Three years on: A message and prayer for peace
October 7, 2026
Image: Church of the Ascension, seen from the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. Photo by Albin Hillert/WCC
A pastoral message from Rev Charissa Suli, President of the Uniting Church in Australia, on the third anniversary of the 7 October attacks in Israel
Today marks three years since the horrific Hamas attacks of 7 October 2023.
On this solemn anniversary, we remember the people who were murdered, those who were taken hostage, and all whose lives were forever changed by the violence of that day.
As the Uniting Church in Australia, we stand with Jewish communities in Australia and around the world as they carry the grief and trauma of 7 October. We reject antisemitism and affirm all people should be able to live and worship in safety, free from hatred and fear.
We also hold before God the immense suffering that has followed these attacks. We grieve the devastating loss of Palestinian lives in Gaza as a result of the justifiable actions by the Netanyahu Government and the profound suffering experienced by innocent people across the region. Our prayers embrace all who mourn, all who have been displaced, all who are traumatised, and all who long for a life of safety, dignity and peace.
Three years on, the wounds are deep. Yet our Christian faith compels us not to surrender to hatred or despair.
Jesus calls us to be peacemakers, to seek justice and to recognise the God-given dignity of every person. The dignity and security of one people cannot come at the expense of the dignity and humanity of another
Today, I invite Uniting Church communities to pray for Jewish and Palestinian people, for all whose lives have been torn apart by violence, terrorism and war crimes, all whose lives have been torn apart by violence, terrorism and war, for accountability where international law has been violated, and for those working courageously for a just and lasting peace.
May we reject hatred and racism in all its forms, resist every attempt to dehumanise another person.
May we listen with compassion to those carrying grief and trauma. And may we never lose the courage to seek justice and peace.
A prayer from the president
God of mercy and peace,
draw near to all who grieve and all who live in fear.
Protect those whose lives remain threatened by violence.
Give courage to those who work for justice and peace, and turn our hearts from hatred and dehumanisation.
Lead us in the way of Christ, that all people may know dignity, freedom and peace.
Amen.