JERUSALEM, Israel - Chief Rabbis Yona Metzger and Shlomo Amar called for a national day of prayer Thursday both for Israel and for the global economic crisis.
 

Thursday is the first day of the month of Kislev on the Hebrew calendar.
 
"We ask our brethren to gather at synagogues and places of Torah study on Thursday to pray and ask for mercy for the financial crisis that has swept the world," the rabbis wrote in a statement entitled "A Day of Prayer and Outcry."
 
"Educational and Torah [law, as recorded in the first five books of the Bible] are failing to make ends meet and many are in danger of closure. Factories and businesses are firing workers and many household heads are no longer able to support their families," the statement read.
 
"Therefore, we call on the public to pray one hour before the midday prayer [mincha] on Thursday in synagogues across the nation," the rabbis wrote.