The Annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity takes place from 18th to 25th January.

It extends an invitation to draw upon this shared Christian heritage and to delve more deeply into our fellowship in Christ, which unites Christians worldwide.

This year it takes Ephesians 4 v 1-13 as its central text which includes the words, “There is one body
and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling.” (Ephesians 4:4).

Paul’s epistles stress the importance of unity within the Church, urging us to live lives worthy of our calling with humility, gentleness, patience and love (Ephesians 4:1-3).

Ephesians 4:4 summarises the teachings of Paul about unity, emphasising here, too, that the followers of Christ represent “one body and one Spirit”, united in a single hope.

This metaphor signifies the Church as a unified entity transcending barriers of geography, nationality, ethnicity and tradition. Paul uses the metaphor of the Church being the Body of Christ to describe its unity within the diversity of its members.