Homily of Archbishop Selim Selim, Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
The octave of prayer for Christian Unity is upon us. The octave first undertaken in 1908 began on January 18th, the Feast in honour of St. Peter in Chains and concludes on January 25th, the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. As we set aside this week each year to pray for unity, we are reminded that each one of us must work for Christian unity, and our work must begin and end in prayer.
“Christ, from the beginning of his public ministry, called on people to repent of their sins. This repentance is a change of heart – a turning from sinful desires and practices to a holy life, one that has its foundation in the life and teachings of Christ. This means living a life of humility and love for others.
Conversion of heart is necessary for ecumenism as well, for without humility and love, efforts at unity will always fall short. Humility allows a person to recognize the faults of his or her own faith community, and love generates the desire to be united with all separated brothers and sisters. Christ calls every person to a conversion of heart, a conversion that leads to a flowering of His Will here on earth.” – p.189 Ecumenism and Inter-religious Dialogue The Didache Series
“There can be no ecumenism worthy of the name without a change of heart. For it is from renewal of the inner life of our minds, from self-denial and an unstinted love that desires of unity take their rise and develop in a mature way. We should therefore pray to the Holy Spirit for the grace to be genuinely self-denying, humble, gentle in the service of others, and to have an attitude of brotherly generosity towards them.” (Unitatis Redintegratio, 7)
† Selim Sfeir
Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus