Vigil for Peace, Oxford

Event Date: 5th November 2023
Location: Broad Street in Oxford, 5pm

The second meeting for faith and community leaders from across Oxfordshire met this week and have issued the following invitation to people of goodwill to attend a peace vigil at 5pm this Sunday, 5 November.

We are aware of the need to draw together the diverse communities of Oxfordshire together in this time and renew bonds of friendship and a common commitment to peace.

We invite all people of goodwill from across Oxfordshire who can come together for a vigil for peace in Broad Street in Oxford on Sunday 5 November at 5pm.

There will be short reflections, shared grief and words of comfort offered. We ask everyone to bring a candle and we will light our candles together at 5.15pm, standing in silence as an act of solidarity with those who suffer on all sides of the conflict.

Together, we are horrified by the violence that we are seeing in Israel and Palestine, and the suffering of ordinary people who have lost loved ones and who fear for their own lives and for friends and family members. We hold all the victims and their loved ones in our prayers.

We stand together here in Oxfordshire as religious and community leaders to say that we must continue the good work of community and relationship building that has taken place over many years.

We support and encourage all those working to facilitate honest and respectful conversations and to strengthen the network of good relations, friendships and trust between our communities of which we in Oxfordshire are so proud.

Let peace and understanding be the solution.

Imam Monawar Hussain (Founder, The Oxford Foundation), Martin Goodman (President of the Oxford Jewish Congregation), The Rt Revd Dr Steven Croft (Bishop of Oxford), Councillor Susan Brown (Leader of Oxford City Council), and 19 others (see website).

This email comes as your invitation to attend the vigil. Please do share invitation graphic on your parish website, parish newsletter and village Facebook page. The website has images that you can use for this along with further information.

I hope to see you at the vigil on Sunday,

The Rt Revd Dr Steven Croft, Bishop of Oxford