The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity was observed by the National Commission for Justice and Peace (NCJP), the human rights organization of Pakistan’s Archdiocese of Kara-chi. Celebrated from Jan 18-25 since 1908, this year’s unity week had a special theme of “Abide in my love… You shall bear much fruit” (John 15:17).
The role of the NCJP in the community was highlighted by Christian leaders of different denominations, lawyers and journalists.
Father Saleh Diego, director of the NCJP and vicar general of the Archdiocese of Karachi, said it was the desire of Jesus mentioned in the Bible that “they may be one,” noting that “we must keep in our minds St Paul’s words that we all are different parts of the same body and if there is a pain in any part of our body, our whole body feels it.”
“All Christians, united and bonded in Jesus’ body, must feel the pain of each other and be united. If someone cuts himself, he actually cuts himself from the Body of Christ,” he added.
Kashif Anthony, a rights activist, said the first week of unity was celebrated in the small chapel of Atonement Franciscan Convent of the Episcopal Church, located on a remote hillside outside New York City.
The dates of the week were proposed by Father Paul Watson, co-founder of the Gravmoor Franciscan Friars, keeping in mind the feast of the Confession of St Peter on Jan. 18 and concluding with the feast of the Conversion of St Paul on January 25. “We must keep in our minds and practice ecumenism in our lives in which Christians belonging to different denominations work together and develop closer relationships and promote Christian unity among their churches,” Anthony said.