By Julie A. Miller
Catholic Herald

Women sponsor prayer service in Minong

MINONG -- On March 2, an interdenominational group of about 45 people came together at St. Mary Church for a local observance of World Day of Prayer 2001. In addition to the host parish, other participating churches were Church of the Nazarene and Calvary Lutheran Church in Minong; St. Anthony of Padua Church and First Presbyterian Church in Gordon; and St. Pius X Church, First Presbyterian Church and Our Savior Lutheran Church in Solon Springs.

Most of these churches have been participating in World Day of Prayer since 1974, although it was the first year for the Church of the Nazarene, said Jeanne Brown who has been the coordinator in Minong, Gordon and Solon Springs for the past five years. Brown, a member of First Presbyterian Church, has been attending the services for about 20 years.

World Day of Prayer is an annual event sponsored by Church Women United (CWU), a grass roots ecumenical group that includes Catholic, Orthodox and Protestant Christians from around the world.

Marge Ludwig and Sharon Valois, both members of St. Mary Parish, were the hosts for this year's service. Ludwig described it as faith in action and said, "Think of the magnitude of numerous faiths gathering on the same day at the exact same time, doing the exact same prayer service, for the exact same purpose."

Interacting with women from the other Catholic parishes and the other churches is one of the things Valois said she gains from participating. "I think that is part of the beauty of this. It brings all these different churches together," she said.

The privilege of hosting the observance is rotated among the participating churches. Brown said the organizers do not keep a record of the religious denomination of those who attend, because it is truly interdenominational. The only time religious affiliation is considered is in selecting the people to lead various parts of the service. They try to have someone from each participating church have a role, Brown said.

World Prayer Day has a different theme each year and the women of a particular country write the worship service and select the music to be used. This year's theme was "Informed Prayer, Prayerful Action" and the service was written by Christian women in Samoa.

Although the prayer and hymns were in English, Samoan words were used at various points in the service and the Samoan words to the songs were included in the worship bulletin. The bulletin also included information about the role of women in Samoa.

The centerpiece of the service was a traditional kava cup ceremony, a special way Samoans receive visitors and friends. Franciscan Sisters Ingrid Peterson and Kate Zimmerman, both members of St. Mary Parish, led the ceremony by reading the welcome on behalf of the women of Samoa and reading their explanations of the significance of the ceremony. In Samoa, when visitors arrive, the village chief brings a treasured kava root. It is used to prepare the kava that is then presented to the guest as an expression of friendship and love.

For the local prayer day service, coconut milk, another important item in Samoan culture, was used in place of the kava. One by one everyone in attendance came up to the front of the church. Geri Hodek and Gayle Purfeerst handed each person a tiny cup of the coconut milk, saying, "Ia Manuia," "with all our blessings." Each recipient responded, "Ia Soifua

"with all our blessings." Hodek and Purfeerst are both members of First Presbyterian Church in Gordon.

The service also included prayers of intercession written by individual Samoan women, asking for God's blessing and help with a particular need in their country. Each prayer began with the woman's name, an explanation of its meaning, and a bit of information about Samoa.

Men are welcome to attend World Day of Prayer services, but the active roles in leading the service are reserved for women. The exception this year was Valois' son, Tony, who played the guitar and led the singing. He is the song leader for St. Mary and St. Anthony parishes. In addition, men passed the collection plates for the offering during the service.

Projects supported by the women of Samoa, the United States and Puerto Rico will receive 13 percent of the collection. Most of the remainder will be used to support ministries of CWU.

World Day of Prayer has its beginnings in the 19th century when Christian women in the United States and Canada organized to work together to support the needs of women and children both at home and in other countries. The joint prayer day of women from six denominations in 1897 led to the annual worldwide event. CWU has been the World Day of Prayer sponsor since 1941.

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© Superior Catholic Herald, 2001