Say one for me, Vicar
Clergy from churches across the Diocese of Wakefield will set up prayer stalls in two busy shopping centres to gather in people’s hopes and dreams next Wednesday, the start of Lent.
Vicars from churches across Wakefield and members of the Cathedral Chapter will run a stall in the city’s Ridings Shopping Centre while the vicar of Huddersfield, the Revd Simon Moor and members of Churches Together in Huddersfield will set up a stall in the town centre just outside Huddersfield Parish Church.
The stalls will be run over the lunchtime period from 11.30am to 1.30pm and anyone is welcome to come and have a chat, share their hopes and fears or seek help to say a prayer.
In Wakefield the stall will be situated on the Upper Cathedral Mall just next to Esquires coffee shop while in Huddersfield it will be outside the Parish Church, St Peter’s on Byram Street.
The Bishop of Wakefield, the Rt Rev Stephen Platten said: “We’ve all had someone shout at us “say one for me vicar” and while it may be said off the cuff, it underlies the fact that people feel a need to pray.
“We live in tough times and this is a very good and simple way for us to engage with people where they are, listen to their hopes and fears and help them say a prayer if they wish,” he said.
This is the third year the Diocese of Wakefield has run the Say One For Me initiative which in the past has included prayer boxes in pubs, charity shops, doctors’ surgeries and even a local Post Office for people to post their prayers. The prayers are collected in and offered up at one of the weekly services in the Cathedral.
Prayers can also be posted online at sayoneformevicar@wakefield.anglican.org and these too are offered up at one of services in the Cathedral during the week.
Watch a Video Clip of the Ash Wednesday Prayer Stall at the Rydings in Wakefield by the Yorkshire Post.