Let us pray together
Dr. Michel E. Abs
Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches
What is prayer?
Prayer is, above all, a solemn address to the Originator of the universe, the Giver of life who pulled us out of nothingness,
Prayer is thanksgiving to the Creator for what He has bestowed upon His creation,
Prayer is an act of obedience to the Creator when we deal with his creation and rooted in His commandments,
Prayer is an act of praise for the Creator of all that which He placed at the disposal of creation,
Prayer is an act of faithfulness to the Author of the universe, who provides us with the essentials for the perpetuation of life,
Prayer is the recognition of the law of the Almighty to regulate the affairs of the universe and the world,
Prayer is an act of hope for the Initiator and Preserver human existence,
Prayer is also for each one of us to explore the depth of himself and remove from it the impurities that disrupt life,
Prayer is also a recognition of the errors that characterize our daily life and the sins that plague our daily practices,
Praying is also the maintenance of our humanity from our souls sparking evil,
And prayer is a source of hope.
A person may pray in solitariness,
And he may plead with his Creator alone,
And he may admit to Him in his seclusion what he is ashamed of revealing in society,
But a community of faith needs to do all of this together,
If individual prayer is an act of contemplation and a return to the individual self, then communal prayer is characterized by the strength of the bond between the members of the believing group in its contemplation and its return to the self,
When the believing community prays, it raises the level of interaction with the Creator and with the universe to higher levels,
When a believing congregation prays, it strengthens the group’s bonds and takes root in society,
When the believing community prays, it is the most intimate link and the embodiment of Christian belief.
Over its global spread, Christianity has taken culturally different forms of believing groups, and approaches to prayer have varied due to the diversity of nations and cultures, but the Christian faith remains one even if its manifestations differ.
It is natural for this cultural diversity to lead to what some may think is a discrepancy to the extent that it suggests estrangement.
It is natural for each civilization to propose its collective way of speaking to the Creator and thanking him for his gifts.
It is natural for approaches, explanations and interpretations to vary, and they may result in disagreements and disputes that may reach an advanced stage.
Therefore, the Week of Prayer for Unity, overpowers contradictions, overcomes differences, and reminds the cosmic community of its unity in diversity, and indeed its right to diversity.
The Week of Prayer for Unity has become a living, developing tradition and has entered the core of Ecumenical Culture. It reminds the believers that they should be one in the faith, one in Christ.
The Week of Prayer for Unity which we will not be able to live and celebrate this year as we used to, for the same constraints that paralyzed the movement of all humankind, but its symbolism remains a culture and a challenge, it tells believers to unite in righteousness, love one another, serve the needy, heal the wounds of the afflicted and console the despondent.
The Week of Prayer for Unity will remain a ringing bell for the believers to awaken to overcoming selfishness and abandon egotism in order to belong to universal humanity in God through Whom they may have a better life.