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Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2026

Members of various Geneva churches gathered for the celebration of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity at Saint Paul's church in the Orthodox Centre of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Chambésy. The ecumenical prayer service was organized by the Fellowsh

This year's Week of Prayer for Christian Unity takes place from 18-25 January. The theme for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity for 2026: One hope, one calling' - comes from Apostle Paul's letter to the Ephesians: "There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling" (Eph. 4:4). In a world with diverse and often divided traditions and expressions of Chri... Read More


Venezuela: Sisters working with poor in remote area welcome gift of new vehicle

Youngsters in Carora love the Missionary Sisters' new Toyota Hilux  - Image ACN

Religious Sisters in Venezuela have thanked Aid to the Church in Need for giving them an SUV, enabling them to bring basic food and medicine to the poorest communities in their parish. The Sisters of the Missionary Association of Jesus and Mary, in Carora Diocese, in the north-west, were struggling to reach remote villages with their old worn-out vehicle. As well as caring for the sick, elderly, p... Read More


Christians Aware: Call to listen to Minorities

The nine 'listening' ears on the Christians Aware poster for its annual conference last weekend was a constant reminder of the theme: 'Ears to Hear - Listening to Minorities.' Artist Beate Dehnen said they represented "all of us who are willing to lend someone an ear." Well, that was certainly true of attendees at this conference, particularly with their very international outlook. Around 60 part... Read More


John Henry Newman's gift to the Church

This is a very special time for all those interested in Saint John Henry Newman. On the 1st of November 2025, Newman was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church. This means that his writings have a special role in building up the whole people of God. I personally have been shaped profoundly by Newman's thought. Initially I was sceptical about the Christian faith. When first presented with the gospel, I ... Read More

Pope Leo XIV declares Year of St Francis

St Francis of Assisi by Philip Fruytiers - Wiki Image

Pope Leo has proclaimed a Franciscan Jubilee Year for the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi The Holy Father has arranged that, from the 10th January, 2026 to the 10th January, 2027, this Year of St Francis will be celebrated, during which all the Christian faithful are invited to follow the example of the Saint of Assisi, becoming models of holiness of life and constant witnes... Read More


Gospel in Art: Very early morning, he went out to a desolate place and prayed

Christ in the Desert, by Ivan Kramskoi, 1872  © Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow

Gospel of 14 January 2026 Mark 1:29-39 At that time: Jesus left the synagogue and entered the house of Simon and Andrew, with James and John. Now Simon's mother-in-law lay ill with a fever, and immediately they told him about her. And he came and took her by the hand and lifted her up, and the fever left her, and she began to serve them. That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sic... Read More


Greenland: Praying for peace in a tense situation

Photo by Filippo Salvioni on Unsplash

Renewed threats from the Trump administration to take over Greenland have caused widespread anxiety among church congregations throughout Greenland. Recent polls show that an overwhelming majority of Greenlanders oppose becoming a part of the US. With a population of 55,688, most Greenlanders belong to the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Greenland. There are also about 50 Catholics there, served by... Read More


London: Home Office Vigils for Migrants and Refugees

Vigil last summer

The first Prayer Vigil of the year for Migrants and Refugees opposite the Home Office, will take place on Monday, 19 January from 12.30 - 1.30pm. During the vigil the names of those known to have died trying to reach the UK in the past month will be read out. Prayers will be said for them and the many more unnamed victims; asylum seekers in detention centres; those who are homeless and those who s... Read More


New film tells story of Leeds Women in Black

A film has been premiered which tells the story of the Leeds Women in Black vigil focussing on eight of the women involved in the vigil. The vigil began in August 2019 following the vision of the original Women in Black, Jewish women in Jerusalem who for over 30 years have been protesting the occupation of Palestine every Friday. We started with about a dozen women in 2019. Since October 7th we h... Read More


SCIAF welcome Scottish government plan to increase overseas aid

SCIAF (Scottish International Aid Fund) has welcomed the increase in Scottish Government international aid spending in the draft Scottish budget published today. Proposals include continued spending on humanitarian crises, helping people address the impacts of climate change abroad, and reaching the target set in 2021 of £15m in the next financial year for international development. The budget al... Read More


Walking in Mercy Online Retreat

Mercy International Association (MIA) is offering an online retreat on Tuesday 17th February on the theme 'Walking in Mercy'. The retreat, which will be offered by MIA's Head of Heritage and Spirituality Caroline Thompson, is an opportunity to kick-start your Lenten Journey through the lens of Mercy. The retreat will be offered via Zoom at 10am and 2pm (local time to Dublin/London). Self-registrat... Read More


Fra Angelico in Florence: Painter of miracles

Official Poster

If you live in or love Italy, if you have a few hours or days to spare, you have just 12 days to get to Firenze/Florence to see one of the most superlative art exhibitions of this or any other century. The New York Times headlined it, 'Fra Angelico and the Miracle of Faith made visible.' It comprises more than 140 religious works of art from the 15th century as the Middle Ages made way for the Ren... Read More


Gospel in Art: Jesus told the unclean spirit: 'Be silent, and come out of him!'

Jesus Christ dispossesses (section with scenes on Lenten Veil of the Cathedral of Gurk, by Meister Konrad von Friesach © Wikimedia Commons / Cathedral of Gurk, Carinthia, Austria

Gospel of 13 January 2026 Mark 1:21-28 Jesus and his disciples went into Capernaum, and immediately on the Sabbath Jesus entered the synagogue and was teaching. And they were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as the scribes. And immediately there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. And he cried out, 'What have you to do with us, Jesus... Read More


Pope meets Venezuelan Nobel Prize laureate Maria Machado

Pope with Maria Machado. Image Vatican Media

At the end of a Monday morning filled with meetings at the Vatican's Apostolic Palace, Pope Leo XIV received Maria Corina Machado, the former member of the Venezuelan National Assembly who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in October 2025. The meeting took place about 10 days after the US military attack on January 3 in the Venezuelan capital, Caracas during which around 80 people were killed and ... Read More

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