Week of prayer for Christian Unity
This service for The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2021 is based upon that prepared by the Monastic Community of Grandchamp in Switzerland. The theme that was chosen, “Abide in my love and you shall bear much fruit”, is based on John 15:1-17 and expresses Grandchamp Community’s vocation to prayer, reconciliation and unity in the Church and the human family.
Hymn – Spirit of the living God www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5JYgmsy7X4
Spirit of the living God,
fall afresh on me.
Spirit of the living God,
fall afresh on me.
Break me, melt me,
mould me, fill me.
Spirit of the living God,
fall afresh on me.
Daniel Iverson (1890–1977)
It is the great desire of God, expressed by Jesus, that we might come to him and abide in him. He waits for us tirelessly, hoping that, united to him in love, we will bear fruit that will bring life to all. Faced with our differences, we risk withdrawing into ourselves and seeing only that which separates us. But let us listen to how Christ calls us to abide in his love, and so bear much fruit.
In the three moments of prayer that follow, we remember the call of Christ, we turn to his love, to him who is the centre of our life. For the path of unity begins in our intimate relationship with God. Abiding in God’s love strengthens the desire to seek unity and reconciliation with others. God opens us up to those who are different from us. This is an important fruit, a gift of healing for the divisions within us, between us, and in the world.
In peace let us pray to the Lord:
Lord, you are the vinedresser who cares for us with love. You call on us to see the beauty of each branch united to the vine, the beauty of each person.
And yet, too often the differences in others make us afraid. We withdraw into ourselves.
Our trust in you is forsaken.
Enmity develops between us.
Come and direct our hearts toward you once again. Grant us to live from your forgiveness
so that we may be together and praise your name. Amen
Litany of praise
You who call us to be praise in the midst of the earth: glory to you!
We sing your praise in the midst of the world and among all peoples. We sing your praise in the midst of creation and among all creatures.
You who call us to be praise in the midst of the earth: glory to you!
We sing your praise among suffering and tears,
We sing your praise among promises and achievements.
You who call us to be praise in the midst of the earth: glory to you!
We sing your praise in the places of conflict and misunderstanding. We sing your praise in the places of encounter and reconciliation.
You who call us to be praise in the midst of the earth: glory to you!
We sing your praise in the midst of rifts and divisions. We sing your praise in the midst of life and death, the birth of a new heaven and a new earth.
You who call us to be praise in the midst of the earth: glory to you!
First Vigil - Abiding in Christ: The unity of the whole person
John 15: 1-17 - Jesus the True Vine
‘I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love. I have said these things to you so that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be complete.
‘This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing; but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father. You did not choose me but I chose you. And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask him in my name. I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another.
Short period of silence
God of love, through Christ you said to us: “You did not choose me but I chose you.” You seek us, you invite us to receive your friendship and abide in it. Teach us to respond more deeply to this invitation, and grow in a life that is ever more complete.
The joy of our heart is in God.
God of life, you call us to be praise in the midst of the world and to welcome one another as a gift of your grace. May your loving gaze, which rests upon each person, open us to receive each other just as we are.
The joy of our heart is in God.
God you who gather, you knit us together as one vine in your Son Jesus. May your loving Spirit abide in us at local church and community meetings and ecumenical gatherings. Grant that together we celebrate you with joy.
The joy of our heart is in God.
God of the one vineyard, you call us to abide in your love in all we do and say. Touched by your goodness, grant us to be a reflection of that love in our homes and workplaces. May we bridge rivalries and overcome tensions.
The joy of our heart is in God.
A time of silence
Very often we think of prayer as something we do, an activity of our own. In this short time, we are invited to an interior silence, and to turn aside from all the noise and concerns of our lives and thoughts. In this silence the action belongs to God. We are simply called to abide and rest in God’s love.
A time of silence – 5 minutes if you can
Second Vigil - The visible unity of Christians
1 Corinthians 1: 10-13a - Divisions in the Church
10 Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you should be in agreement and that there should be no divisions among you, but that you should be united in the same mind and the same purpose. 11For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters.12What I mean is that each of you says, ‘I belong to Paul’, or ‘I belong to Apollos’, or ‘I belong to Cephas’, or ‘I belong to Christ.’ 13Has Christ been divided?
