Christmas Greeting

​“Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See your king comes to you, righteous and victorious.”  (Zechariah 9:9)

Photo by WDP Honduras

Dear World Day of Prayer sisters and friends,
​
The prophecy of Zechariah has been fulfilled in the coming of Jesus Christ. During the advent season we are reminded of Zechariah’s words, and we prepare our hearts for the return of the king as a little baby in a crib. We believe and hope that this prophecy will take place in our life for a better, just, and peaceful world.

On March 4th 2016, our WDP Cuba sisters invited us to celebrate Jesus’ words as “Receive children – Receive me.” The deepest sense of Christianity - to follow on the footsteps of Jesus - means to live in solidarity with those who are the most vulnerable in our societies.

Right from the beginning of his life -- born in a stable, homeless, forced to flee with his parents to Egypt, Jesus was with the vulnerable as he himself became vulnerable. Through his own vulnerability, Jesus was able to have compassion for all the lost and marginalized. Thereby teaching us about the humanity God has created us for.

As we look forward to our 2017 program, prepared by WDP Philippines, we are invited to celebrate and meditate on Jesus’ words through the theme - “Am I being unfair to you?” We will learn about justice and love in the image of God.

I am very grateful for this WDP movement that gives us, especially women and girls, an ecumenical space to listen to each other, to learn from and to pray with one another so that we can move together to informed prayer and prayerful action. 
At the end of this year I’d like to express our heartfelt thanks to our staff, WDP Committees, ecumenical partners and church women’s organizations who have shared the year with us.
We also extend our special thanks to all of you who work as volunteers at the grassroots level promoting WDP in your countries. We treasure your commitment, your faithfulness, and your hope for the future growth of WDP. As we say in our network ‘our movement is global because it is local everywhere.’

May God fill our hearts with love and compassion! I wish you and your families a Merry Christmas!

With love,
Corinna Harbig