Once a year, Christian churches get together to pray for unity among the different denominations, following the theme of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples, that “they may be one so that the world may believe” (John 17:21).

This practice started in 1908, with the establishment of a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The week began with what was then the Feast of the Confession of Saint Peter on January 18th and concluded with the Feast of the Conversion of Saint Paul on January 25th – the same dates that we keep to this day.

Typically congregations and parishes get together, and perhaps exchange preachers or arrange special ecumenical celebrations and prayer services, to explore our common identity as Christians. For details of events in and around Malaga, click below.

This year’s theme, prepared by the faithful of the Armenian Apostolic Church, along with their brothers and sisters of the Armenian Catholic, and Evangelical Churches, is this: "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling”. It is a text from the letter to the church in Ephesus (now in Turkey), traditionally attributed to St Paul, though his authorship is debated. 

The letter sets out a theological vision of God's plan to unite all of creation in Christ. It encourages the church to embody that unity with itself through reconciliation across social and ethnic boundaries. This sense of reconciliation among Christians is at the very heart of what we celebrate in the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

For a full programme of ecumenical services in and around Málaga, click below. To gain a greater insight into this year's theme, click here.