January 18 through the 25th marks the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The week begins with the Confession of St. Peter (Jan 18) and concludes with the Conversion of St. Paul (Jan 25). Here is the theme for this year’s WPCU:
“Do good; seek justice.”
Isaiah 1:17
The theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2023 was selected by the Minnesota Council of Churches, USA in the aftermath of the extrajudicial killing of George Floyd and the trial of the police officer responsible for his death. These events brought anguish, but also time for the Christian communities to contemplate ways in which they may be complicit in racial injustice. Christian unity is needed as a source of reconciliation and unity.
The theme, taken from the first chapter of the Book of Isaiah, reflects his concern for the oppressed who suffer from injustice and inequality fed by hypocrisy that leads to disunity. He teaches that God requires righteousness and justice from all of us, to create the peace and unity that God desires. These virtues originate in God’s love for all, and racism runs counter to this vision. Isaiah’s challenge to do good and seek justice together applies equally to us today.
WPCU 2023 Daily Readings
- Day 1, Learning to do the right thing
- Day 2, When justice is done…
- Day 3, Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly
- Day 4, Look, the tears of the oppressed
- Day 5, Singing the Lord’s song as strangers in the land
- Day 6, Just as you did it to one of the least of these…you did it to me.
- Day 7, “What is now does not have to be”
- Day 8, The justice that restores communion
Access for each day’s reading can be found on the World Council of Church’s website HERE.
Blessings,
Father Dave+