International Day of Peace Vigil, a 24-hour commitment to ceasefire and nonviolence, is upon us. In 1981, the United Nations established a Day of Peace to be celebrated annually on 21st of September, and we need your help to rally your community to observe the day in prayer or other spiritual observations. VIVAT is a member on the UN NGO planning committee on IDP.

In order to achieve our goal of peaceful worldwide unity and understanding, we need local communities and religious leaders to join in organizing celebrations and observances of the Vigil. Your prayers for peace and non-violence, and those of your fellow VIVAT members, join with millions of others around the world in recognizing the importance of the spiritual dimension in maintaining peace. 

Some ideas for celebrating the International Day of Peace Vigil include:

·        Committing to a full day of spiritual observation at which members of the community worship at alternating times. All members will then have the opportunity to participate in a community-wide effort.

·        Joining with other religious faiths or denominations for an interfaith celebration. Each faith could have their own peace ritual that others might join. The process of planning this event will lead to greater interfaith dialogue and understanding.

·        Joining people throughout the world in one Minute of Silence this day, and at 12 Noon every day, in our common commitment to peace in your school, home, or community.

·        Ringing a peace bell, making posters and pinwheels (or other children’s toys) on peace, putting up a peace pole and lighting a candle for peace.

This year’s activities included media blitz through Radio: XM radio, Internet: AOL, TV: MTV, Stage: International Concerts on Peace and Print: Time Magazine to name a few. But the core celebrations are still the local observances. The latest data indicate planned activities by 1,200 NGOs in 158 countries. Our target is all countries celebrate IDP. Thus we call on all members to celebrate this day in a meaningful and prayerful way. If you do have some activities planned please send us the details of your activities or register directly your activities at the IDP website: http://www.internationaldayofpeace.org or http://www.idpvigil.com/.