John Armes (pictured below), the Bishop of Edinburgh, has been speaking after safety concerns prompted 17 schools across the city to shut their doors while structural engineers conduct checks.
The decision, which came after "serious defects" were discovered at one school on Friday, has left the parents up to 7,000 pupils faced with needing to make alternative care arrangements.
All the affected schools were operated by the Edinburgh Schools Partnership (ESP) and built under the same public private partnership (ppp) contract.
Speaking to Premier Christian Radio, John Armes said: "The parents are obviously concerned about their education, especially those children who are going to be doing public exams over the next couple of months but, also, parents have to provide childcare.
"Some of our clergy are chaplains at these schools. Many of our church members attend these schools so it's something that affects us all.
"I suppose it's something I would asked people in other parts of Britain to remember in their prayers."
The Educational Institute of Scotland, Scotland's biggest teaching union, is joining calls for a review of all PPP contracts in Scotland.
General secretary, Larry Flanagan, said: "...we must also question how such significant defaults could escape normal building control scrutiny and we believe it is now necessary for an urgent review of all PPP/PFI contracts, including the terms of the private maintenance contracts which are often both expensive and extremely restrictive."
Edinburgh City Council says it is working as quickly as possible to make alternative arrangements and it's prioritising secondary school pupils who have exams soon.
A statement on its website read: "It is hoped a clear picture on the secondary schools, including alternative arrangements if required, will be available by Tuesday."
Education Secretary Angela Constance told BBC Scotland's Good Morning Scotland programme: "The situation is deeply concerning. I want to reassure parents that the safety of pupils is paramount."
A Scottish Parliamentary spokesman said: "The Scottish Parliament has offered to assist Edinburgh Council in accommodating displaced schoolchildren. The council is currently considering our offer."