophetic presence in the places of suffering.
We ask you:
- To promote moments of prayer and reflection on the Word in their communities, in the light of the current sufferings of the world, allowing ourselves to be transformed internally.
- To engage with the civil and ecclesial authorities of their respective countries, urging them to open paths of reconciliation, disarmament, defense of human rights and protection of victims.
- To support concrete actions of global solidarity, through networks of humanitarian aid, welcome and prophetic witness in favor of the most affected peoples.
As women who watch at night, we continue to believe that even in the darkest hour a light can shine: the light of the Gospel, of justice and of fraternity.
Together let us invoke the God of peace, so that we may be instruments of his love, and we entrust this path to the intercession of Mary, our Mother of hope.