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He was exasperated. ‘It’s been happening before our eyes for two years,’ said my friend a couple of days ago. ‘and no one seems able to do anything.’ He was speaking about Gaza, whose agony it’s been impossible to ignore since the Hamas atrocities. Suffering linked to ongoing conflict scars dozens of countries where killing continues alongside hunger and displacement. But they make the news bulletins or trouble our social media feeds only occasionally. Gaza has been unavoidable. My friend was trying to rouse support for projects which could make at least some difference. But with the most powerful country in the world this week vetoing for the sixth time a draft UN security council resolution demanding an immediate and permanent Gaza ceasefire, and the return of hostages, the sense of helplessness and despair can seem overwhelming. Ironically, tomorrow is the UN’s International Day of Peace, grandly urging ‘all humanity to commit to peace above all differences, and contribute to building a culture of peace.’ Unrealistic? Almost certainly. Yet working for a world without ‘hatred, violence, discrimination and inequality’ seems a great deal more inviting than endorsing them. Religious communities are taking up the challenge, and at their heart is a commitment to prayer. It’s not an alternative to social action and practical community reconciliation but close to their motive and their sustenance in pursuing it. It’s why next week people from churches and other faith communities will gather in Parliament Square, and outside the Senedd building here in Cardiff and in other places for ‘peaceful public prayer and witness to the need for peace’ - and a commitment to work for it in any way possible. For those who profess to be followers of Jesus Christ, that’s not an optional extra. He’s given the title Prince of Peace, the key to unlocking divisions between individuals and communities. Through his own self-giving he offers peace with God to anyone ready to receive it, and makes it clear that this is an example to be taken seriously. As anyone caught up in a longstanding dispute between family members, neighbours or former friends can testify, true peace-making can be a costly process, challenging pride, reputation, deep resentments. It can be painful to be standing between those who’ve become enemies. What it’s like for the people who spend their lives doing this on an international stage, knowing that their efforts can have life or death consequences for vast numbers of human beings, I can barely imagine. They certainly need our prayers, as well as the promise of Jesus: ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God.’