 January 18-25, 2009
“That they may become one in your hand”
(Ezekiel 37:15-19, 22-24a)
Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
Each year during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity our communities of faith gather to express the degree of communion which the churches have already received, and to pray together for the full unity which is Christ's will “that all may be one,” as he and the Father are one. We see this desire for Christian Unity expressed in the text of Ezekiel in which he did not despair but proclaimed a message of hope for the renewal and the unity of God's people, “that they may become one in your hand.”(Ezekiel 37:17)
As we gather once again and pray in the hope of Christian Unity may our actions and prayers embody the true peace, reconciliation, and unity which is to be found where God dwells. For Ezekiel and for our communities of faith this unity is not simply the joining of previously divided groups; it is God's intention for God's people that require conversion and renewal. In this prayer for unity is found the hope that God's people may yet be one.
The Very Rev. Robert B. Flannery,
President
Catholic Association of Diocesan
Ecumenical & Interreligious Officers |
The Rev. Canon David L. Veal,
President
Episcopal Diocesan
Ecumenical Officers |
Dr. Richard L. Hamm, Executive
Administrator
Christian Churches Together in the USA
|
The Rev. Michael Kinnamon,
General Secretary
National Council of Churches of Christ |
Patrice L. Rosner,
Director
Churches Uniting in Christ |
The Rev. Robert Alan Rimbo,
Bishop
Metropolitan New York Synod, ELCA |
|
