The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (WPCU) in Hong Kong in 2025 took place from January 18–25. The theme for the year was “Do you believe this?” (John 11:26).
What happened?
- The week was a global commemoration of the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea.
- The Nicene Creed was at the center of the Order of Worship.
- Scripture readings focused on belief.
- The week invited Christians to reflect on their shared faith.
- The week included ecumenical prayer meetings and services.
2025 Joint Statement
“Do you believe this?” (John 11:26)
Lazarus lived in Bethany with his sisters, Martha and Mary. Lazarus was a friend of the Lord. Once he fell gravely ill. His sisters sent a message to Jesus telling him: “Lord, your dear friend is very sick.” But when Jesus heard about it he said: “Lazarus’s sickness will not end in death. No, it happened for the glory of God so that the Son of God will receive glory from this.” Jesus loved Lazarus and his sisters, but he did not hasten to their side as soon as he was told of the illness. He stayed where he was for the next two days. And when those two days were over, he said to his disciples: “Let us go back to Judea. Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but now I will go and wake him up.” His disciples thought that he was talking about the sleep of the body, and said to him: “Lord, if he is sleeping, he will soon get better!” But Jesus meant Lazarus had died: “Lazarus is dead,” he said to them. “And for your sakes, I’m glad I wasn’t there, for now you will really believe.” When the Lord arrived with his disciples at Bethany, Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days. When Martha got word that Christ had come to their city, she hurried to meet him and said: “Lord, if only you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask.” “Your brother will rise again,” Jesus told her. “Yes, Lord, I know he will rise on the Day of Judgement, when all the dead will rise,” Martha said. “I am the Resurrection and the Life,” the Lord answered her. “Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. And everyone who believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this?” “Yes, Lord,” Martha told him, “I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, who was to come into the world.”
Our Lord Jesus Christ revealed to us that He is the real life, the giver of life, and the Resurrection.
To employ the allegorical means of interpretation, each one of us is like Lazarus. We are friends of Jesus, but we are also spiritually dead because of our sinful passions. Jesus, the all-knowing and merciful God, sees the spiritual death and darkness in which we find ourselves, and continually cries out to the heavenly powers: “Lazarus, our friend, has fallen asleep.” He desires to draw near to us, and to make us partakers of His own life, the life of the light of the Resurrection. Yet He respects our freedom and waits for us to search for him and invite him in. He waits for the moment when we will decide to turn to Him, expressing the pain of our spiritual death, so that He may grant us renewal, salvation, and redemption.
To be a disciple of Jesus lifts us out of the isolation of our individualism and self- centeredness, and introduces us to a communal way of being. Reconciliation with God leads us to unity and solidarity with others and with the whole of creation. As Christians we experience the commandment and the mystery of Love.
We realise that we are not alone in this world. We are called to share our lives with our brothers and sisters, and above all with those who suffer and who are in need. The gift of Christ’s life can be a balm to the wounds of our brothers and sisters, and a hope and comfort in the time of sorrow and suffering.
The redemption and renewal that the life of Christ offers also becomes the resurrection of the natural world.
Our own disobedience to God’s will also bring destruction to the whole of creation. We all have a spiritual responsibility to protect the environment. Along with the gift of life, God gave us the commandment to work and take care of the Earth. He created the natural world to be in balance. To disturb this balance is to fail, and presents a dangerous threat to our descendants. As Christians, our conscience urges us to work to ensure that all the elements of God’s creation are left according to His program and plan.
The year 2025 marks the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council at Nicaea in Bithynia. This historic and joyous anniversary is a significant milestone for all Christians. The Council jubilantly confirmed the Apostolic teaching that Jesus Christ revealed in His words and deeds, that He is our Lord and God. It also sought to overcome divisions, and to determine the date on which all Christians in every place would celebrate Pascha (Easter), the Feast of the Resurrection of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
The legacy of the First Ecumenical Council is still valuable to us today. In a world so often marked by division and discord, we are reminded of the transformative power of faith and unity. When we recite the Nicene Creed we confess that Jesus Christ is our God, the Resurrection and the Life, and we are called to embrace this truth with unwavering conviction.
On this joyous journey of seeking Christian unity through sincere dialogue, let us embrace the fundamental question that Jesus asked, and continues to ask: “Do you believe this?” Let our faith in He who is the Resurrection and the Life act as a beacon of hope and reconciliation, and a call to all to join hands in a spirit of love, harmony, and peace. Let us pray and walk together, guided by the light of our Lord Jesus Christ, towards a world in which the unity and reconciliation that spring from His grace will transcend divisions and strife.
Diocesan Ecumenical Commission of the Hong Kong Catholic Church
The Orthodox Metropolitanate of Hong Kong and South East Asia
Church Unity and Relations Committee of Hong Kong Christian Council
