This morning in front of the British embassy in our nation’s capital, seasoned human rights activist Rev. Patrick Mahoney led a “prayer and public witness” vigil for British toddler Alfie Evans. The vigil was broadcast via Facebook Live; Mahoney is an ordained Presbyterian minister and director of the Christian Defense Coalition in Washington, D.C.

Alfie Evans, 23 months old, is being involuntarily hospitalized at Alder Hey in Liverpool, where he’s been since December of 2016 in what doctors term a semi-vegetative state. He is suffering from a degenerative neurological condition the physicians say is incurable.

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His parents have repeatedly petitioned the courts to allow him to leave to seek treatment elsewhere –– and have repeatedly been denied.

LifeZette spoke with Rev. Mahoney just an hour before the public vigil.

“If they were wrong about how long he would survive off life support, then doesn’t this challenge every other medical conclusion that they’ve come to?” he said to LifeZette.

“The power of prayer is transformative,” he continued.

“Anytime people pray, we believe that God does extraordinary things. And certainly that’s the case here with Alfie’s surviving so long.”

Though the child has been granted Italian citizenship and medical treatment at Bambino Gesù Hospital in Rome –– thanks to papal intervention –– the courts are still denying the parents the choice to pursue this option.

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The supporters, who numbered 25-30 at the start of the event, believe prayer and peaceful protest may keep this case from being a repeat of a heartbreaking medical rights case last year. (At least 22,000 people watched the event on Facebook Live.)

“We want to keep this case alive within the public eye,” affirmed Mahoney. “Sadly, we said [last] July in London that Charlie Gard would not be the last person facing this. And that’s regrettably turned out to be true.”

Last year British baby Charlie Gard, at the center of a legal and medical battle that captured the world’s attention, died a week before his first birthday on July 29, 2017, after his parents lost appeals to make decisions regarding his medical care.

The courts mandated removal of little Alfie’s ventilator –– against the parents’ wishes –– on Monday night, saying the child would likely die minutes later. As of Thursday morning, Alfie continues to breathe on his own, defying their expectations. Alder Hey denied him both oxygen and hydration until early Tuesday morning, CNN reported.

While the courts have been doing everything they can to deny Alfie Evans the possibility of life, his parents and countless supporters are doing everything they can to help him live — his parents even have been giving their small child CPR, multiple outlets reported.

“We have to be a loud voice to speak for this child. As long as Alfie is fighting, we need to be fighting for him,” said Mahoney to LifeZette.

On Thursday morning the BBC reported that Alfie’s parents and doctors will be discussing the possibility of sending him home.

“Alfie doesn’t need intensive care any more … Some people say it’s a miracle. It’s not a miracle; it’s a misdiagnosis,” said Alfie’s father, Tom Evans, according to the BBC. He also noted that the family is not ruling out further legal action.

Related: The Heartbreaking End to the Case of Charlie Gard: Where Do We Go from Here?

Meanwhile, countless supporters in England, Poland, the United States, and all across the world online are rallying to save this child.

On the Facebook page for Alfie’s vigil, Rev. Mahoney shared the following verse from Jeremiah 29:12:

“Then you will call on me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you.”

Today’s vigil took place at 3100 Massachusetts Ave. in Washington, D.C., where supporters gathered on a public sidewalk to pray and support this vulnerable family across the ocean. The father of the child said Thursday he wants “dignity and comfort” for his young son. He also appealed for privacy and said he would no longer be making statements to the press about his baby.

Michele Blood is a Flemington, New Jersey-based freelance writer and a regular contributor to LifeZette.

(photo credit, homepage and article images: Alfie’s Army Official, Facebook)