YOU ARE WITNESSES OF THESE THINGS

The words "you are witnesses of these things" come to us as part of Christ's final words before his ascension and form part of what we call the Great Commission.  


January 18th through 25th is what we have come to know as the "week of prayer for unity among Christians" and following these final words of Jesus this years theme is "Witnessing to Christ Today".  The following information is taken from the resources provided on the website: www.oikoumene.org entitled "The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity".  


Also please note that there is a link on the right hand side of our blog which will take you to the World Council of Churches resource inviting you to participate in a prayer circle.  


Enjoy!!


FROM "The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity"  ...



... From Jerusalem, Jesus sent the apostles to be his witnesses “till the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).
In their mission, they encountered many and rich languages and civilisations and started
proclaiming the gospel and celebrating the Eucharist in these many languages. As a consequence,
Christian life and liturgy acquired many faces and expressions that enrich and complete each
other. From early times, all these Christian traditions and churches wanted to be present together
with the local church in Jerusalem, the birthplace of the Church. They felt the need to have a
praying and serving community in the land where the history of salvation unfolded, and around
the places where Jesus lived, exercised his ministry and suffered his passion, thus entering into
his paschal mystery of death and resurrection. In this way the church in Jerusalem became a
living image of the diversity and richness of the many Christian traditions in the East and the
West. Every visitor or pilgrim in Jerusalem is, in the first place, invited to discover these various
and rich traditions.


Unfortunately, in the course of history and for various reasons, this beautiful diversity has also
become a source for divisions. These divisions are even more painful in Jerusalem, since this is
the very place where Jesus prayed “that they all may be one” (John 17:21), where he died “to
gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad” (John 11:52), and where the first
Pentecost took place. However, at the same time, it must be said that not a single one of these
divisions has its origin in Jerusalem. They were all brought to Jerusalem by the already divided
churches. As a consequence, almost all the churches around the world bear their part of the
responsibility for the divisions of the church of Jerusalem and therefore are also called to work
for its unity together with the local churches.


... What is also significant is that the church in Jerusalem continues to live in a political climate that
is in many ways similar to the life of the early Christian community. Palestinian Christians have
become a small minority facing serious challenges that threaten their future in many ways, while
they are longing for freedom, human dignity, justice, peace and security.
In the midst of all of this, the Christians of the Jerusalem churches address their brothers and
sisters around the world through this week of prayer for Christian unity to pray with them and for
them in order to reach their aspirations for freedom, and dignity and the end of all kind of human
oppression. The Church lifts up its voice in prayer to God in anticipation and hope for itself and
the world so that we all may be one in our faith, in our witness, and in our love.