Pope Archives - Corporate Prayer Resources

Another Unity Message

Recently we wrote about the historic video blessing sent by Pope Francis to the Protestant/Evangelical Christians (See Our Blog of March 5, 2014 “Pope’s Unity Blessing Goes Viral”).

We have been given permission to share a Papal blessing sent to Matteo Calisi, one of the leaders of the reconciliation movement, for a reconciliation meeting he held earlier this year. The message:

“ Dear Brother,

You have kindly informed me that from 20 to 22 February next a Meeting of Reconciliation will be held in Phoenix between Evangelicals and Catholics, in which you will take part. This news gave me great joy and made me more conscious of the need for reconciliation in this week in which we pray for Christian unity.

I hope that this meeting will draw down the Lord’s blessings so that we can persevere along the path to unity. We who have received the one baptism long for full communion; this is a grace of the Lord which we must fervently implore. In some parts of the world Christians are being attacked and rejected, at times violently. Those who attack us do not distinguish between Orthodox, Luterhans, Evangelicals or Catholics; they know only that these brethren are Christians. As far as they are concerned, we are all the same. And in these attacks many of our brothers and sisters have given their lives in witness to Jesus Christ. In such places they are experiencing the ecumenism of bloodshed, the ecumenism of martyrdom. This should compel us all the more to seek paths of unity in our daily lives.

Dear brother, I will accompany you with my prayers in these days of the Meeting, asking God’s blessings up all taking part. By praying for one another, we exercise that spiritual ecumenism which accompanies all our actions. I ask you and all those taking part in the Meeting kindly to pray for me as well.

May the Lord bless all of you.

Fraternally,

s / Francis

From the Vatican, 22 January 2014 “

Pope’s Unity Blessing Goes Viral

A historic Unity Blessing sent from Pope Francis to a Kenneth Copeland Ministries Pastor’s Conference and the Church at large has gone viral.

The roots of this unprecedented event go back to the days when the Charismatic renewal swept through the Catholic Church. One of the Italian Catholic Charismatic leaders, Matteo Calisi, and Italian Evangelical pastor Giovanni Traettino reached across the divide and began a movement which has brought Catholics and Evangelicals together throughout Italy. Over the years the reconciliation movement has reached out from Italy to Evangelicals in North and South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. In addition, the Orthodox and Messianic Jewish churches have also become involved.

In Argentina Cardinal Jorge Borgoglio, now Pope Francis, and Mattao Calisi brought in the reconciliation movement eleven years ago. Working with another key reconciler, Tony Palmer, Matteo Calisi began working with Kenneth Copeland, who paid his own way to hold a conference at Calisi’s Charismatic Community in Bari, Italy in 2006. It was Tony Palmer who brought the historic message from Pope Francis to the Kenneth Copeland Conference. You can see this message on the United In Christ Website at www.United-In-Christ.com

The reconciliation movement born in Italy seeks to bring Christians into genuine unity in our diversity. God realizes that we have different practices and beliefs, and we’re told to tolerate our brothers (see Ro14:1-4 and Ro 15:1-7). Our real unity is through Christ, for if we are each in Christ then we are also United in Christ. (see John 17:20-23).

So let us all join Christ in his prayer that we may be brought into complete unity, and let us work toward visible unity so the World will believe that God sent his Son to save us (John 17:23).

Amen.