The Women’s Interfaith Council, (WIC) also known as Interfaith Forum of Muslims and Christians Women’s Association, has on Wednesday ended the World Interfaith Harmony week, with her Annual Interfaith Solidarity prayers in Kaduna.
The annual prayer program featured students and schools from across the state, offering special prayers for leaders, peace, unity, and progress of all and sundry, with a call on government at all levels to always put the people first.
Speaking the Executive Director, WIC, Rev Sr. Veronica Ifeanyinwa Onyeanisi, OLA, noted the essence of observing the World Interfaith Harmony Week/ Annual Interfaith Solidarity prayers in Kaduna, ” It is very significant to the whole world, because today, the whole world is ending the Interfaith Harmony week which started on the first of February, we have been having different programs,
“and we decided to use the annual solidarity Interfaith prayer to end it; bringing Christians and Muslims together to pray for our country Nigeria to pray for our state Kaduna and to pray for our leaders that God will lead them, will guide them aright to govern the people and be sensitive to the suffering people are going through; they are trying their best, but we need them to do more for us, because many people are losing hope” she said.
She further lamented the level of despair and depression in the country, leading to known cases of three young people committing suicide, with a call on the youths not to despair, but have faith and hope.
“We are calling on every one as women of faith, Muslims and Christians, to please join hands to build our country Nigeria irrespective of our differences in cultures, religions, political parties”
“and we decided to use the annual solidarity Interfaith prayer to end it; bringing Christians and Muslims together to pray for our country Nigeria to pray for our state Kaduna and to pray for our leaders that God will lead them, will guide them aright to govern the people and be sensitive to the suffering people are going through; they are trying their best, but we need them to do more for us, because many people are losing hope” she said.
” and therefore it was nice that the women gathered to have this moment of prayer and all of us have come to join them together in praying, because when we cry to God, if there are people to cry to God, there’s a God to listen to us, and at this moment, this space of time, we prayed together to God so that he will help us and bless our country, with all that it takes to be great”
He also called political leaders at this trying times to show compassion and do the needful by putting the people first ” I think that is why they are leaders, we call on our leaders to be sincere and truthful, let them go back to check what they told us when they were campaigning and asking us for support with our votes, let our leaders go back to see that they didn’t just deceive people to get their votes and forget their promises; because things are really hard for our country ” he further lamented
On her part, the Christian coordinator, WIC, Rev Dr Rose Opawoye described the prayer event as timely.
“If there’s any time we needed this kind of prayer is now, because this prayer is very important to show that we can live together, it’s very possible, we had lived together before now and, even though some elements tried to bring us apart using religion, which is a very sensitive element to bring division between us, but coming together as Interfaith, Muslims and Christians, it’s possible to live together,
” like one of the persons who led the prayer session, said ” there’s no Christian market, there’s no Muslim market and more so as women there’s no Muslim labour ward, there’s no Christian labour ward, so we can live together, because we have one God who created us” she averred.
She tasked the Nigerian mothers/ women to teach their wards, children, and those in our neighborhood to live in peace and harmony, noting however, how difficult, that can be, but maintaining that, it’s possible to live together in peace.
A student from one of the participating schools, Fatima Adams of Tarbbiyya group of schools, said the interfaith solidarity prayers” were very eventful, self-warming, they were prayers of remembrance, to remember us about the oath every single day as students when we do the pledge in assemblies,
” it’s a prayer that reminds us of the duty we have as fellow Nigerians to protect our nation, to stand for our nation and to always be self patriotic and to defend our nation no matter how much is at stake” she added.
This article was written by News Daily Nigeria, a news website in Nigeria.
