Our Prayers for 2014

This year, South Africans will go to the polls to elect a new parliament. In the past, fears of election violence proved to be unfounded. However, there is much discontent and division within and between political alliances, factions and parties, as the jeering of President Jacob Zuma at the memorial for Nelson Mandela underlined.

Severe failures in service delivery, anger over corruption, reckless polemical rhetoric, grievances informed by personality cults, splintering of alliances, and an emboldened opposition are among the sparks which could ignite conflict.

We pray that South Africans will continue to express their democratic voice robustly, but without resorting to acts of violence.

We also pray that the Zuma-led government, which is certain of re-election, will exhibit greater integrity and wisdom than it has over the past five turbulent years.

We give thanks to God for our Holy Father, Pope Francis, who has within just a few months since his election in March revitalised the Church and opened the ears of those who did not want to hear its voice.

We pray that Pope Francis will remain strong, in his health and in his difficult task of leading the Church, especially as he leads the overdue reforms in Church governance.

We also pray that the world will take to heart the call of successive popes for an economic model which places people and their responsibility of good stewardship of the earth above greed and profits.

May we amplify Pope Francis’ appeal: I beg the Lord to grant us more politicians who are genuinely disturbed by the state of society, the people, the lives of the poor (Evangelii Gaudium, 205).

In April, just after Easter, the bishops of Southern Africa will travel to Rome on their ad limina visit to report to the pope and the Holy See about the life of the Church in our region.

We pray that the visit will be fruitful as the bishops relate the joys and pains, and the hopes and fears, of Southern Africa’s Catholics.

Before that, in late January, the bishops will gather in Swaziland to celebrate the 100th anniversary of that country’s Catholic mission and witness the installation of Bishop Jose Luis Ponce de Leon as head of Manzini diocese.

We pray for Swaziland’s new bishop, as we do for all our bishops, that in his immense task he will find joy and strength.

We also pray that the monarchy which rules Swaziland will come to tolerate and accommodate opposition to its unaccountable ways of governance.

Even as economic growth and democratic principles are taking ever firmer roots in many regions throughout Africa, and fragile peace is being built in many war-torn regions, the potential for indescribable misery brought on by political conflict is ever-present. In 2013 civil war devastated the Central African Republic; currently Southern Sudan is on the edge.

We pray that Africa will solve these conflicts, and others like them, and that the world not turn a blind eye to the suffering on this continent.

There seems no resolution in sight in Syria’s civil war, with neither the Assad regime nor the mostly Islamic rebels holding the promise for a better future.

We pray that nonetheless peace will return to the troubled land, and that its conflict will not infect other countries in the region.

It is widely speculated that 2014 will see the presentation of a proposed peace deal between Israel and Palestinians. The region will also be visited by Pope Francis, who doubtless will make fervent pleas for justice and a peace.

We pray that this year will bring an equitable resolution to the troubles in the lands of Christ, one which gives Israel the security its people crave and which, crucially, satisfies the legitimate Palestinian land claims, especially of land stolen from them in the West Bank over the past couple of decades by the construction of illegal settlements.

In our prayers, we again keep in mind the Christians of the Holy Land, most of them Palestinians, that they may live in true liberty.

And finally, we pray that the readers, associates, pilgrims, friends and supporters of The Southern Cross may have a blessed and peaceful 2014.