January 18 marked the first day of the 126th Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Pope Leo XIV celebrated the inaugural day of this week by diving into the theme of this year's prayer.
POPE LEO
This year’s theme is drawn from Saint Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians: “There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling.” The prayers and reflections were prepared by an ecumenical group coordinated by the Armenian Apostolic Church’s Department of Interchurch Relations. During these days, I invite all Catholic communities to deepen their prayers for the full, visible unity of all Christians
But where did the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity come from, and what exactly does “Christian unity” mean in this context?
The 19th and 20th centuries saw a rise of interest in Christian unity among several Christian denominations. What would eventually become known as the ecumenical movement gained traction in the U.K. and the United States, with
popular Pentecostal, Anglican, and Catholic preachers encouraging prayer for unity among the severed branches of Christianity.
POPE LEO XIV
The origins of this initiative date back two centuries, and Pope Leo XIII strongly encouraged it.
Perhaps the most primary figure of the movement was Reverend Paul Wattson, an Anglican preacher, who started the Octave of Christian Unity in 1908 to engage all Christians in conversation and prayer for unity. Rev. Wattson then converted to Catholicism in 1909 and was ordained a priest in 1910.
Later, during the Second Vatican Council, Unitatis Redintegratio, or the Decree on Ecumenism, emphasized the need of prayer in the ecumenical conversation and encouraged a week of prayer dedicated to Christian unification
And this year, the prayers and reflections of the week are simple.
“Unity is a divine mandate at the core of our Christian identity, more than simply an ideal. It represents the essence of the Church’s calling – a call to reflect the harmonious oneness of our life in Christ amidst our diversity.”
Pope Leo XIV repeated similar messages during his first papal trip to Lebanon and Turkey.
POPE LEO XIV
We are all invited to overcome the scandal of divisions that, unfortunately, still exist, and to nurture the desire for unity for which the Lord Jesus prayed and gave His life. The more reconciled we are, the more we Christians can give a credible witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The reflections of this year's Week of Prayer for Christian Unity encourage all of the faithful to see reconciliation, not just as a pleasant possibility, but one of the fundamental callings of the Christian life.
CRT
