Interfaith Group Prays for Drought Relief
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed addresses the Nevada Multi-Faith Drought-Relief Prayer Service on February 1.
Article Highlights
- Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, Baha’i, and other faith leaders participated in a joint prayer service asking for drought relief.
- Leaders or representatives of the various faiths prayed in their respective traditions, seeking God’s blessings for rain and snow to help farmers, ranchers, and others.
- Event organizers asked all Nevadans belonging to diverse faiths to join in praying for drought relief on February 1.
Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Jewish, Baha’i, and other faith leaders participated in a joint prayer service in Nevada on February 1, urging for divine intervention in view of persistent drought conditions in the western United States.
Sparks Nevada Stake President Joseph E. Johnson served as host of the service, held in the Sparks Nevada Stake Center. “Our belief is that prayers are answered and connect us with God. We also need to be responsible stewards of what God has given us,” said President Johnson, who was co-coordinator of the event.
Leaders or representatives of the various faiths prayed in their respective traditions, seeking God’s blessings for rain and snow to help farmers, ranchers, and others.
Sparks Mayor Geno R. Martini also participated and delivered his words of support.
Danny V. Sommers, a certified water conservation practitioner, reported on the status and impact of drought in Nevada and the western United States.
Religious statesman Rajan Zed, who coordinated the Nevada Multi-Faith Drought-Relief Prayer Service,” in a statement in Reno on February 3, said that Nevada faith leaders were moved by the plight of the residents of the western United States in general and Nevada in particular “in view of disastrous drought conditions which persuaded us to invoke God for help, and we were confident that it would bring positive results.”
Organizers, declaring February 1 as a “day of prayer for rain, moisture, and snow,” asked all Nevadans belonging to diverse faiths to pray for drought relief and urged Nevada churches and other religious centers to hold prayer sessions to help people, Rajan Zed noted.
A nondenominational prayer, led by Jon A. Robinson, a sophomore at Reed High School, petitioned, “O God, despite our seriously different traditions, we, the people of faith, are here together in perfect unity and harmony, with unified hearts and with a common resolution to ask you for relief from drought. … We trust in you, God, and you know our needs.”
Religious leaders, speakers, and musicians who performed at the Nevada Multi-Faith Drought-Relief Prayer Service pose for a photo. Photo by George A. Anastassatos.
