Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Lima (Agenzia Fides) - Beginning today, January 18, and extends until 25 January, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The event, held in Lima, is sponsored by the Commission for Catechesis, for the Biblical Pastoral and for the Indigenous Pastoral - all commissions that belong to the Peruvian Episcopal Conference - along with other Christian denominations.
For seven days the faithful join in prayer, in every community and parish to ask God for the gift of unity and peace. At the end there will be an ecumenical service, on Wednesday, January 25, in Santa Cruz Street in Lima.
The note sent by the Peruvian Episcopal Conference recalls that the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity was born in England in 1908, thanks to an Anglican priest Paul Watson, who called it the "Octave of prayer for the unity of the Church". In 1966 a joint group between the Catholic Church and the Ecumenical Council of Protestant Churches was created, for the preparation of the Week of Prayer. On behalf of the Catholic Church, the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity is in charge of the ecumenical issues and is responsible for the promotion, in within the Catholic Church, of a true ecumenical spirit. At the same time it aims to develop dialogue and cooperation with other Churches and world Communions. In several Latin American countries, the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is celebrated on the occasion of the Pentecost. (CE) (Agenzia Fides 18/01/2012)
