“In the first Christian communities, diversity and unity were very present and in tension that had to be resolved at a higher level. And what is more. To advance on the path of faith, we also need ecumenical dialogue with our brothers, sisters and brothers of other Christian denominations and denominations,” Francis recalls in the video message. .
Vatican News
“For the gift of diversity in the Church” is Pope Francis’ prayer intention for January, released in a video message on Monday (01/02).
Like the first Christians
“We must not be afraid of the diversity of gifts in the Church,” stresses Francisco. The diversity of theological gifts, traditions and rituals is a positive thing. It should never be a cause for division. “On the contrary, we must rejoice in experiencing this diversity,” the Pope says in the video message. Afterwards, Francisco recalls:
In early Christian societies, diversity and unity were very present and in tension that had to be resolved at a higher level. Furthermore. To advance on the path of faith, we also need ecumenical dialogue with brothers and sisters of other denominations and Christian communities. Not as something that confuses or disturbs, but as a gift that God gives to the Christian community to grow as one body, the Body of Christ.
The wealth of the Eastern churches
Next, Francis invites us to think, for example, of the Eastern Churches: “They have their own traditions, their own distinctive liturgies, but they preserve the unity of the faith. They strengthen it, they do not divide it.”
In communion with Rome, there are several Eastern churches, such as the Byzantine Catholic Church, the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church or the Melkite Greek Church. Other examples of ritual diversity within Catholicism include the Syro-Malabar Church and the Syro-Malankar Catholic Church, both of which emerged in India; The Maronite Church is of Lebanese origin. The Coptic Catholic Church, of Egyptian origin; Armenian Catholic Church; The Chaldean Church prevailing in Iraq; As well as the Ethiopian-Eritrean Catholic Church and others.
According to the Pope, “If we are guided by the Holy Spirit, richness, variety and variety never give rise to any conflict. The Spirit reminds us that we are, above all, beloved children of God. We are all equal in God's love and we are all different.”
Let us pray to the Holy Spirit to help us recognize the gift of the different charisms in Christian communities and discover the richness of the different liturgical traditions within the Catholic Church.
United before the cross
The guiding theme of the Pope's video this month is the cross, a symbol of unity and diversity: a cross that appears on doors, on mountains, and in churches, to show the richness of the different Christian communities, precisely in their differences. “The cross is not a stake for the Romans, but the tree on which God wrote his gospel,” wrote the poet Alda Merini; It is more than just an object of worship, in short, the mystery of love before which all Christians find themselves, outside their confession, tradition and ritual.
The Pope's video message ends with an image of a huge cross formed by thousands of Christians of different origins, in a metaphorical resumption of the Holy Father's call.
In the Northern Hemisphere, January is marked by the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, which this year is celebrated with the slogan “You shall love the Lord your God…and your neighbor as yourself,” taken from Chapter 10, Verse 27 of the Gospel of Luke.
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