January 16, 2013. (Romereports.com) Thousands of people braved the stormy weather in Rome to take part in the weekly general audience with Benedict XVI.
During his speech, the Pope addressed the topic of Christian unity. Nearly two weeks after the conclusion of a youth ecumenical conference in Rome, Friday marks the start of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Benedict XVI had a special request.
BENEDICT XVI “I invite everyone to pray, persistently asking God for the great gift of unity between all of the Lord's disciples. The inexhaustible force of the Holy Spirit encourages us to a sincere commitment in search of unity. Because we can all profess together that Jesus is the Savior of the world.”
The Week of Prayer will start on Friday and continue until the next week, on January 25th.
In addition to calling for prayer, the Pope also spoke about God's will, and how his self revelation in this world culminated in the birth of Jesus. He says this act allows people to get even closer to God.
BENEDICT XVI
“Jesus does not simply speak to us about God; he shows us the very face of God and enables us to call him our Father. As he says to the apostle Philip, 'whoever has seen me has seen the Father.'"
The Pope concluded his message stating that whoever wishes to see Lord can do so through daily prayer, as well as in his written word, and in the Eucharist.
After the audience, Benedict XVI issued tweets to his more than two million followers, which echoed the message from his speech saying, “If we have love for our neighbor, we will find the face of Christ in the poor, the weak, the sick and the suffering.”
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