A prayerful start to a new school year
One Million Children Praying the Rosary is back.
Press Release – One Million Children Praying the Rosary
Montreal, August 18, 2023 – In Canada, it is back-to-school season and Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) is proposing a pastoral activity for the start of the 2023-2024 school year with a simple purpose: peace!
“Imagine if, in every parish across Canada, children would gather with their families to pray the Rosary, uniting with their brothers and sisters in faith on the same day: Wednesday, October 18,” explains Marie-Claude Lalonde, national director of ACN Canada. “Last year, hundreds of children and their families took part in various activities organized by their, schools, parishes and dioceses and prayed. In Canada, over 500 people—most of which were children— participated. And we estimate that 823,000 children participated worldwide. We hope to see an even larger number in 2023!”
There are several ways to participate. One is by signing up for an online prayer event organized by ACN Canada, held in both official languages. Another is by organizing a time of prayer in your home or community, ideally on Wednesday, October 18, but this can also take place the weekend before or after the event, according to participants’ availability.
Materials will be made available to participants in September by ACN Canada. For more information, to sign up for the online prayer event, or to register your own prayer activity, please contact Ms. Valérie Vulcain, annual campaign coordinator, at vv@acn-canada.org or at 514-932-0552 (toll-free 1-800-585-6333), ext. 227.
Praying for the respect of religious freedom
Released on June 22 this year, ACN’s Religious Freedom in the World Report 2023 paints an even bleaker picture of this fundamental right worldwide than during its previous assessment in 2021. It reveals that crimes of religious discrimination and persecution are occurring in one third of the world’s countries. “In Canada, we are fortunate to live in a healthy democratic society,” says Lalonde. “Yet what we refer to in the report as compelled speech or cancel culture can become vectors of discrimination right here at home, and the report provides examples of this. We will be praying for religious freedom to be respected and protected,” she adds. “Lastly, we also invite everyone to pray for victims of religious persecution and discrimination.”
For more details on the report, please visit: https://acninternational.org/religiousfreedomreport/
