Improving the unity of Christians today requires the same elements
that united the first apostles in Jerusalem, Pope Benedict XVI said Jan.
19.
Pope Benedict met with pilgrims to Rome in the Vatican's Paul VI Hall
for his weekly general audience. In observation of the annual Week of
Prayer for Christian Unity (Jan. 18-25), he based his message on "the
gift of full communion."
Christians take part in the week of prayer for unity "to bear witness
to the profound ties that unite them and to invoke the gift of full
communion," said the Pope.
"They devoted themselves to the Apostles' teaching and fellowship, to
the breaking of bread and the prayers" is the theme of this year's
prayer week for the unity of Christians.
Pope Benedict said that this
passage from the Acts of the Apostles offers a vision of four
characteristics that defined the first Christian community in Jerusalem
"as a place of unity and love."
In the teaching of the apostles, in fraternal communion, in the
breaking of bread and in prayer are four "pillars" that continue to be
the foundation of Christian life and build Church unity, he explained.
Every effort to increase unity must involve increased faithfulness to
the teaching of the first Christians, the apostles, the Pope said.
"Even today," he explained, "the community of believers recognizes the
norms of its own faith in that reference to the teaching of the
Apostles."
Fraternal communion was "the most tangible expression of unity
between disciples and the Lord, especially for the outside world," he
pointed out.
Although it has not been without difficulty, the history of relations
between Christians of all types is one of "fraternity, of co-operation
and of human and spiritual sharing," he said.
The Pope moved to the third characteristic, the "breaking of bread,"
calling it the "pinnacle" of man's union with God. As a way of unifying
oneself with Christ's sacrifice, he said, "it also represents the
completeness of the unity of Christ's disciples, full communion."
Christians' prayers take on a "penitential dimension" when one
considers that at this moment it is impossible to share the Body of
Christ with all Christians in the Eucharist, the Pope said.
He encouraged a "more generous commitment" to eventually bring
Christians together in full communion, "breaking the Eucharistic bread
and drinking from the same chalice."
The final "pillar," he said, is that of prayer. It means being open
to the fraternity offered to Christians as the children of God, but also
"it means being ready for forgiveness and reconciliation," he
explained.
The Pope called for a "powerful witness" rooted in spirituality and
supported by reason to be shared by all, as a message to those seeking
clear points of reference in today's world.
He underscored the importance of a constant increase in mutual love
and an effort to overcome the difficulties that remain for full
communion.
"We must collaborate as much as possible, working together on
outstanding questions and, above all, being aware that we need the
Lord's help on this journey," concluded the Pope.
"He must still help us
a lot because without Him, alone, without 'abiding in Him', we can do
nothing."
At the end of his general audience, the Pope met with members of the
Italian association "Figli in paradiso: ali tra cielo e terra" (Children
in paradise: wings between heaven and earth) which brings together
members of families in which children have died.
"Do not let yourselves be overcome with desolation and despair," the
Pope said. "Rather, transform your suffering into hope, as Mary did at
the foot of the cross."
He also encouraged young people "to calculate risks and to act at all
times with prudence and a sense of responsibility, especially when
driving a motor vehicle, in order to protect your own lives and those of
others.”
SIC: CNA/INT'L