Christian groups to mark Ash Wednesday with anti-war prayer vigils

Acts of Christian witness against nuclear and conventional war preparations will take place in London, Liverpool and Faslane on Ash Wednesday 5 March 2014.

Ash Wednesday is a day when Christians face their own need of repentance and change away from those things which challenge our love of God and one another. This is a personal and a community challenge. For many nuclear war and preparations for war are a major moral, legal and humanitarian challenge for today.

For 32 years Christians have gathered at the Ministry of Defence in London on Ash Wednesday to call on the government to repent and move away from nuclear war preparations. This year part of their message is to call for the cancellation of Trident the UKs independent nuclear deterrent. The government is committed to the replacement of Trident at a cost of £100 billion. The Catholic Church has always been clear in its teaching on nuclear issues. This year in his World Peace Day message Pope Francis said: I make my own the appeal of my predecessors for the non-proliferation of arms and for disarmament of all parties, beginning with nuclear and chemical weapons disarmament.

Last year Archbishop Mamberti, speaking at the UN said: 'We would like to use this opportunit to renew our call upon the leaders of nations to put an end to nuclear weapons production and to transfer nuclear materials from military purposes to peaceful activities."

The 2014 witness will take the form of prayer and symbolic action - beginning at 3pm in Embankment Gardens Whitehall section and then moving to three 'prayer' stops, including the Ministry of Defence in Horseguards Avenue. The symbolic actions will include hanging black and purple prayer ribbons on a cross in memory of those who have suffered as a result of war and making out the word REPENT in blessed ash at the foot of the Ministry of Defence.

The London action is planned by Pax Christi and supported by Christian CND and the
London Catholic Worker.

For more information contact Pat Gaffney 0208 203 4884

In Liverpool the Pax Christi group will hold a public act of repentance for the impact of the use of armed drones (unmanned aerial vehicles) around the globe. They will hold a prayer vigil with ashes between 1- 2pm in University Square - Brownlow Hill opposite the Clock Tower.

(Liverpool University is one of a number engaged in drone research and development funded by arms manufacturers including BAe Systems , a major player in the global arms trade.)

In Scotland the Glasgow Catholic Worker will gather at the Faslane Naval Base - where Trident are stationed. They will gather at North Gate from 3pm.

More details here: http://paxchristi.org.uk/news-and-events/events-calendar/

See also: PETITION

Pax Christi, Christian CND, the Movement for the Abolition of War, (MAW) the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND), Columban Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) have endorsed a petition calling on Her Majesty's Government "to cancel present and future spending on another Trident nuclear weapon system (estimated at £100 billion) and to spend some of the money saved now and in the future on coastal protection and inland flooding defences"

To sign the petition click here: https://secure.avaaz.org/en/petition/UK_Government_Cancel_Trident_spending_help_flood_victims/