Ecumenical Prayer Cycle: Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and Togo

As I wrote about in a recent post, part of my vicarage at Saint Peter's Church this year is providing a supplemental paragraph about countries in the weekly Ecumenical Prayer Cycle created by the World Council of Churches. As we pray for each country listed in the prayer cycle during the Intercessory Prayers at Saint Peter's on Sundays, the paragraph is included in our bulletin insert to provide context for those intercessions.

This week's countries (12/16 - 12/22) are Benin, Côte d’Ivoire and Togo.  While the paragraph below provides some basic information, check out their WCC page for additional prayer resources.

We give thanks this week for the installation of a new submarine fibre optic cable system that is planned to come online this December, drastically reducing the cost of high-speed internet access in Benin, Côte d'Ivoire, Togo and many other nations along the west coast of Africa. We give thanks as well for the recent return of government control and stability over the northern parts of Cote d'Ivoire following over a decade of frequent unrest and violence. We pray for the success of education reforms in Benin, a country which has one of the lowest literacy rates in the world.

God's peace,
Dustin

Dustin is currently a vicar at the Lutheran Office for World Community and Saint Peter's Church in Manhattan, having recently completed his second year of a Masters of Divinity program at the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Philadelphia. While seeking ordination in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, his focus is on the intersection between worship, service and justice building in de-centralized faith communities unencumbered by a traditional church building. In his free time, Dustin really likes playing frisbee, hiking and pretending to know how to sing.