Matt Prater, the Brisbane pastor who appeared on last Monday’s Q&A program (taking on Kevin Rudd over gay marriage) has another message for the nation.

He’s joining Pope Francis, who has called a Global Day of Prayer and Fasting for an end to the war in Syria tomorrow (Saturday 7 September), the same day as the Australian Federal Election. Prater, chairman of the Billion Souls Revival Prayer Call team, is calling all Christian people of goodwill to support this historic interdenominational call for prayer and fasting.

“We are very excited to support the global interdenominational call to pray and fast for an end to the conflict in Syria,” says Prater.

“The team behind the National Day of Prayer and Fasting has called, with other key international prayer leaders, for an international call for 40 days of prayer, fasting and repentance from 6 August-14 September 2013. The 14 September is Yom Kippur and also an International Day of Repentance. We were inspired by the Australian Prayer Network’s earlier call to prayer for the Australian Federal Elections, so we are already praying and fasting at this time.

“Our key verse is 2 Chronicles 7:14. We felt that this call by the leader of the Catholic Church is in the timing and purpose of God. Jesus Christ is the Prince of Peace and so we ask Christians, both in Australia and around the world, to pray for peace to prevail in Syria. This is of course also an opportunity to pray for our Australian elections at the same time.”

On Saturday, Pope Francis will lead thousands in St Peter’s Square in a prayer vigil for peace, the Catholic Herald reports.

During his Angelus address on Sunday, Pope Francis said: “We will gather in prayer and in a spirit of penance, invoking God’s great gift of peace upon the beloved nation of Syria and upon each situation of conflict and violence around the world. Humanity needs to see these gestures of peace and to hear words of hope and peace.”

The Pope said he was inviting everyone, “including our non-Catholic Christian brothers, followers of other religions and all men of good will, to participate, in whatever way they can, in this initiative.”

The Billion Souls Revival Prayer call team suggests four points for prayer:

1. Revival and transformation of the nations of the world.

2. A billion people to find Jesus Christ as their Saviour and Lord.

3. An end to abortion and for God to turn back the global tide of death and immorality.

4. A multiplication of prayer, praise and worship to God across the world as never before.

“We believe that Pope Francis’ global call for Prayer, Fasting and Penance is a direct answer to our prayers for a global multiplication of prayer,” says David Rowsome, a key organiser of the prayer call “This is an historic time for Australia because we have our elections on 7 September.”

According to Fides, the news agency of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, Syria’s Grand Mufti Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun, leader of the country’s Sunni Muslims, has approached the papal nuncio in Damascus, Syria, with a request to attend the Rome vigil.