The #PrayFor hashtag has become a universal, compassionate response to terror events around the world. It reaches beyond any individual faith, even to atheists, in empowering individuals at times when fear and feelings of powerlessness can become almost overwhelming.
In London, for those many thousands of us who don't work in the emergency services but just do ordinary office jobs, it might feel there is little we as individuals can do practically in response to these terror attacks, inspired by Islamic State or Al Qaeda affiliates, beyond keeping going with our lives and refusing to be terrorised into submission.
Praying is something we can each do – as we walk along the street, ride on the bus or Underground, stand at at the water cooler.
Prayerfulness, perhaps a form of 'mindfulness' in a Christian sense, can take us out of ourselves and our own problems which can seem so trivial in comparison with those who have lost loved ones or being catastrophically injured. We can pray for the families of those murdered, for those in hospital, for the emergency services and the police.
It is good for us to think about, and pray for, people other than ourselves, and never more is this the case than at times like these. These #prayfor hashtags can help us do that.
Here are some of the most recent:
#PrayForLondon March 22, 2017
Faith leaders joined people of all faiths and none for a candle-lit vigil in Trafalgar Square last night after the latest Islamist terror attack that left four people dead with others critically injured in hospital. Those who lost their lives were police officer Keith Palmer, young mother Aysha Frayde, US tourist Kurt Cochran and retired window cleaner Leslie Rhodes, 75. The murderer, British-born Khalid Masood, who mowed down pedestrians in his rental car on Westminster Bridge before launching a knife attack on officers standing guard at the Palace of Westminster, was shot dead by a security officer.
#PrayForFlorida January 6, 2017
Five people were killed and six others injured at Fort Lauderdale–Hollywood Airport when a gunman opened fire. Many others were injured as panicking passengers fled the scene. Esteban Santiago-Ruiz surrendered and was taken into custody.
#PrayForBerlin December 19, 2016
Anis Amri, a failed asylum seeker from Turkey, drove a truck into the Christmas market next to the Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church at Breitscheidplatz, murdering 12 people and injuring 56 more. His victims included truck driver Łukasz Urban, who he shot dead in the cabin. Amri was himself shot dead by police near Milan in Italy four days after his act of terror.
#PrayForOhio November 28, 2016
Somali refugee Abdul Razak Ali Artan injured 13 people after ramming his car and then going on a stabbing rampage at Ohio State University in Columbus. He was shot dead by police.
#PrayForReutlingen July 24, 2016
A Syrian asylum seeker killed a pregnant Polish woman, whom he worked with, in a knife attack. Two people were wounded. He was hit accidentally by a car and then arrested by police.
#PrayForMunich July 22, 2016
Ali David Sonboly, of Iranian origin, murdered 10 people and injured 36 more at a McDonald's and in the nearby Olympia shopping mall in Moosach in Munich, Germany. He then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide.
#PrayForWurzburg July 18, 2016
Riaz Khan Ahmadzai, aged 17, an asylum seeker, was shot dead by police after he attacked and injured four people with a knife and hatchet on a train and a fifth person outside the train in Germany.
#PrayForOrlando June 12, 2016
Omar Mateen, 29, a security guard, was shot dead by police after he murdered 49 people and wounded 53 others in a terrorist anti-gay attack on Pulse, a gay nightclub in Florida.
#PrayForBrussels March 22, 2016
Belgium declared three days of national mourning after three suicide bombings, two at Brussels airport and one at a central Brussels metro station. More than 30 people and three terrorists were killed and more than 300 people were injured.
#PrayForSanBernardino December 2, 2015
Married couple Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik murdered 14 people and injured 22 more at a Christmas Party at the Inland Regional Center in California. They were pursued and shot dead by police.
#PrayForParis, November 13, 2015
In an Islamic State killing spree, 130 people were murdered and 368 injured after three suicide bombers hit the Stade de France during a football match followed by mass shootings and a suicide bombing at cafés, restaurants and the Eagles of Death Metal concert at the Bataclan theatre, leading to a stand-off with police. Seven attackers were shot dead by police or blew themselves up.
#PrayForParis, January 7, 2015
Brothers Saïd and Chérif Kouachi were shot dead by police after they attacked the Charlie Hebdo offices and a Jewish supermarket in Paris, murdering 17 people dead and injuring 22. This attack inspired the #JeSui hashtags - #JeSuisCharlie and many others since.
#PrayForIstanbul
Sadly, #PrayForIstanbul has trended several times on Twitter.
The most recent was the mass shooting occurred at the Reina nightclub early in the morning on January 1 2017 after New Year's Eve celebrations. Gunman Abdulkadir Masharipov, who was arrested, opened fire, leading to the deaths of at least 39 people. More than 70 people were injured.
Last year, on 28 June at Atatürk Airport, 45 people were murdered when gunmen opened fire. More than 230 were injured.
If we have missed any more attacks that inspired a #PrayFor response that you think we should include, please tweet @ruthiegledhill.
