London’s faith community is coming together to show support for those who are suffering or where killed in horrific attacks in Sri Lanka over the weekend.
Churches, hotels, and other sites were targeted in co-ordinated attacks that claimed the lives of 359 people and wounded another roughly 500 people on Easter Sunday.
Reverend Kevin George says everyone is welcome to attend Thursday night’s vigil at St. Aidan’s Anglican Church in west London.
“We want to show the solidarity of our faith communities,” said George.
“We need to stand together. We need to show support, love, care, and protection of one another. And certainly at this time, most importantly, we want to reach out to the Sri Lankan community in the London area.”
George admits it’s tough to prepare for such an event, and points out that such attacks — and the memorials that follow in their wake — are happening more and more often. But he draws strength from a particular message.
“Jesus… continually tells us to gravitate towards vulnerability, towards weakness, towards one and other in our times of pain and sorrow, in times of our suffering. Because it’s in that place that we’ll stand together, that we will show the world that peace, justice, and compassion have its rule over death and darkness,” he explained.
The vigil is planned in collaboration with the London Muslim Mosque. Religious leaders will share messages of strength and solidarity, and there will also be time for prayer and community, said George.
The service’s multi-faith approach is critical in demonstrating a united front against hatred and extremism, said Imam Abd At-Fatah Twakkal of the London Muslim Mosque.
“We need to speak as faith communities in a single voice,” he said.
“When the attack happened in Christchurch (New Zealand), when the attacks happened in Sri Lanka this was an attack on all of us, it was an attack on our humanity regardless of our faith traditions.”
“At the end of the day this is something that cannot be pinpointed or affiliated with any particular faith group or religion because this is based on hatred, this is based on extremism which goes across the board.”
St. Aidan’s Anglican Church is at 1246 Oxford Street West in London. The vigil begins at 6:30 p.m.
Comments