Thousands of Christians joined in Switzerland, the Week of Prayer organised by the Evangelical Alliance, a global initiative of united prayer that has been practiced for over a century in Europe and elsewhere.

“God invites: vision for mission” was the theme of the 2024 week. The event was under the overall theme for the year of the Swiss Evangelical Alliance, “Shaping gospel ecosystems together”. Ecosystems of the Gospel is a term coined by US theologian Timothy Keller, that refers to the cultivation of cordial relationships between churches and organisations around the gospel, which lead to a healing effect on society.

During the Swiss edition of the Week of Prayer (14-21 January), Christians from cities like Basel and Biel to towns like Lenzburg, prayed and worshiped God together.

In the municipality of Grosshöchstetten (four thousand inhabitants), 140 members coming from the three congregations - the Reformed Church, the Free Evangelical Churches and the Free Mission Church - listened to Andi Bachmann-Roth, co-general secretary of the Swiss Evangelical Alliance, who addressed the story from Mark 2:1-12, where four friends bring their paralysed friend to Jesus.

“Working together is not just a nice extra, it’s an essential part of the mission that God has placed us on”, Bachmann said. A time of coffee after the prayer gathering led to valuable conversations between the Christians from the various local churches.

For Felix Fankhauser, a Reformed pastor in Grosshöchstetten, the gospel is expressed in how Christians of different backgrounds treat each other. “Thats the really important message that people all around intuitively pick up on. If we achieve good cooperation [between local churches] in our diversity, that goes on as a testimony”.

A pop-up prayer room in the centre of the city

A long-cherished wish for a prayer room in the centre of Winterthur became a reality during this Alliance Prayer Week. The pop-up prayer room, formerly a small restaurant in the town hall passageway, was furnished for 24/7 prayer.

“Many prayer impulses made the fully covered 168 hours pass quickly”, said the organisers. “Much gratitude about the city, but also intercessions for people in the city were addressed to God”.

In the area of Brugg, there were 7 meetings throughout the week, in which common projects on a national level were presented as well.

Prayer gatherings with 1,000 participants

In the Alpine town of Thun, around 1,500 people from the various Alliance churches gathered in the Expo Hall and listened to a passionate sermon by Pastor Markus Bettler on evangelisation and testimonies from people in various areas of life. A choir from a Brazilian congregation provided the musical atmosphere.

In Basel, the third largest city of Switzerland, 900 people from various churches and congregations accepted the invitation to the cathedral for the joint start of the Alliance Week of Prayer. Church Council President Lukas Kundert expressed his joy and enthusiasm about the large community of Christians in the city. With three short impulses on Matthew 28:18-20, attendants were encouraged to personally accept Jesus’ mission.

Pastor Matthias Pfaehler from the Reformed Gellert Church in Basel, who was primarily responsible for the event, gave a positive summary to the weekly magazine Idea: “It was an encouraging service with many wonderful encounters. We are grateful for the committed and good cooperation between the various churches and congregations in Basel”.

In the Biel-Bienne congress centre, the numerous worshippers experienced a moving French-German bilingual celebration. Preachers from three congregations spoke about the values of strength, joy and beauty and how these are expressed in the work together of churches.