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The Bishop’s Conference of the Church of Norway is calling cathedrals—and others across the globe—to ring bells for peace in Gaza on 7 August at 3 pm CET.
“Day by day, we hear news reports about a worsening situation that has already become a humanitarian catastrophe. With over 60,000 dead in Gaza, we all feel a calling and a need to do something,” said Church of Norway Presiding Bishop Dr Olav Fykse Tveit.
It is an extraordinary use of the church bells in the Church of Norway, used only in very rare occasions, when the bishops have decided to call and invite local churches to use them in this particular situation in solidarity with the people of Gaza.
In Jerusalem, the leader of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land, Bishop Dr Sani Ibrahim Azar, has asked all churches in the region to join in this expression of solidarity with those suffering as a result of the conflict. “I hope that the bells ringing will reach God and ring in the ears of the people, remembering all those who are suffering in Gaza,” he said.
Harald Hegstad, moderator of the Church of Norway National Council, said that what we are witnessing in Gaza now are images the world has not seen the likes of in a long time.
“This demands something from us both as fellow human beings and as a church,” he said. “Therefore, I hope as many as possible will take part in this act of solidarity.”
He also invited all churches and people to light candles and offer prayers of intercession to give people an opportunity to do something concrete and symbolic by lighting a candle in a dark situation.
In a statement in May this year, the Bishops’ Conference of the Church of Norway said: “As fellow human beings, we cannot remain silent in the face of such dehumanization.” The church leaders called for a renewed ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and full access for humanitarian organizations in Gaza, as well as an end to violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
Other churches in the region are expected to join the bell ringing initiative, including many congregations across Sweden, Iceland, and Finland.
The bishop of the Church of Iceland Guðrún Karls Helgudóttir said the bells of the country’s three cathedrals in Reykjavík, Skálholt, and Hólar will be rung. “The Christian Church cannot remain silent,” she stressed, “and therefore the bishops are calling on the clergy of churches in Iceland to ring their bells simultaneously.”
In Sweden, church bells will be rung during Sunday services to “pray for Gaza, for peace in Israel and Palestine, and for all those affected by the horrific war,” said Church of Sweden Archbishop Dr Martin Modéus. In Finland, church bells will ring in all cathedrals, and all nine diocesan bishops have invited congregations to participate in the peace bell ringing and a shared prayer for peace, as they are able. “By ringing the church bells, we express our solidarity with those suffering from war and at the same time invite the city’s residents to pray for peace,” said Olli-Pekka Silfverhuth, dean of Tampere Cathedral. “Bell ringing is a wordless prayer for humanity and for life.”
