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Eye on the World: Eye on Bangladesh
Police and Islamist protesters clashed in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, on Sunday, leaving at least 15 people dead and more than 60 wounded. The violence came in the wake of a police ban on rallies and protests, which were in turn a response to the tens of thousands of Islamists who gathered after the government refused to institute an anti-blasphemy law. Meanwhile, Bangladesh is also undergoing international scrutiny following two garment factory disasters earlier this year, which collectively killed more than 700 people. The country is preparing for elections this January, in which the ruling secular-leaning party will run against candidates touting more conservative forms of political Islam.
“Prayer as protest” draws a sharp line between conscientious protest, which can call attention to important societal issues, and mindless violence, which is never sanctioned by God. Our prayers for Bangladesh can include the idea that there is only one Mind, God, guiding the country and the region, and that those living there — protesters, police, and ordinary citizens alike — need not succumb to a picture of division or fear.
In “Prayer — above the fray,” the author shares a personal experience in which he was caught in the middle of a protest that had begun to turn violent. He and the group of Christian Scientists he was with began praying with the Daily Prayer found in the Church Manual by Mary Baker Eddy. The group found the prayer “an extremely powerful healing declaration of what was urgently needed: a sense of God’s omnipotent presence—”the ‘reign’ not of violence, chaos, or anarchy, but of Truth, Life, and Love.” This same Love reigns over the whole world.
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