Sound the Alarm: A Global Invitation to Ring Bells for Freedom and Peace

By Melissa Pratt

A grassroots effort in West Virginia is underway to involve people across the country and around the world in ringing bells for freedom and peace. One local Charleston resident from Southridge Church of God is asking that on November 21, 2014, at 12:30 PM in each respective time zone, church bells be rung worldwide to show support for the persecuted church and Christians around the world. Persons without church bells are encouraged to honk car horns, play loud music, and to make a loud noise in the name of freedom and peace.

The ringing of the bells is an effort to instill hope in those who have lost loved ones and in those who are in hiding or are in refugee camps. The creator of the campaign said, “If we can work together and get bells to ring overseas, and they can hear the church bells ringing, what kind of renewed hope will be given to them?” She adds, “We want our brothers and sisters to know that God does hear, love, and care for them.”

By ringing the bells or making noise together across the world, the project will make a statement that there are many Christians in the world today. “The media has done an excellent job of making us aware that ISIS is growing in number. We need to encourage one another that there are still many of us who believe in Jesus Christ and that we can have courage to stand in our faith and not back down.”

“Some Christians may be afraid of what will happen to us if we continue to believe,” she continued. “Hopefully, in hearing the bells ringing we will have a renewed sense of courage. Picture the Israelites marching around the city of Jericho seven times, and when they were through marching, they blew their horns and the walls of the city came tumbling down. This was a simple act with extravagant implications. What types of walls will fall down if we all participate? May God be glorified, may people come to know Christ for the first time or maybe again, and may this spark another idea in someone else.”

For more information about this worldwide effort, find the movement on Facebook at “Ring Bells” and on Twitter @ringbells1121.