wfn.org | Week of Prayer For Christian Unity Theme Announced

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11-December-1998 
98373 
 
    Week of Prayer For Christian Unity 
    Theme For Year 2000 Announced 
 
    by John W. Newbury 
    World Council of Churches Office of News and Information 
 
GENEVA-Churches from the region where Christianity began have provided the 
theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in the year 2000.  The 
annual observance will be Jan. 18-25. 
 
    In 2000 the world will look back to the past millennium and forward to 
the next. Appropriately, the Week of Prayer text for that year is based on 
a draft prepared by a local ecumenical committee with members from four 
"families" of churches which belong to the Middle East Council of Churches 
- the Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic and Reformed churches. 
 
    Archbishop Paul Matar, president of the Ecumenical Commission of the 
Assembly of Patriarchs and Catholic Bishops of Lebanon, coordinated the 
work of the local ecumenical committee. 
 
    The theme for 2000 - "Blessed be God ... who has blessed us in Christ" 
(Ephesians 1:3) - comes from a part of St. Paul's letter to the Ephesians 
which gives thanks for all that God has given in the past and proclaims 
Jesus Christ as the basis of Christian hope for the future. 
 
    The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity texts for 2000 explore Ephesians 
1:3-14, where Paul reflects on basic Christian themes such as praise, 
forgiveness, salvation, sanctification and hope. 
 
    Materials for 2000 will be available in February 1999 and will include 
a theological and pastoral introduction, a proposed ecumenical worship 
service, and a selection of Bible readings and commentary for the Week, as 
well as prayers from the Middle East and an account of the local ecumenical 
situation. 
 
    Based on the proposal from the Middle East ecumenical committee, the 
worship service marking the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2000 
concludes with an Oriental Easter tradition of taking lighted candles from 
the church into the world outside to mark the light of Christ going out 
into the world. 
 
    As always, the materials and suggestions for the Week of Prayer for 
Christian Unity are intended to be adapted to local circumstances. 
 
    The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity has evolved from several 
Anglican, Protestant and Roman Catholic initiatives in the first half of 
this century.  Beginning from draft texts proposed by a local ecumenical 
committee from a specific region of the world, an international group 
finalizes arrangements for the theme and supporting material.  The group, 
which works a year and a half in advance, is made up of representatives 
appointed by the Commission on Faith and Order of the 
World Council of Churches and the Vatican's Pontifical Council for 
Promoting Christian Unity. 
 
    Though the traditional date for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 
is Jan.18-25, some celebrate the Week around Pentecost, which is a symbolic 
date for the unity of the church. Prayer for unity is, of course, not 
limited to one week a year, and churches are urged to plan common prayer 
and other ecumenical events throughout the year. 
 
    The theme for the 1999 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 1999 is 
"He will dwell with them as their God, they will be his people" (Rev. 
21:3).  Draft texts were prepared by the Council of 
Churches in Malaysia. 

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