(Vatican Radio) On Saturday, January 25th, Pope Francis will preside at
ecumenical Vespers in the Basilica of St Paul Outside the Walls with members of the
many different Christian Churches present here in Rome. The celebration marks the
closing of the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity which has been exploring
the theme, taken from St Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, “Has Christ been
divided?” Throughout the week, clergy and congregations have been preaching and worshipping
in different churches, attending conferences and discussions on the ecumenical dialogues
and praying for the Holy Spirit’s guidance in the search for healing and unity among
all Christ’s followers. Following a celebration of the Word at Rome’s Centro Pro
Unione for ecumenical dialogue and formation, Philippa Hitchen spoke with Rev Mary
Styles, an assistant curate at All Saints Anglican parish to find out more about the
ministry of healing people and communities ……
Listen:
Mary explains
that her first career was in medicine and her great passion was healing people. After
coming to Rome 13 years ago, she felt a calling from God to work for the Church, but
she still sees healing as central to her new ministry, a fulfillment of her original
calling in medicine....
All Saints Church, she says, holds a monthly healing
service, a simple Eucharistic liturgy which includes the laying on of hands, prayers
for healing and annointing with oils.....
Healing, she says, is also the essence
of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity because it is connected to the need to listen
to the call and the encounter with Jesus.....In Paul's letter to the Corinthians that
we've been focused on this week, the Apostle thanks God for the gifts which Our Lord
gives to the Church......if we used better those gifts to edify each other, rathan
than keeping them for ourselves, that would lead to the healing of the Christian community