2009-01-26 15:05:58

Pope says conversion is prerequisite for communion


(January 26, 2009) Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday led a celebration of vespers in the afternoon at Rome’s Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls to mark the close of the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Jan 18-25. In his homily he held up the conversion of St. Paul as a model for Christians on the road to full unity, saying "Unity in fact requires a conversion," – conversion from division to communion, from broken unity to healed and full unity. The Pontiff proposed that conversion implies two dimensions: recognizing our faults and repenting, and recognizing that this new road "cannot come from us." "Conversion demands our yes, my 'pursuit'; it is not ultimately my activity, but a gift, a letting ourselves be formed by Christ…” he said. The Pope reflected on the theme of this year’s Week of Prayer, “That they may become one in your hand”, taken from the Book of Ezekiel. Proposed by an ecumenical group from South Korea the theme also reflects the yearning for unity between North and South Korea. In this regard, the Pope said the week has also been "intercession for the different situations of conflict that afflict humanity at present." He particularly mentioned the Holy Land where he said the local faithful as well as visitors can offer “a witness to everyone that diversity of rites and traditions need not be an obstacle to mutual respect and to fraternal charity." Reflecting on Saturday’s 50th anniversary of the convocation of the Second Vatican Council by Pope John XXIII, Pope Benedict said that the great council also gave a fundamental contribution to ecumenism, through the decree 'Unitatis Redintegratio.'"







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