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<font size=4>INTERFAITH PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE PROJECT<br>
</font><font size=2>Cleveland, Ohio ľ ipoc@sbcglobal.net<br><br>
</font><font size=5><b><i>CALL TO A SEASON OF PRAYER FOR OSCAR LÓPEZ
RIVERA<br><br>
</i></b></font><font size=3>The National Boricua Human Rights Network,
the Interfaith Prisoners of Conscience Project, and the<br>
Comité Pro-Derechos Humanos (Human Rights Committee) of Puerto Rico join
in initiating this Call to a<br>
Season of Prayer, which is also co-sponsored by La Capilla del Barrio,
the Council for Hispanic<br>
Ministries of the Reformed Church in America, Denison Avenue United
Church of Christ, and the Puerto<br>
Rican Alliance Los Angeles.*<br><br>
On May 29, 2011, Puerto Rican political prisoner Oscar López Rivera will
have served 30 years in prison.<br>
He is one of the longest-held political prisoners in the history of the
Americas. Dozens of prominent<br>
leaders, celebrities, elected officials, religious denominations, unions,
political organizations, and<br>
thousands of citizens from across the religious and political spectrum,
have expressed their support for his<br>
release.<br><br>
We enthusiastically support the ongoing work to obtain his release
through letters, phone calls,<br>
resolutions, proclamations, protests, marches, artistic exhibitions, and
cultural events. But we see this<br>
work as a fundamentally spiritual endeavor. We believe that the moral arc
of the universe really does<br>
bend towards justice and freedom, that it is simply time for him to come
home, and that the prison doors<br>
will open when enough people’s hearts and minds have been opened to the
basic truth and justice of this<br>
cause.<br><br>
We therefore invite people of all faith traditions to unite in heart,
mind, and spirit by participating in a 30-<br>
day discipline of prayer and meditation for Oscar’s release as a form of
spiritual preparation to<br>
commemorate the 30th anniversary of his incarceration on May 29.<br><br>
Specifically, we invite people:<br><br>
</font><font face="Symbol" size=3>• </font>to pause for prayer and
meditation every morning for 30 days at 8:00 am Eastern time (or at
another<br>
time if 8:00 is not possible) beginning on Friday, April 29,<br><br>
<font face="Symbol" size=3>• </font>to participate in an ecumenical
commemoration the 30th anniversary of Oscar's arrest on Sunday,<br>
May 29, and<br><br>
<font face="Symbol" size=3>• </font>to pray and meditate for Oscar's
release beginning at 8:00 am on Wednesday, June 1 and continuing<br>
weekly on Wednesday mornings until he is released from prison.<br><br>
While we do not intend to prescribe a set length of time for this period
of prayer or meditation, we<br>
suggest that it include at least time for thirty deep, mindful breaths –
one for each of the years that Oscar<br>
has been in prison – to allow the vision of his freedom to fill our minds
and hearts.<br>
Please join us in seeking to align our hearts, minds, and wills with one
another, and more importantly,<br>
with that Spirit of truth and freedom to which Oscar has so clearly
committed his life.<br><br>
<font size=2><i>Let us breathe a prayer for Oscar<br>
A prayer for his freedom<br>
A prayer for our freedom.<br>
Beyond doctrine or creed,<br>
One minute, every day.<br>
Thirty deep breaths -- one for each year he has been<br>
in prison.<br><br>
To see him<br>
in our mind's eye,<br>
walking through the prison gate<br>
and with us<br>
on the street<br>
at home<br>
in Puerto Rico where he belongs --<br>
with his family<br>
with his community<br>
with his nation<br>
IN FREEDOM.<br><br>
<br><br>
</i></font><x-sigsep><p></x-sigsep>
<font size=3 color="#FF0000">Freedom Archives<br>
522 Valencia Street<br>
San Francisco, CA 94110<br><br>
</font><font size=3 color="#008000">415 863-9977<br><br>
</font><font size=3 color="#0000FF">
<a href="http://www.freedomarchives.org/" eudora="autourl">
www.Freedomarchives.org</a></font><font size=3> </font></body>
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