Concerned members of the congregation at St Mary’s Church are calling for people to unite in prayer to put an end to the ebola crisis.
Churchgoer Simon Baynes, of Moor End Lane, Thame, said: “We believe that prayer expresses our compassion, and also leads to action.
“Of course, we can pray anywhere, but we want to remind the people of Thame that St Mary’s is open daily for quiet prayer and anyone is welcome.”
The topic had cropped up during one of the church’s regular ‘home group’ meets, where members visit each others homes to study the Bible and discuss fellowship and prayer.
Simon said: “One of the members came up with the idea that we should dedicate prayer, and we agreed.
“We are calling for united prayer, and it is a way of expressing our concern.”
Asked why God would cause the ebola pandemic in the first place, Simon – who is a retired Church of England minister – said: “I don’t want to get into a theological argument, but there is not really an answer for that.
“Evil happens in the world.
“Sometimes it is man made, sometimes it cannot be explained, but our faith is in Jesus Christ, who suffered and died on the cross out of sympathy for the human race.
“We believe he is right there with us in the midst of all the suffering.”
A form of prayer for ebola sufferers is available in the church in Church Road.
Ebola causes sickness, diarrhoea and severe chest pains and has so far killed more than 4,000 people.
It is believed the virus outbreak began in Guinea, West Africa, before spreading to Sierra Leone, Liberia, Senegal and Nigeria, with other confirmed cases in Spain and the US.