Message to member churches and National Council

on WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY 2006
By the General Secretary of Christian Conference of Asia

Peace greetings to all this New Year!

I enjoin you to observe the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity this 18-25 January 2006 with the theme, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them" (Matthew 18:20).

The theme was chosen by a preparatory group in Ireland "to draw attention to Jesus as the source of our unity" and to underline "the simplicity of two or three coming together in Christian mutual love as a vital means of building up relations between divided peoples and communities". The group also knew that "hope for the future, and peace and reconciliation in the present necessarily involved dealing with painful memories and hurtful grievances of the past".

The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is a joint venture since 1968 by the World Council of Churches (WCC) and the Roman Catholic Church. It is traditionally celebrated from 18-25 January, although other dates are sometimes chosen, e.g. around Pentecost in the Southern hemisphere.

For electronic copies of the Week of Prayer resources, please visit the WCC website at:
http://wcc-coe.org/wcc/what/faith/wop2006contents.html.

As for us here in Asia, we have many things to celebrate in terms of our journey into unity as Protestant and Catholic churches. For example, we have ongoing joint programs and reciprocal invitations between the Christian Conference of Asia and the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences. We have had a joint staff meeting of the two organizations and we have also set up an Asian Ecumenical Committee representing the two bodies. In some parts of Asia (e.g. Taiwan and Australia), the Roman Catholic Church is a member of the National Council of Churches.

But the journey into unity is far from over. Here in Asia we need it all the more as Christians must provide a common witness to the one Lord and Savior who called us all into abundant life and to share that life with others. Thus, the work towards unity does not only include our coming together for this week of prayer – but all other efforts we have to help each other, bearing each other’s burden, and being a Christ to one another.

May we venture into this together with the joy and love of Christ!