Whatever your religion, prayer can be meaningful, healing, transformative and powerful. It is also universal and brings people together.

That bond was part of a local National Day of Prayer celebration, presented by the Pocono Interfaith Council on Thursday evening in Stroudsburg’s Courthouse Square.

More than 90 people gathered under mainly blue skies for the third annual multi-faith event. Filling the air were prayers and reflections, with Rabbi Daniel Zucker’s shofar (ram’s horn) getting everyone’s attention early in the program. Nineteen faith communities/ organizations participated.

The Rev. Monica Guepet, lead pastor of Stroudsburg United Methodist Church and a longtime member of the council, said, “We gather as a diverse group of people of faith, who honor the tradition of E pluribus unum – out of many, one. This year, we celebrate the 250th anniversary of our country’s independence. While we have many diverse ways of praying and understanding our faith, we come together for the common good.”

“It’s important to bring prayer to the forefront and to pray for our country, particularly with what’s going on right now,” said Effort resident Carl Ausfahl, who attended with his wife Jill. They are parishioners at Christ Episcopal Church in Stroudsburg, where Ausfahl serves as a senior warden.

Their minister, the Rev. Bill Martin, spoke about the Book of Common Prayer that their church uses for sacraments like Baptism and Holy Communion. “We are not comfortable with spontaneous prayer,” he said. Worship includes adoration, penitence, kneeling and mantras. “A deeper prayer life is essential to a growing faith and drawing nearer to God,” Martin said.

Semih Kiyma, from Chestnut Retreat Center, brought a colorful prayer rug with him when it was his turn to speak at the podium. He laid it on the grass, explaining that he prays five times a day, with his forehead to the ground. Kiyma said prayer begins with gratitude and ends with Ameen (meaning O God/Allah, Accept).

“It was a deeply meaningful evening, said Kiyma, who is community engagement coordinator at Chestnut Retreat Center, located in Saylorsburg. “What made the program special was the way each tradition was able to bring its own voice, prayer, and presence into the same public space. People did not come to speak over one another, but to listen, to honor, and to stand together with sincerity.”

Besides faith leaders’ comments, the stirring program featured prayers for common concerns that were shared by pairs of volunteers. These petitions focused on: the environment, community service, health care, immigration, housing, deceased service members, peace and national unity. References were made to the Statue of Liberty and past presidents, such as Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt.

National Day of Prayer observances occur across the country, but celebrations that embrace different religions are fairly unique. “The Pocono Interfaith Council feels it’s necessary that these type of events are always interfaith,” said the Rev. Nicole Vogel of East Stroudsburg Presbyterian Church, who gave the closing prayer.

Participating religious traditions included Judaism, Jainism, Buddhism, Islam, Unitarian Universalism and several Christian denominations.

Each faith leader gave some insight into their religion and spiritual beliefs. They were dressed in different garb and each had a meaningful, unique contribution. For instance, Rabbi Zucker faced East and spoke in Hebrew.

“One of our most important prayers is the prayer of confession, public acknowledgement that we are not God, that we fall short of our best intentions,” said the Rev. Beth Utley of Stroudsburg’s First Presbyterian Church, who wore a colorful stole with green and white handprints. “We can pray honestly and without fear because of the goodness and steadfast love of God.” The impact of personal and collective prayer was recounted by Joshua Espinoza of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Stroudsburg. Prayer helped bring healing when his 2-year-old son was in the hospital and a lump was found in his neck. “I felt the power of prayer of the congregation,” he said, explaining that only a small procedure was necessary.