Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
2023 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity - January 18 – 25
Theme: Do good; seek justice
A sudden reversal - a young mother, a PSW in Toronto, was nearly separated from her child, until she went public about her possible deportation and garnered a multitude of supporters. Today, January 7, Faftumah Najjuma has won her right for permanent residency in Canada. Such good news not only for this little family but for the energy rallying for systemic change.
Do good; seek justice - These basic values and actions are essential in all human relationships.
Christians who may have signed Faftumah’s petition or stood strong with her cause can’t be identified in the crowd or on the petition. But standing with and seeking justice are essential to the gospel of Jesus.
“standing with and seeking justice are essential to the gospel of Jesus. ”
From January 18 – 25 we will be praying for Christian unity and reflecting on the theme: Do good; seek justice. We may routinely align with a specific faith community, sometimes follow different liturgical calendars, or find our preference in different styles of Christian music, but our common call is the gospel. May the intention of this week of focused prayer move us locally to seek together the ways of justice.
“God is leading us in the path of unity through our acts of justice”
A perusal of websites of our denominational churches shows how God is leading us in the path of unity through our acts of justice. Let’s celebrate this spark of light, knowing that the long haul of unity is graced with the many steps of collaboration.
Sister Loretta Manzara, CSJ
What if Homelessness is just not an option?
Entering A New Year
Coming to the end of 2022 and preparing to enter a new year of 2023, I was struck by a recent quote from the Daily Reflections of Richard Rohr. He wrote, what is, is the great teacher. A few wonderings came to mind around my responsibility and how I am being called to respond to what it is that is my great teacher today. What is it that I am to learn from these wonderings?
Image: Unsplash/Max Kukurudziak
On the global stage there has been a deepening awareness of oneness with our Ukrainian neighbors. Many of the world powers are sending food and necessities of life as well as the needed armaments to repel the daily attacks on innocent people. In Canada, our country is welcoming Ukrainian women and children and providing safe accommodations, education and emotional support. These expressions of kindness call me to also look at other folks, such as refugees and immigrants from Afghanistan, Somalia, Haiti, Syria, who are also called neighbor. I hope that my small effort in welcoming a single mother and her young son to our transition home will lead to a lasting and long- term friendship.
Image: Unsplash/Matt Collamer
There is the growing concern for safety and well-being of the unhoused. These homeless people live rough in our city parks and on vacant public land. The homeless phenomena are visible in every city in our province and even in small towns. Contrary to what is often spoken or printed in our newspapers, homelessness is not a personal choice. Even I know someone who is one paycheck away from living on the street or in a shelter where she does not feel safe. I realize that solving this crisis will take time and energy on the part of committed citizens in many cities. However, I believe I am being called to see without judgment the person standing in front of me. Stopping for a small encounter or a chat might be welcomed and allow that person to feel connected with another human being even if only for a moment.
“I believe I am being called to see without judgment the person standing in front of me.”
Oftentimes, many of us say or have heard others use the phrase, it is what it is, trying to put into words a response to situations that are happening personally or globally. Entering into the new year of 2023, could we attend to the question what is this event or situation trying to teach me?
Sister Ann MacDonald, CSJ
UN Biodiversity Conference in Montreal, Canada
Today was the first full day of meetings at COP 15, an international meeting of 196 countries working toward an agreement on biodiversity protection — a ten-year plan.
What’s biodiversity?
Image: Unsplash/Sonika Agarwal
Biodiversity is the term used for the wide variety of living things on earth — everything from bacteria and fungi to insects, rodents, birds, fish, mammals and more. The complex relationship formed between different life-forms is what enables ecosystems to flourish.
Why does it matter?
All life-forms depend on healthy ecosystems to survive, from the oxygen we breathe to the food we eat. But earth’s ecosystems are under threat due, in part, from biodiversity loss caused by human patterns of economic activity like cutting down forests, clearing wetlands for things like housing and highways, and drilling for mines in ways that strain species in the area.
What are some of the issues the delegates are grappling with?
Here are a two:
Around the world, Indigenous peoples are playing a critical role in protecting biodiversity. But they are also in endless disputes to get title to their traditional lands. Indigenous advocates and their allies are pushing for language about Indigenous rights and title to be included in the COP 15 agreement.
Another issue concerns nature-based solutions to biodiversity loss. One of the key questions for our global human community is: How can we shift economic patterns so that hundreds of billions of dollars will flow toward protecting land, water and earth species rather than making billions by extracting raw materials from nature?
There is much to figure out but the world must move forward. As a youth delegate said this morning, “The dysfunctional status quo is not acceptable.”
Sue Wilson, CSJ | Office for Systemic Justice | Federation of Sisters of St. Joseph in Canada