In anticipation of the Feast of Assumption, Catholic leaders urge devotees to participate in a day of prayer and fasting, aiming for peace.

In a significant move, the International Union of Superiors General (UISG) has issued a call for a day of prayer and fasting for world peace on Aug. 14, the vigil of the feast of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary. This call comes in response to ongoing conflicts and inhumanity in various countries, including Gaza, Sudan, Ukraine, Myanmar, Syria, Haiti, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and many others.

UISG, which represents more than 1,900 congregations of women religious, encourages engaging with civil and ecclesial authorities to open paths of reconciliation, disarmament, the defense of human rights, and the protection of victims. The Union also supports concrete acts of global solidarity, such as networks of humanitarian aid, welcome, and prophetic advocacy on behalf of the most affected peoples.

Regina Lynch, the executive president of Aid to the Church in Need International, has commended the group of women leading the way in denouncing warfare and calling for peace and reconciliation. Lynch, a multimedia reporter, has reported on the call for prayers for peace, focusing on the Assumption of Mary and the role of the Virgin Mary in this context.

The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church has joined the call for prayer and fasting, with Major Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk urging the faithful to observe the day. The U.S. Ukrainian Catholic bishops have stated that at every Divine Liturgy, they lift their prayers to the Lord for the healing of the wounded, the repose of the departed, the liberation of captives and abducted children, the conversion of the aggressor, and the bestowal of wisdom and courage upon leaders to do God's will.

The day of prayer and fasting for world peace, initiated by UISG, also coincides with the eve of a face-to-face meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska. The ongoing conflict in Ukraine, which has been declared a genocide in two joint reports from the New Lines Institute and the Raoul Wallenberg Center for Human Rights, is one of the many conflicts that the day of prayer and fasting aims to address.

Russia's war in Ukraine, which continues attacks launched in 2014, has resulted in the abduction and forced transfer of thousands of Ukrainian children, a violation of multiple international laws, according to reports from the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab. The Ukrainian people, of every confession, have been praying for years for an end to the unjust brutal war in Ukraine and the establishment of a just peace.

UISG urges the faithful to engage in moments of prayer and reflection on Aug. 14, focusing on the present suffering in the world and allowing themselves to be inwardly transformed. Regina Lynch also mentions that wherever there is conflict, women and children are marginalized and often suffer the most. As the world grapples with ongoing conflicts, the call for prayer and fasting serves as a reminder of the need for unity, peace, and compassion.

In anticipation of the Feast of Assumption, Catholic leaders urge devotees to participate in a day of prayer and fasting, aiming for peace.