As Catholics and Anglicans pray and work for the day when they can celebrate the Eucharist together, they are called to support one another in situations of suffering, apologize together for times when they have sinned and work together to share the good news of God’s love, said bishops from both communities.

Pairs of Catholic and Anglican bishops from 27 nations traveled to Rome Jan. 22-25 and to Canterbury, England, Jan. 26-29 for prayer, discussion and a commissioning by Pope Francis and Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury.

The pilgrimage was organized by the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, a body established in 2001 to promote common prayer and joint projects to demonstrate concretely how the theological agreements the churches have made also have practical implications in witnessing together to the Christian faith.

A final statement drafted by participants was posted Feb. 1 [at IARCCUM.org] and on the websites of the Anglican Communion and the Vatican Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity.
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This letter was sent by Pope Francis on Feb. 2 to Karma Ben Johanan, who teaches at the department of comparative religion at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Dr. Ben Johanan was the coordinator of the open letter to the pope from more than 400 Jewish rabbis and scholars last November.

Dear brothers and sisters,

We are experiencing a moment of great travail. Wars and divisions are increasing all over the world. We are truly, as I said some time ago, in the midst of a sort of “piecemeal world war”, with serious consequences on the lives of many populations.

Unfortunately, even the Holy Land has not been spared this pain, and since October 7 it too has been cast into a spiral of unprecedented violence. My heart is torn at the sight of what is happening in the Holy Land, by the power of so much division and so much hatred.
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The bishops of the ‘Growing Together’ ecumenical summit have travelled from Rome to Canterbury for the second phase of their programme. The summit coincided with the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity and run from January 22-29.

Meeting in Anglican and Catholic bishop pairs, it has been a week seasoned with themes of friendship, conversation and journeying together.

The bishops have explored the importance of listening and learning from one another, celebrating what they have in common and how faith traditions can work together as partners in the gospel.

This sense of partnership was celebrated most significantly on January 25, when Pope Francis and the Archbishop of Canterbury commissioned the bishops in joint mission, during Vespers, at the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, the church of Saint Paul Outside The Walls.
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Divided Christians will draw closer to one another only by loving God and loving their neighbours, serving one another and not pointing fingers in blame for past faults, Pope Francis said.

Closing the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity with an evening prayer service Jan. 25 at Rome’s Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, Francis was joined by Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury and, at the end of the service, the two commissioned pairs of Anglican and Catholic bishops from 27 countries to “bear witness together to the hope that does not deceive and to the unity for which our Savior prayed.”

Members of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches, who were meeting in Rome, also participated along with representatives of Orthodox, Protestant and Anglican communities in Italy.

In his homily, Francis reflected on the theme for the 2024 celebration of the week of prayer: “You shall love the Lord your God … and your neighbour as yourself” from Luke 10:27.

The passage comes from a Gospel story in which a scholar of the law asks Jesus what he must do to inherit eternal life. After Jesus affirms the need to love God and one’s neighbour, the scholar asks, “And who is my neighbour?”
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Aujourd’hui, en la mémoire liturgique de saint François de Sales, et avec l’approbation du Conseil permanent, la Commission épiscopale pour la justice et la paix de la Conférence des évêques catholiques du Canada (CECC) publie une lettre pastorale sur l’utilisation des médias sociaux intitulée : « Que vos paroles soient toujours bienveillantes ».

Reconnaissant le rôle prépondérant des médias sociaux au niveau individuel et sociétal, cette lettre pastorale opportune examine les avantages et les dangers des médias sociaux dans la perspective de l’enseignement social de l’Église catholique. Elle fournit des outils de réflexion morale et d’auto-examen, et propose sept engagements qui doivent guider une utilisation plus éthique des médias sociaux.
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Today, on the liturgical memorial of Saint Francis de Sales, and with the approval of the Permanent Council, the Episcopal Commission for Justice and Peace of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) releases its Pastoral Letter on the use of social media titled: “Let Your Speech Always Be Gracious.”

Acknowledging the prominent role social media has come to play at an individual and societal level, this timely Pastoral Letter considers the benefits and dangers of social media from the perspective of Catholic Social Teaching. It provides tools for moral reflection and self-examination, and suggests seven commitments by which to be guided for a more ethical use of social media.
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A World Council of Churches (WCC) conference in 2025 in Egypt is to gather major Christian traditions to explore how churches can call each other to visible unity, inspired by the experiences of the early church, according to one of the key planners of the event.

The gathering – the Sixth World Conference on Faith and Order – will mark the anniversary of the world’s first Ecumenical Council, the Council of Nicaea of 325, a key moment in the history of Christian faith.

In a WCC video interview, the Rev. Prof. Dr Sandra Beardsall, moderator of the Nicaea 2025 steering group of the WCC’s Commission on Faith and Order, reflects on the significance of the Council of Nicaea and the inspiration it provides for the World Conference.

“Nicaea was the very first Council that brought together Christians from all around the world to meet together, to make decisions,” says Beardsall in the interview with Dr Stephen Brown, editor of the WCC’s journal, The Ecumenical Review.
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A major leap forward in Christian unity began with an embrace, as Pope Francis recalled.

St. Paul VI and Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras I of Constantinople met, and embraced, in Jerusalem in January 1964 and the following year they lifted the mutual excommunications their churches had issued in 1054.

Pope Francis marked the anniversary during his Angelus address Jan. 6, 2024 telling a crowd in St. Peter’s Square that the two leaders had broken down “a wall of incommunicability that had kept Catholics and Orthodox apart for centuries. Let us learn from the embrace of those two great men of the church on the path to Christian unity: praying together, walking together, working together.”

The praying, walking and working will be highlighted Jan. 18-25 as Christians around the world celebrate the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
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Praying together with other Christians and even with members of other faiths has become so common over the past half century, it’s easy to forget earlier practice.

Archbishop Gilles Ouellet, a former chair of the CCCB’s Ecumenism Commission, talked about his experience in the Eastern Townships of Quebec. His father was a town councillor, and in this capacity took the young Gilles with him to attend the funeral of a prominent Protestant citizen. As they were entering the church, he recalled his father saying that they were attending the funeral “because it’s the right thing to do.” However, Archbishop Gilles was to remember that he was not to pray in that church.
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