Communication on January 11, 2008
* Message for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
The Most Rev. Hyginus Kim Hee-joong, President of the CBCK Committee for Promoting Christian Unity & Interreligious Dialogue, issued a message for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (January 18-25, 2008) and urged the faithful to pray for Christian unity incessantly, saying "'Prayer' is an integral part of Christian life and a foundation of communal life in the Church built by Christ."
In the message entitled "Pray without ceasing" (1Thess 5:13-18), he said, "Prayer that joins Jesus' prayer for unity in the Holy Spirit can be the starting point of authentic spiritual ecumenism." He stressed, "Christian unity does not depend on verifying who is responsible for our division, but begins with prayers in which we entrust ourselves to the Holy Spirit, confessing together 'one Lord, one faith, one baptism' (Eph 4:5)."
In addition, Bishop Kim asserted, "Our own minds and hearts are shaped by prayer as we seek opportunities to translate that prayer into practice." Then he appealed the faithful to meditate on and make efforts for ecumenism, saying "Prayer for Christian unity leads all Christians called for the glory of God to recognize how our reality of division reality is contrary to His will."