A large number of people from Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Christian communities in the Madison area gathered together at Our Lady Queen of Peace Church in Madison for an Ecumenical Thanksgiving Prayer Service on the evening of November 21.
Tag: ecumenism
Observing the week of prayer for Christian unity
The theme for the 2021 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18 to January 25) is “Abide in my Love. You shall Bear Much Fruit.”
This theme finds its origin in John’s gospel (cf. John 15:5-9). In Jesus’ time, important people often shared what was important to them in a farewell discourse. In chapters 14-17 of John’s gospel, Christ’s farewell discourse shows that unity is important to Him.
Bishop Barron’s comments on Luther found ‘confusing, disturbing’
To the editor:
This letter is in response to Bishop Robert Barron’s article, “Looking at Luther with Fresh Eyes,” in your June 29, 2017 issue.
Bishop Barron’s comments, based on a book he had read on Martin Luther, were confusing and disturbing. In the article’s descriptions of Luther’s “experience of grace,” his “love affair,” and his “ecstatic experience,” the seriousness of Luther’s harmful effect on countless souls was minimized. Bishop Barron even seemed to conclude that both the criticism and the celebration of Luther’s solas could simultaneously be appropriate, thus helping to pave the way for ecumenism.
Praying and working for Christian unity
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity will be held from January 18 to 25 this year.
Its theme is “Has Christ Been Divided?” This theme is based upon 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, where St. Paul — angry over divisions in the Corinthian Church — wrote, “Each of you is saying ‘I belong to Paul,’ or ‘I belong to Apollos’ or ‘I belong to Kephas’ or ‘I belong to Christ.’ Is Christ divided?”