HUMBOLDT — This years’ Humboldt service for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity took place in St. Augustine’s Parish— being livestreamed to the whole of the community.
Started in 1908 by Rev. Paul Wattson, an Episcopalian priest who would later join the Catholic Church, the week is now an annual ecumenical event. During the week, Christians around the world, regardless of denomination, are invited to pray for the unity of all Christians, reflect on scripture together, participate in jointly-organized ecumenical services, and to share fellowship.
In the northern hemisphere, the week is traditionally held every year between Jan. 18, which is the Feast of the Confession of Saint Peter, and Jan. 25, which is the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul. In the southern hemisphere, it often takes place during the Pentecost season.
In Humboldt, the annual service held on Jan. 19 was run by the Humboldt Ministerial Association which includes St. John’s Lutheran Church, Living Word Church International, St. Andrew’s Anglican Church, St. Augustine’s Parish, Humboldt Alliance Church, and United Westminster Church.
“In terms of unity, we’re all acknowledging we’re all Christians and we all have the same faith,” said Pastor Clint Magnus, chair of the Humboldt Ministerial Association and worship leader of St. John’s Lutheran Church.
“There’s different denominations, we don’t agree on every point of doctrine, but we all are Christians— we all fundamentally believe in Jesus, His death on the cross and the resurrection on the grave for our salvation.”
The 2022 theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, “We saw the star in the East, and we came to worship him” (Mt 2:2), was prepared by the Middle East Council of Churches, based in Beirut, Lebanon.
According to the Canadian Council of Churches, the international theme and resources speak to the world’s “urgent need for solidarity and transformation in the face of political, economic, and social turmoil.” This includes the challenges and injustices highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As we join the Christians of the Middle East in the journey to Christ’s manger, may we become a sign of the unity that God desires for all creation, and may we return to our home, our churches, and our world by new ways,” the organization wrote.
Magnus called the service something “every Christian should be able to acknowledge and agree with.”
“We do this just to show that even though sometimes people look at the Christian church and think we’re divided because we’ve gotten so many different churches, we actually are united— we believe in Jesus Christ. We’re Christians, we follow Christ.”
Rev. Matteo Carboni of St. Andrew’s Anglican Church said the main message was that they were gathering together as a Christian community.
“To show an example of what the church ought to be is that people coming together from different backgrounds, different faith communities, but we’re still able to pray together, we’re still able to worship the same God, we follow the same Jesus,” Carboni said. “We have different ways of doing that, but at the core we’re able to do a lot together.”
All offerings from the Humboldt service went towards the Ministerial Association’s Helping Hands fund. To contribute, individuals are asked to drop off donations at their local parish.
The service may be viewed by going to the Humboldt Ministerial Association’s Facebook page.
Magnus encouraged community members to check out local places of worship.
“Maybe one will appeal to you more than the others, but especially in these days we live in I think it’s really important that we have faith in God, faith in Christ is very important to get you through especially in the times we live in today.”
