CHRISTIANS who pray together, stay together. That's the hope behind a citywide festival of prayer which begins today and continues for seven evenings.
"It's a corporate act of unity that can speak loudly to what can be," explains Rev. Luis Melo, director of ecumenical and inter-religious affairs for the Archdiocese of St. Boniface. "We look at what unites us more than what divides."
Rev. Robert Polz (left) and Rev. Luis Melo with cross that will go to various churches.
The week begins with an ecumenical service involving church leaders of several denominations. A different denomination hosts the prayer service each night.
The services are based on materials prepared by Christians in South Africa and distributed jointly by the Roman Catholic Church and the World Council of Churches, which together represent 1.5 billion Christians.
Wooden cross
A wooden cross decorated in colours representing South Africa will be moved from church to church as an unifying visual symbol, says Melo.
Winnipeg's festival of prayer offers an opportunity for believers to visit other denominations and to celebrate differences as well as commonalities, says Melo.
"We can be so busy with the local church that we forget about the bigger picture," says Melo, who also teaches at St. Paul's College at the University of Manitoba. "So this week we have time out to look at that bigger picture, that God is one, and that the words to proclaim our belief need to include action."
Ecumenism is broadly defined as Christians working together for visible unity, which can mean co-operation between churches at a local, denominational, or international level, explains Rev. Paul Johnson, who works in ecumenical relations for the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada.
"What you can do is invite people to be part of a wider vision, that we're all part of the body of Christ, and there's only one body."
Working together formally and informally is crucial for the Christian church to be effective in a pluralistic, diverse world, says the Winnipeg-based president of the Canadian Council of Churches.
"I am pretty much convince in this third millennium of Christianity there won't be effective evangelism without ecumenism, there won't be effective interfaith dialogue without ecumenism, there won't be effect social justice without ecumenism," explains James Christie, whose day job is dean of theology at the University of Winnipeg.
brenda@suderman.com
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