Dear brothers and sisters in Christ within our Gafcon family,

I bring you greetings in the mighty name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace.

We are grieved by the escalating violence between Israel and Iran.

With heavy hearts, we watch as this conflict brings death, destruction, and unspeakable suffering to the innocent.

Each of those killed or wounded—Israeli, Iranian, or others caught in this conflict—are made in the image of God. Reports of civilian casualties, including children, drive us to our knees in lament and prayer.

I ask you to join me in prayer.  

Pray for this conflict to cease. Pray for the protection of the innocent.  Pray for the wounded and for the bereaved. And pray that the Lord will raise up peacemakers in our time.  

For, our Lord Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount, “blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God” (Matthew 5:9). We must all be voices for peace in a world that too often chooses the way of violence.

As we pray for Israel and Iran, let us also remember the long-suffering people of Sudan, Eastern Congo, Ukraine, and all others who are suffering in this moment.

Even now, we do not lose hope.

For, Jesus Christ was born into a world torn by conflict. Through the cross, he reconciled not only humanity to God but enemies to one another: “For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility” (Ephesians 2:14).

In this season of Pentecost, may the Holy Spirit rekindle in us the ministry of reconciliation and prayer—for the sake of a world in need.

The Most Reverend Dr. Laurent Mbanda
Chairman, Gafcon Primates Council
Archbishop of the Anglican Church of Rwanda
Bishop of Gasabo