Christian Unity Week

Pope Francis will travel to the Holy Land in May 2014 on a “pilgrimage of prayer” to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the historic meeting on January 5 that took place between Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras. The Pontiff will meet in an ecumenical gathering with representatives of all the Christian churches in Jerusalem, together with Patriarch Bartolomaios of Constantinople, at the Holy Sepulchre. See: http://www.news.va/en/news/following-the-steps-of-paul-vi-to-the-holy-land This spirit of unity in diversity will be experienced worldwide as Christians celebrate the Feast of Easter on the same date— Sunday, April 20—in 2014! Most years, Christians celebrate Easter—Christ’s Passion, Death and Resurrection and the most important mystery of the Christian Faith—on different dates. The OneDate for Easter group believes that uniting the date of Easter will be a significant step towards Christian Peace and Unity. Throughout the year but especially during this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, January 18-25 in the Northern Hemisphere between the feasts of St. Peter and St. Paul, the OneDate for Easter group appeals to the laity to pray for full unity, which is Christ’s Will, and to sign the OneDate for Easter Petition. Clergy from different denominations have also endorsed the OneDate for Easter Petition, which can be viewed at http://www.onedate.org/endorsements.php.   While you can sign it only once, please encourage your family and friends via Twitter and Facebook to sign the Petition online at: www.onedate.org/sign-the-petition.php. Help spread awareness of the Petition on Facebook by linking to this page or sharing it.   Petition Kits are also available for gathering signatures in church parishes and the community. The signatures can then be added to the website at a later date. Anyone requiring assistance in adding the paper signatures to the website can contact unity@onedate.org. Catholics, Orthodox and Protestants have joined together in unity in diversity to gather 1 million signatures on the OneDate for Easter Petition at www.onedate.org to His Holiness Pope Francis, and to all leaders of the Christian churches. “The laity derive the right and duty with respect to the apostolate from their union with Christ their Head. Incorporated into Christ’s Mystical Body through baptism and strengthened by the power of the Holy Spirit through confirmation, they are assigned to the apostolate by the Lord himself.” (Paragraph 3, Apostolate of the Laity, Second Vatican Council) Christ said: “I do not pray for these only, but also for those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one; even as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be in us, so that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.” (Jn 17:20-21 RSV) • Christians worldwide: over 2 billion • Target of OneDate Petition: 1 million signatures • OneDate site: gathered over 27,635 signatures You are being asked to reach out to the over 2 billion Christians in the world through your prayers, and by gathering signatures for the celebration of Easter—on one common date—and to bring full unity to the one Church that Jesus established 2,000 years ago, and heal the wounds caused to Christ’s heart in a mystical way through this division. “I appeal to you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no dissensions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” (1 Cor 1:10 RVS) In recognition of your generous efforts, we thank you. In Christ, www.OneDate.org Download the Petition Kit Facebook Page