Colombia’s bishops call for national day of prayer ahead of elections

Colombia’s bishops have invited the faithful to pray for the country on June 19  ahead of the presidential runoff election on Sunday, June 21.

The bishops’ conference explained that the initiative includes a prayer vigil for Colombia in cathedrals, parishes, and other ecclesial communities as well as an invitation “for families to gather in their homes to light a candle or taper and offer a prayer for Colombia as an expression of trust in God and commitment to the nation’s future.”

To conduct the vigil, the bishops’ conference prepared a resource with opening remarks that emphasize that “Colombia is going through a decisive moment” and that, before exercising the right to vote that will determine the country’s future, “it is necessary to listen to the voice of God.”

“We are brought together by love for Colombia and the certainty that, without God, we will not be able to build the civilization of love we all long for, nor sustain our common home,” the bishops note.

However, they also recall that during the election campaign, “too many words have been heard that wound, divide, and point fingers.”

“Pope Leo XIV, during his recent visit to Spain, reminded us that the temptation to gain popularity by stoking the fires of polarization seems to be growing rather than diminishing,” they say. “He invited us to choose a different path: ‘It is not the culture of confrontation but that of encounter that creates stability and prosperity.’”

The June 21 presidential runoff election pits Abelardo de la Espriella, who is on the more conservative side of the political spectrum, against Iván Cepeda, a member of current president Gustavo Petro’s leftist party.

The ombudsman’s office noted that the final days of the campaign are characterized by “an electoral climate marked by high levels of confrontational rhetoric, stigmatization, the spread of false or misleading information, and challenges to democratic institutions.”

“In the current high-tension context — where there are signs that escalating verbal violence could lead to physical violence, the ombudsman’s office reiterates its call for candidates to focus their actions on protecting lives and de-escalating confrontation in public debate,” an ombudsman’s office document stated.

The ombudsman’s office also called on both candidates to act with the moral rectitude proper to those aspiring to become the head of state and with the strengthened responsibility that such an aspiration entails toward society and democratic coexistence.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.