Pope Francis presides at Vespers for the Solemnity of the Conversion of St Paul, celebrated in the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside-the-Walls at the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
By Christopher Wells
VATICAN CITY — Representatives of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and other Christian churches and ecclesial communities joined Pope Francis in the Basilica of St Paul’s Outside-the-Walls for an Ecumenical Vespers service marking the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
The theme for this year’s Week of Prayer is taken from the Gospel account of the journey of the Magi to Bethlehem to adore the Child Jesus: “We saw His star in the East, and we came to worship Him.”
The story of the Magi can help us along the path to full unity, Pope Francis said in his homily at Vespers, focusing on three stages of their journey: its beginnings in the East, their passage through Jerusalem, and their final arrival in Bethlehem.
Begun in the East
The Pope noted that the Wise Men saw the star in the East, where the sun rises. They were not content with their own “knowledge and traditions,” he said, but “desired something more.” Pope Francis called on all Christians to follow the star of Jesus, and His invitation to unity, “without worrying about how long and tiring the road may be.”
In our own day, the Pope continued, “the East also reminds us of Christians living in various regions devastated by war and violence,” and especially in the Middle East. The martyrs of these regions, he said, indicate a clear path to unity.
Arrival in Jerusalem
When the Magi arrived in Jerusalem, they were brought abruptly down to earth when Herod “and all Jerusalem with Him” were troubled at their mission. “In the holy city, the Magi did not see reflected the light of the star, but experienced the resistance of the dark forces of this world.”
Pope Francis said that in our own journey towards full Christian unity, “we too can halt for the same reason that paralyzed those people: confusion and fear.” He invited Christians not to be afraid of novelties that upset our traditions and habits, but “to trust one another and to journey together.”
He noted, too, that despite the resistance they face, it was precisely in Jerusalem that the Magi discovered the path to Bethlehem. He encouraged modern Christians to reflect and meditate upon the Scriptures together, drawing closer to Jesus through His word, but also drawing closer to our brothers and sisters.
Reaching Bethlehem
Ultimately, the Pope said, the Magi arrived at the Bethlehem, where they knelt down and worshiped the Child Jesus. “In this way, the Magi foreshadowed the disciples of Jesus, many yet one, who at the conclusion of the Gospel fell down in worship before the Risen Lord on the mountain in Galilee.” Both these events can become prophetic signs for contemporary Christians who long for the fullness of unity, which the Pope said can only be attained through worship of the Lord. “The decisive stage of the journey towards full communion,” he insisted, “requires ever more intense prayer, the worship of God.”
However, he added, worship also demands humility, falling to our knees, “setting aside our own pretences in order to make the Lord alone the centre of everything.” He invited Christians to ask for the courage of humility, “the one way to come to worship God in the same house, around the same altar.”
The gifts of the Magi
Finally, the Holy Father reflected on the gifts the Magi presented to Baby Jesus, which symbolize the gifts the Lord desires to receive from us: Gold, showing that God must be in first place; frankincense, symbolizing the importance of prayer; and myrrh, calling us to “honour the body of Jesus taken down from the Cross,” which “speaks to us of care for the suffering flesh of the Lord, reflected in the wounds of the poor.”
In conclusion, the Pope invited Christians to follow the example of the Magi, who returned to their homes “by another road.” “Like Saul before his encounter with Christ,” he said, “we need to change course, to invert the route of our habits and our ways, in order to find the path that the Lord points out to us: the path of humility, fraternity and adoration.”
Pope Francis prayed, “O Lord, grant us the courage to change course, to be converted, to follow your will and not our own; to go forward together, towards you, who by your Spirit wish to make us one.”
