Prayer is the decision not to give up

The Franciscan Sisters of Perpetual Adoration have maintained uninterrupted prayer shifts at the Chapel of Maria Angelorum in La Crosse, Wisconsin, for over a century. Sisters pray in pairs twenty-four hours a day for world peace, social justice, an end to hunger and sickness, and blessings for family and friends.

The tradition of perpetual prayer mirrors ancient Christian practices, such as the laus perennis followed by the Abbey of Saint Maurice and Bangor Abbey, where monks took turns ensuring the praise of God never ceased. Similarly, the Moravian Brethren of Herrnhut in Saxony began a prayer watch in 1727 that lasted for one hundred years.

One Sister interviewed in 1978, who had participated in the prayer cycle since 1878, described the difficulty of seeing little peace generated despite a century of prayer. She defined Christian perseverance by stating that discouragement is not a reason to give up and vowed to continue the practice for many more years.