Christian unity through prayer draws the world to Christ: Tobin
“Please pray with me and with your brothers and sisters that we may be one, even as the Father is one with Jesus so that the world may believe,” says Cardinal Joseph W. Tobin, C.Ss.R., Archbishop of Newark, in a new video reflecting on the International Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has a history of over 100 years, in which Christians around the world have taken part in an octave of prayer for visible Christian unity, according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. By annually observing the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Christians move toward the fulfillment of Jesus’ prayer at the Last Supper “that they all may be one.” (cf. John 17:21)
These eight days have been dedicated by Christian churches to beg God for the grace of healing the wounds that have divided the church, says Cardinal Tobin. The unity of Christians is also an invitation to those who do not know Jesus Christ to come to believe, he adds.
Each year, the World Council of Churches, with the cooperation of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, sponsors this annual observance from Jan. 18-25, the latter date being the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. This year’s theme and prayer has been shaped by the Middle East Council of Christian Churches, with this text: “We saw the star in the East, and we came to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2).
“This is a reminder of the existence of Christian communities in the lands where the Gospel was first heard and took root – despite continuing hardships in the present,” said Father Luke A. Edelen, O.S.B., chair of the Commission for Christian Unity for the Archdiocese of Newark.
Although for a second year, due to COVID-19, the service must be virtual, the commission wishes to remind all the clergy, religious, and faithful of the Local Church of the opportunity to unite with all the disciples of the Lord Jesus around the world in their varied churches and bodies and traditions, in prayer together with our Redeemer in his own prayer: “that they might be one, Father . . . that the world may believe.” (John 17:21)
To that end, the commission is promoting two initiatives, both prepared by the Graymoor Ecumenical and Interreligious Institute of the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement.
The first is the use of the daily Scripture readings, reflections, and prayers found here: Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2022.
The second is the recorded version of the USA adaptation of the service for 2022, as prepared by the Graymoor Institute.
They can be used individually or in groups (where such are possible) as a means of uniting with all the Christians who are praying intentionally with their one Lord for the gift He entreated the Father on the night before He died, said Father Luke.
Featured image: This year’s theme and prayer for the 2022 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has been shaped by the Middle East Council of Christian Churches, with this text: “We saw the star in the East, and we came to worship him.” (Matthew 2:2). (Image courtesy of Graymoor Ecumenical & Interreligious Institute)
