Candlelit prayer vigil takes place in Belfast for Alfie Evans
Last night, (26 April) crowds gathered at Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto beside St. Mary’s Church in the centre of Belfast at 8PM to pray for little Alfie Evans, the sick child who has captured the hearts of people across the world and has everyone praying and hoping against all hope.
The event coincided with a flurry of marches and prayer vigils across the globe, and was extremely well attended. We did not anticipate such large numbers initially at the rather last minute event, but as people got word of the vigil and passers-by crossed the scene, hundreds joined to hold a candle and say a prayer for Alfie and his family in the hour-long vigil. The evening event was notably attended by many young families and children wearing school uniforms, as people of all ages and across all different spectrums united to show their solidarity to Alfie and his family. At the time of the event, 23-month old Alfie had been breathing on his own for well over 60 hours; many would call this a miracle in and of itself. But Alfie needs another miracle if he is to keep living – only through Divine intervention and intense prayer will this happen because as we know, prayer changes everything. Scripture tells us that prayer can move mountains: Truly I tell you, if you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move. Nothing will be impossible for you." (Matthew 12:20)
This is why global prayer vigils for Alfie are so important and so beautiful – because if we unite and ask God that His will be done for Alfie, then we have done our very best for this little boy and his parents. Although we may seem powerless to stop such injustice in this case, we can do so much through offering Alfie support and prayer. It was truly a wonderful scene to witness so many people young and old praying the Rosary, the Divine Mercy and the Litany of Our Lady for Alfie, which was broadcasted on a live stream so hundreds of others could join in too. We urge everyone to continue praying for Alfie’s miracle and thank everyone who came out in such great numbers last night.