Jesus told us: “You are all brothers.” This January, let us pray for unity among Christians.

Living in community is a natural human need and as Christians it is not conceivable to be alone, closed in on ourselves. Jesus is a living example of this – he was born and raised in a family and invited others into friendship. In fact, Jesus told us: “You are all brothers” (Matthew 23:8).

When we respond to Christ’s invitation to “Come and follow me,” we enter the community that is the Church, where we gather in his love. Living in love, we set ourselves on the path to universal communion. This path requires from us an openness of mind and heart that makes us grow in our capacity for acceptance and transformation.

St. Paul explains this to us through the image of the body; the many parts serve different functions yet form a unified whole (cf. Rom 12: 4-6). The same is true for us in the Church. In the Body of Christ we honor the identity of each part, and we allow the Holy Spirit to draw us into communion as a living body. We are welcomed and we are challenged; thus we experience the essence of fra-ternity, where we are totally for the other without ceasing to be ourselves. Like Christ, who without ceasing to be God chose his place at the feet of all.

This January, let us pray for unity among Christians, so that we may walk forward together.

• Clara Leite
  Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network (Portugal)