Short period of silence
Holy Spirit, you create and re-create the Church in all places. Come and whisper in our hearts the prayer which Jesus addressed to his Father on the eve of his passion: “that they may all be one... so that the world may believe”.
Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy)
Lord Jesus, Prince of Peace, light the fire of your love in us so that suspicions, contempt and misunderstanding cease in the Church. May the walls that separate us fall.
Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy)
Holy Spirit, Consoler of all, open our hearts to forgiveness and reconciliation and bring us back from our wanderings.
Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy)
Lord Jesus, gentle and humble of heart, give us poverty of spirit so that we may welcome the unexpectedness of your grace.
Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy)
Holy Spirit, you never abandon the men, women and children who are persecuted for their fidelity to the gospel. Give them strength and courage, and support those who help them.
Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy)
Third Vigil - The unity of all peoples with all creation
Revelation 7: 9-12 - The Multitude from Every Nation
9 After this I looked, and there was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, robed in white, with palm branches in their hands. 10They cried out in a loud voice, saying,
‘Salvation belongs to our God who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!’
11And all the angels stood around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshipped God, 12singing,
‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honour
and power and might
be to our God for ever and ever! Amen.’
God of life, you have created every human being in your image and likeness. We sing your praise for the gift of our many cultures, expressions of faith, traditions and ethnicities. Grant us the courage always to stand against injustice and hatred based on race, class, gender, religion, and fear of those not like ourselves.
God of peace, God of love, in you is our hope!
Merciful God, you have shown us in Christ that we are one in you. Teach us to use this gift in the world so that believers of all faiths in every country may be able to listen to each other and live in peace.
God of peace, God of love, in you is our hope!
O Jesus, you came into the world and shared fully in our humanity. You know the hardships of life for people who suffer in so many different ways. May the Spirit of compassion move us to share our time, life and goods with all those in need.
God of peace, God of love, in you is our hope!
Holy Spirit, you hear the fury of your wounded creation and the cries of those already suffering from climate change. Guide us toward new behaviours. May we learn to live in harmony as part of your creation.
God of peace, God of love, in you is our hope!
Moving to the centre... and out to the world
Jesus calls us to abide in him, as branches of the true vine. He calls us to bear the fruit of God’s healing and reconciling love. He calls us to draw closer to God and to one another as we offer this love to the world.
Imagine a circle drawn on the ground. Imagine that this circle is the world.
At the centre of the world is God, in whom all our desires and longings find their meeting place.
As we move closer to God, so we draw closer to one another. And the closer we come to one another . . .
...the closer we come to God
Light your candle in a short silence
With the words that Jesus taught us, let us now pray together:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power, and the glory
for ever and ever.
Amen.
Imagine everyone else from our churches, and from other churches in our area, sat in their own homes, each with their own candle lit.
Spirituality and solidarity are inseparably linked. Prayer and action belong together. When we abide in Christ, we receive the Spirit of courage and wisdom to act against all injustice and oppression. We say together:
Pray and work that God may reign.
Throughout your day, let the Word of God breathe life into work and rest. Maintain inner silence in all things so as to dwell in Christ.
Be filled with the spirit of the Beatitudes: joy, simplicity, mercy.
These words are recited daily by the Sisters of the Grandchamp Community.
Hymn – In Christ there is no east or west
www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpITJOShix0
1 In Christ there is no east or west,
in him no south or north,
but one great fellowship of love
throughout the whole wide earth.
2 In him shall true hearts everywhere
their high communion find;
his service is the golden cord
close-binding humankind.
3 Join hands then people of the faith,
whate'er your nation be;
who serves my Father as his child
is surely kin to me.
4 In Christ now meet both east and west,
in him meet south and north;
all Christlike souls are one in him,
throughout the whole wide earth.
John Oxenham, pseud. (1852–1941)
Blessing
Be one, so that the world may believe! Abide in God’s love, go into the world and bear the fruits of this love.
May the God of hope fill us with all joy and all peace in faith, so that we may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. In the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.