Witnesses to Unity
An Octave of Prayers for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, January 18-25
Three Catholic spirituality centers—Marillac Center in Leavenworth, Kansas, the Sophia Center in Atchison, Kansas and Precious Blood Renewal Center in Liberty, Missouri—offer an octave of prayers to mark the annual celebration known as the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. You are invited to join us in a week of prayer, right from your own home, for the cause of Christian Unity among the various denominations in our own hometowns.
Participating in the Week of Prayer
- January 18-25, you are invited to pray the prayer for the day, which you will find below. Links will also be posted on the Sophia Facebook page for easy access. You can visit either on a daily basis as the week progresses, or print off the prayers for the whole week to have on hand.
- Invite friends and family far and wide to join you and all of us in prayer. Share this page with them and expand the prayer community.
- Our prayers united are incredibly powerful and our loving God always hears us! Know that your prayers will be amongst countless others being offered within our local communities as well as world-wide.
Day 1, January 18: Brother Roger Schutz
Brother Roger Schutz, founder of an ecumenical community in the tiny village of Taizé that grew into a global movement, is our first Witness to Unity during this week of Prayer for Christian Unity.
Day 2, January 19: Betty Williams & Mairead Corrigan
Betty Williams and Mairead Corrigan, a Protestant and a Catholic from Northern Ireland, won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1976 for their anti-violence work.
Day 3, January 20: Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. mirrored Christ’s example of radical love and self-sacrifice.
Day 4, January 21: St. Francis of Assisi
Eight centuries ago, St. Francis of Assisi crossed a battlefield between Crusader and Muslim forces near Damietta, Egypt, to meet Sultan al-Malik al-Kamil.
Day 5, January 22: Dorothy Day
In 1932, Dorothy Day was inspired to start a lay movement dedicated to building “a society where it is easier for people to be good.” Today she is a candidate for canonization.
Day 6, January 23: Mother Teresa
St. Teresa of Calcutta, commonly known as Mother Teresa, dedicated her life to serving the poorest of the poor and is an iconic figure in the pursuit of compassion and charity.
Day 7, January 24: Br. Craig Digmann
Craig Digmann is a Catholic religious brother whose ministry is in predominantly Pentecostal and Evangelical communities in rural areas of Southern states. He builds ecumenical bonds one relationship at a time.
Day 8, January 25: Howard Thurman
Howard Thurman’s theology of radical nonviolence influenced and shaped a generation of civil rights activists.
Learn more about your these Catholic Spirituality Centers
Precious Blood Renewal Center, in Liberty, Missouri, is a ministry of the United States Province of the Missionaries of the Precious Blood, a Catholic religious order.
The Marillac Center, the retreat and spirituality center of the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth, in Leavenworth, Kansas.
The Sophia Center is a ministry of the Benedictine Sisters of Mount St. Scholastica in Atchison, Kansas.