United in ChristSample

Pope Frances Letter to John 17 Gathering held on October 24, 2017 in Phoenix, Arizona

Vatican, October 2, 2017

Dear beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, may grace and peace be yours in abundance! 

I rejoice to hear that on October 24 you are gathering together again to worship our one and only Savior and Lord Jesus Christ and to strengthen one another in the path of unity and reconciliation that you have undertaken. 

During your visit, here in Rome, I was blessed to listen to you tell of the encouraging developments in your journey, to celebrate Pentecost together, and to observe the degree of brotherly friendship that has come to exist among you. 

My prayer is that the testimony of your lives may draw many others to Christ and that your experience of fellowship may inspire an ever-increasing number of Evangelicals, Pentecostals, and Catholics to rediscover one another, coming together in a mutually redemptive walk of reconciliation. Our desire is to continue to practice and promote an ecumenism based on the unity of the Spirit. This will increasingly bring all of us to free ourselves from the reservations and prejudices that until now have prevented us from walking together, as has always been the will of the Lord. 

May Jesus’ prayer, which I know is honored among you, be our guiding star... Against every form of intolerance and sectarianism, may it encourage us to walk together, with mutual love, so that our witness to the world may become more and more credible, visible, and effective. My beloved sisters and brothers, we all need the Lord’s blessing. For my part, I bless you and I ask for your blessing upon me as I embrace you with all my heart. Please do not forget, all of you who are taking part in this Meeting for Reconciliation, to pray for me. 

May the Lord bless you all. Brotherly greetings in Christ, 

Franciscus

Reflect

Have you ever considered unity possible? In a world were division and differences seem to reign among marriages, families, churches, companies, races, religions, and countries, would you dare to dream of a different future for us all? 

Consider

There is a group of people who are setting differences aside and are coming together in a mutually redemptive walk of reconciliation. Protestants, Catholics, Evangelicals, brothers, and sisters from different denominations are practicing and promoting the unity that comes from the Spirit. In these days, I invite you to join us in the discovery of the work the Holy Spirit is doing to set us free from intolerance and sectarianism. May this testimony of mutual love be a witness to a world that is in desperate need of love and peace. 

Prayer

Beloved Father, as I read today’s Scripture, I pray that your Holy Spirit will speak to me through Your Word. Allow me to fully grasp the heart of Jesus’s prayer so that Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Amen.