Bishops request prayer for Middle East

08/28/2013:  Bishop M. Thomas Shaw, SSJE and Bishop Gayle E. Harris of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts offer the following request for prayer for the Middle East:

We are troubled, as are many of you, over the violence, bloodshed and destruction in Syria and in Egypt and the terrible suffering and fear of the people there.  These are not new struggles, we know, but as they continue and intensify, with potential threats of military action, our prayer and support are needed more than ever.  Pray for peace in that region. Pray that conversations toward peace between Israel and Palestine might continue.  Pray especially for the safety and well-being of our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Diocese of Jerusalem, which includes Syria, and in the Diocese of Egypt.
 
You can learn more about the peacemaking, health care and education ministries of our sister dioceses in the region at http://dioceseofegypt.org and http://www.j-diocese.org and via the American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem at http://www.afedj.org.