OLA

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2025

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2025  The Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (DPUC) has made the texts for the 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity available in several languages. Click HERE to access the prayer resources. In the Northern Hemisphere, the Week of Prayer is traditionally observed from January 18 to 25, while in the Southern Hemisphere, it is often celebrated around Pentecost. This year’s theme, inspired by the Gospel of John, is “Do you believe this?” The materials have been prepared by the Monastic Community of Bose. Marking the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council, the Council of Nicea : the origin of the Nicene Creed. The week invites Christians to reflect on their shared faith, as expressed in the Nicene Creed.  Here is the link to listen to Sister Marie Hélène Robert of the Congregation of Our Lady of Apostles (OLA), Professor of Theology at the Catholic University of Lyon, President of the Preparatory Committee for a Colloquium on Nicea in January 2025.

https://olandarome.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/missionary-disciples.mp4

SYNOD 2024

Catholics worldwide are eagerly waiting the second session of the Synod on Synodality scheduled to take place from October 2 to 27. This month-long event in the life of the Catholic Church. The session will bring together the Clergy and the laity to discuss the central theme: “How to be a synodal Church in mission?” In mid-September, Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod, and Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich, Relator General of the Synod, provided organizational updates at a press conference. They announced that the Synod will feature 368 voting participants from six continents, including 272 bishops and 96 non-bishops, 54 of whom are women. In addition, 16 “fraternal delegates” from other Christian communities will attend—an increase from the 12 who participated in last year’s first session. Before the event begins, a two-day spiritual retreat will be held at the Vatican on September 30 and October 1. This retreat will be led by Dominican priest Fr. Timothy Radcliffe OP, and Mother Maria Ignazia Angelini, abbess of a Benedictine abbey near Milan. It will conclude with a penitential vigil led by the Pope on the evening of October 1 in St. Peter’s Basilica. On Friday, October 11, Pope Francis will also lead an ecumenical prayer vigil in St. Peter’s Square, marking the 62nd anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council. As in the previous session, the Synod will follow the “conversation in the Spirit” method. Participants will be divided into linguistic groups of about 10 people each to facilitate [...]