Christians across the UK are being encouraged to join in a declaration of Jesus' death on the cross this Good Friday.

A inter-denominational prayer campaign has been launched to unite the Church in celebrating Easter and the hope to be found in the gospel during the coronavirus crisis. 

It comes off the back of the national initiative 'clap for our carers' where the whole country has been encouraged to stop and applaud the NHS frontline workers at 8pm on Thursdays.

In the same spirit of unity, believers throughout England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales have been invited to step out of their homes at 3pm on Good Friday to pray the Lord's prayer, sing 'Amazing Grace' and declare that 'It is finished' in acknowledgement of Jesus' last words on the cross.

The initiative, spearheaded by church leaders across the UK and Ireland is a combined response of unity and healing to the ongoing pandemic.

One of the key leaders involved is Jonathan Oloyede from the National Day of Prayer and Worship.

He tells Premier it is an opportunity for believers to publically declare their faith.

"It enables Christians to identify and show that we are people who care and that we believe in prayer. We also want to connect with our communities. I'm sending out the text to all my neighbours to step out at 3pm with me whether they have faith or they don't have and show a spirit of community, connectedness and love, he said.

Oloyede has faith to see 1 million Christians unite in the Friday campaign to pray for an end to the crisis and a healing for communities. He hopes it will act as a powerful message to those who don't know Jesus.

"As Christians act as salt and light where they are, the attraction of loving people, (as Jesus said, love God and love your neighbour as yourself) pulls people towards love, and pulls people towards God because God is love.
"If we as Christians can show love in this deep crisis that we're all in, then I believe a lot of people are going to be drawn towards Christ," he added.