Kempton women join hands in prayer
Local women joined millions of women around the world in prayer for this annual event of praise, worship and fellowship
THE origins of the Women’s World Day of Prayer can be traced back to the 19th century with the first prayer meeting being held in the United States.
This was first observed in South Africa in 1930 at the Congregational Church in Sea Point, which saw women in Johannesburg, both English and Afrikaans speaking, come together in prayer.
Now in its 84th year, the day of prayer has seen women from different denominations from all over the country as well as other countries around the globe come together on the first Friday of March to pray together. This year women prayed under the Egyptian theme of streams in the desert where the involvement of Egyptian women throughout the Bible was looked at in light of the events of the Arab Spring in 2011 and what a modern day Christian Egyptian goes through on a daily basis.
Women listened to various teachings and discussions during which they were able to relate the theme to their own lives.
The day sees more than 1 200 services held annually in South Africa with the prayer booklet available in nine different languages, including German for the women in Namibia.
Some of the churches which hosted women were NG Hoogland in Van Riebeeck Park and St Edmund’s Anglican Church on Friday and Saturday respectively.
Each year a collection is taken up which is given to various organisations, including the Bible Society, Jericho Walls, Sparrow Ministries and the Salvation Army.
