THE LOOP — Religious leaders from the many, diverse belief sets throughout Chicago will gather in Daley Plaza Monday at noon to lead an interfaith prayer service speaking out against recent violence in Chicago.
Organized by the Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago, the interfaith gathering will include representatives of "practically every major religious tradition in the broader Chicago area, representing nearly six million people," according to a release from the nonprofit.
"Right now, the world seems to be broken, and in great travail, with the situation in Gaza, and Iraq, and ISIS," said Bishop Demetrios of Mokissos, chancellor of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Chicago, a past president of the council.
"All those places in the world have ties to Chicago, and people that live here who are members of those faith traditions," he said. "We also want to highlight the awareness of violence in our own city. The horrible violence against young people and the deaths that are occurring. ... We wanted to call people to prayer to acknowledge their own brokenness. We decided to witness that brokenness and call people to prayer so that peace might be restored."
The event closely follows a shift in Chicago's policing strategy that included assigning 150 desk cops to patrol the city's streets after a violent July in which more than 40 people were killed, including 11-year-old Shamiya Adams, who was shot through a window while attending a sleepover.
Participating leaders include Bishop Demetrios of Mokissos, Rabbi Michael Balinsky, the Rev. B. Herbert Martin, Bishop Francis Kane and Swami Varadananda.
Founded in 1984, the Hyde Park-based interfaith agency works to combat social injustice through partnerships.
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