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Prayer tent at heart of G8 protest camp

-01/07/05

A group of radical Christians inspired by Isaiah 58 will join the convergence space set up by the Dissent network as part of the protests next week against the G8.

The encampment will be near Gleneagles, Scotland from the 3rd through the 8th of July.

The group, known as Prayer-I58 (www.prayer-I58.org.uk), are planning to help host campers in the tent neighbourhood known as Hori-zone. They will focus on serving and supporting other protesters through tasks like cooking, moving equipment or just listening to people.

ìFirst, Jesus loves everyone, and anarchists are no exception.î said Graham Martin, who is helping to co-ordinate the group, ìSecond, that Jesus cares about the injustices in this world. But we’re not about evangelism, we’re about taking part, and enabling others to take part, in the convergence and the actions which flow from it.î

Prayer-I58 will also have a space for prayer with regular worship, contemplation and celebration times that will be planned by people from various traditions. The group hopes that the space, most likely in a tent, will be a place of rest and relaxation for people with many different backgrounds and beliefs.

ìAs a Christian I feel called to tackle the evils facing the world today.î said Jonathan Revolt, a member of Prayer-I58. ìThe power of prayer is a vital part of this. However, it is just as important to act in the world around us to help bring about change.î

The inspiration for Prayer-I58 comes from Isaiah 58, a biblical passage that is specifically directed at a hypocritical nation that acts holy and pious, but is responsible for injustice and oppression. It says, ìYet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.î The chapter goes on to call on the listener to act against injustice and to ìloose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke.î For members of Prayer-I58, this means taking action against global institutions like the G8.

ìThose who are considered least important by society and politicians should be considered the most important by Christians.î said Rae Bradford, another member of the group. ìThe G8 is the extreme case: the richest and most powerful in worldy terms deliberately excluding the poorer and less powerful.î

The group is organising under the umbrella of the Dissent Network, a decentralised network of local groups and working groups organising the protests at Gleneagle during the G8 summit itself.

ìWe are autonomous from Dissent, but by being present with them, we want to stand alongside those who organise under this banner.î The Prayer-I58 website says. ìWe want to offer practical help to the site and to pray for participants and the issues which concern us all, as well as to take a full part in the none-hierarchical decisions process which the camp-site is founded upon.î


Find books now:

Prayer tent at heart of G8 protest camp

-01/07/05

A group of radical Christians inspired by Isaiah 58 will join the convergence space set up by the Dissent network as part of the protests next week against the G8.

The encampment will be near Gleneagles, Scotland from the 3rd through the 8th of July.

The group, known as Prayer-I58 (www.prayer-I58.org.uk), are planning to help host campers in the tent neighbourhood known as Hori-zone. They will focus on serving and supporting other protesters through tasks like cooking, moving equipment or just listening to people.

‘First, Jesus loves everyone, and anarchists are no exception.’ said Graham Martin, who is helping to co-ordinate the group, ‘Second, that Jesus cares about the injustices in this world. But we’re not about evangelism, we’re about taking part, and enabling others to take part, in the convergence and the actions which flow from it.’

Prayer-I58 will also have a space for prayer with regular worship, contemplation and celebration times that will be planned by people from various traditions. The group hopes that the space, most likely in a tent, will be a place of rest and relaxation for people with many different backgrounds and beliefs.

‘As a Christian I feel called to tackle the evils facing the world today.’ said Jonathan Revolt, a member of Prayer-I58. ‘The power of prayer is a vital part of this. However, it is just as important to act in the world around us to help bring about change.’

The inspiration for Prayer-I58 comes from Isaiah 58, a biblical passage that is specifically directed at a hypocritical nation that acts holy and pious, but is responsible for injustice and oppression. It says, ‘Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers.’ The chapter goes on to call on the listener to act against injustice and to ‘loose the chains of injustice and untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and break every yoke.’ For members of Prayer-I58, this means taking action against global institutions like the G8.

‘Those who are considered least important by society and politicians should be considered the most important by Christians.’ said Rae Bradford, another member of the group. ‘The G8 is the extreme case: the richest and most powerful in worldy terms deliberately excluding the poorer and less powerful.’

The group is organising under the umbrella of the Dissent Network, a decentralised network of local groups and working groups organising the protests at Gleneagle during the G8 summit itself.

‘We are autonomous from Dissent, but by being present with them, we want to stand alongside those who organise under this banner.’ The Prayer-I58 website says. ‘We want to offer practical help to the site and to pray for participants and the issues which concern us all, as well as to take a full part in the none-hierarchical decisions process which the camp-site is founded upon.’