The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Reverend Justin Welby, has issued a global challenge to the faithful to take the #Pledge2Pray for #ThyKingdomCome, an online prayer initiative.
“Jesus prayed at the Last Supper that we, those who follow him, might ‘be one that the world might believe,’” said the Archbishop. “We are invited to make a lasting difference in our nations and in our world, by responding to his call to find a deep unity of purpose in prayer.”
To that end, Archbishop Welby has invited global church leaders from other denominations to join him, describing the call to prayer, “…not a Church of England thing; it’s not an Anglican thing; it’s a Christian thing.”
Representatives from the international Methodist, Catholic and Coptic Christian churches will be taking part in the 11 days of prayer, beginning on May 25 (the day of Ascension) and ending on 4 June (the day of Pentecost). These 11 leaders represent a diverse cross-section of the global Christian church.
“The response to the invitation to this campaign has been overwhelming,” said Emma Buchan, project leader for the Archbishop’s Evangelism Taskforce, who are the steering group for Thy Kingdom Come.
“We’ve heard from churches across the world – different denominations and traditions – all taking the #Pledge2Pray from South Africa to Canada; from Cuba to Hong Kong, where, for example, they are planning large celebrations in the cathedrals and establishing a network of ‘prayer warriors.’”
To take part simply visit www.thykingdomcome.global and register. The resources and blog section of the website provides many ideas for prayer, including downloadable orders of service, liturgies and Novenas.
Participants will receive a daily reflection email which will be sent each morning during the eleven days. With a different daily prayer theme, the email will include a video reflection from one of our international Christian leaders. It will also feature a short, upbeat film.
People will be encouraged to “Pray It – Picture It – Post It” to the Thy Kingdom Come website prayer walls. These will draw together the daily prayer theme prayers of each day, such as #PrayFor , which will feature the Most Reverend Fred Hiltz, Archbishop and Primate, the Anglican Church of Canada. Archbishop Hiltz, in his article "Devoting Ourselves to Prayer" (Anglican Journal, May 2017), highlighted that "the time between Ascension Day and the Day of Pentecost has been marked by calls to prayer for strength and wisdom in bearing a faithful witness to the gospel, for a fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit to grace and guide the church in every age." Showing strong support and encouragement for this initiative, our beloved Primate indicated "I have every confidence that in taking up this call you will be creative in the way you pray."
The complete list of the 11 Prayers and the participating church leaders is below:
25 May #ToJesus The Most Rev. Michael Curry, Presiding Bishop and Primate, the Episcopal Church
26 May #Praise His Eminence Christoph Cardinal Schonborn, Archbishop of Vienna
27 May #Thanks The Most Rev Paul Kwong, Archbishop of Hong Kong
28 May #Sorry The Venerable Liz Adekunle, Archdeacon of Hackney, London
29 May #Offer The Rt. Rev. Griselda Delgado del Carpio, Bishop of Cuba
30 May #PrayFor The Most. Rev. Fred Hiltz, Archbishop and Primate, the Anglican Church of Canada
31 May #Help The Most Rev John Sentamu, Archbishop of York and Primate of England
1 June #Adore The Rev. Roger Walton, President, British Methodist Conference
2 June #Celebrate His Grace Bishop Angaelos, General Bishop, the Coptic Orthodox Church in the United Kingdom
3 June #Silence Br. Keith Nelson, the Society of St. John the Evangelist
4 June #ThyKingdomCome The Most Rev. and Rt. Hon. Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury and Primate of All England
For more information contact – The Rev. Laura Marie Piotrowicz (Anglican Fellowship of Prayer) +1 (905) 327-2785