January 18-25 is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity each year. This week, the Ecumenical Trends Journal of the Graymoor Ecumenical and Interreligious Institute (a ministry of the Franciscan Friars of Atonement) published an essay by Rev. Terri Hord Owens entitled, We Must Begin With Love: Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Unity Grounded in Justice. The Friars are also sponsoring daily prayers Jan. 18-25 via their Facebook page.
An excerpt:
“As we pray for unity, we must remember that we will not be able to live in unity without grounding what we believe, who we are, and how we engage the world in that commandment to abide in this limitless love of God,
revealed through Jesus Christ, to which Jesus commands us to be faithful. Unity is a gift from God, yes, but it requires that we live into it, making space in ourselves for it. Unity is not a state of total agreement, but rather a state of honoring all that we each are. If we believe in God, we must acknowledge God’s limitless love for all beings, a love that defines who God is.”
Read the article in the journal