By James Loughran, SA
The prayers, reflections and theme for the 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity were developed by the ecumenical monastic community of Bose in northern Italy. This community of predominately lay women and lay men has several monasteries in Italy by approval of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Italy and invites all Christians to retreats and participation in the Benedictine tradition of prayer and work. The theme and texts were the result of meetings at Bose with representatives of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches and the Holy See’s Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity in the autumn of 2023.
In 2025, the whole Church commemorates the 1,700th anniversary of the first Ecumenical Council of the entire church at that time, called by the Emperor Constantine at Nicaea (presently in the country of Turkey) in the early summer of 325. Aside from important disciplinary agreements, such as a common date for Easter, the Council discussed and debated orthodoxy of doctrine, especially about what Christians believe about the nature of God as Trinity and the two natures, human and divine, of Jesus Christ. The result was an agreed upon Creed, what we today call the Nicene Creed.
The church had just a little over a decade before been able to emerge from three centuries of official persecution and martyrdom. Roman authorities, starting in the East, allowed religious freedom beginning in 313. It is important to note that the Armenian church, outside of the Roman Empire, was recognized in 301. That Church participated in Nicaea and agreed with the outcomes. Within the Empire, particularly between the great apostolic patriarchies of Alexandria and Antioch, disparities in Christology were leading to excommunications and divisions, especially in the rivalry between St. Athanasius and Arius. The common doctrine achieved was a significant milestone in Christian unity.
It is only appropriate then, in remembering this event of common confession, that Christians today may celebrate that which unites them. Spiritual ecumenism, according to Vatican II, is the “soul” of the ecumenical movement. It is our common faith in the Risen Christ that brings us together for prayer. In turn, the prayer itself is effective in nourishing and confirming our unity.
In the year of 2025, all Christians East and West will have a common date for Easter, something Nicaea tried most seriously to settle. In 2025, Easter will be celebrated on April 20.
The approved text of the Creed used the first-person plural, “We believe…” This form emphasized the expression of a common belonging. The Creed was divided into three parts dedicated to the three persons of the Trinity, followed by a conclusion condemning affirmations that were considered heretical. The text of the Creed was revised and expanded at the Council of Constantinople in 381, where the condemnations were removed. This is the form of the profession of faith that Christian churches today recognize as the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed, often referred to simply as the Nicene Creed.
The Creed is the Christian “symbol” of agreed doctrine and its commemoration is a time of reflection on why we Christians remain divided. The community of Bose recommended going farther than a compendium of beliefs. When Christians confess this common faith, what is the gift of this faith? What is its end or telos?
The biblical theme chosen comes from the Gospel of John. In the 11th chapter, we are presented with the story of the raising of Lazarus, the last of the so-called signs of glory of Jesus before he enters Jerusalem. Jesus loved Lazarus and his sisters Martha and Mary. They were dear friends who showed Jesus complete hospitality. He, in turn, confided his joy in visiting with them to take a rest from the mission of announcing the Kingdom.
As we read the story, Jesus appears concerned about the sickness of Lazarus, but resists visiting him right away. Jesus knows he can heal Lazarus, but what about something even more significant to challenge the norms of human wisdom? How could Jesus more dramatically demonstrate the power of the Son of Man in initiating a new age and relationship between humanity and God?
When Jesus appears, he sees everyone mourning and weeping. After all, death was the end, according to human wisdom. Martha runs up to Jesus and expresses at once both her faith and her disappointment, “If you had been here, my brother would not have died.” She cannot imagine another way out of the situation. Jesus tells her, “Your brother will rise.” Still not quite understanding, Martha retorts that she knows he will rise at the general resurrection of the dead, at the end of time. Jesus announces the truth of the new Covenant to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, even if they die, will live. Those that believe in me will never die.” He invites a response from Martha when he says, “Do you believe this?”
Martha then makes the confession of faith, “I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the one coming into the world.” What is the result of this affirmation of belief? Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, contradicting the ultimate fear of every human being that death conquers us. Instead, faith in Jesus conquers death.
This theme, by offering a way to see that faith is not just a static set of beliefs, but an active means of receiving grace, is most appropriate for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2025. If faith can raise the dead and conquer all fear, surely faith will bring us the miracle of unity as Christians. Remembering that division, separation and rejection are symptoms of sin, the healing of the Church comes about in the power of the Holy Spirit. We pray knowing to whom it is we pray, as one community. God wills us to reconcile. God wills us to love one another. God will give those who profess the faith of Martha, of Nicaea and of all the holy ones who have gone before us, the precious gift of unity.