Addressing pilgrims at his General Audience, Pope Leo XIV invites the faithful to pray for Christian unity and for peace, especially “at a moment in history that seems marked by a growing loss of respect for the value of human dignity and in which war has come back into fashion.”
By Deborah Castellano Lubov
“Let us pray for peace, at a moment in history that seems marked by a growing loss of respect for the value of human dignity and in which war has come back into fashion.”
Pope Leo XIV made this appeal during his weekly General Audience in the Vatican’s Paul VI Hall on Wednesday, as he greeted Portuguese-speaking faithful after delivering his catechesis address, praying, “May the humanity of Jesus, who reveals the Father, help us to find paths of justice and reconciliation.”
Addressing pilgrims from various language groups, Pope Leo invited the faithful, during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, 18–25 Jan. 2026, to pray for unity among Christians and for peace throughout the world.
Recalling that Jesus prayed for the unity of His disciples before His Passion, the Pope urged German-speaking pilgrims, “During this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, let us pray with Him that all His disciples may find unity, so that the world may believe in Him and in His revelation.”
Referring to the week’s theme this year—“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to the one hope of your calling” (Eph 4:4)—the Holy Father encouraged Christians to implore the Lord “to bestow the gift of His Spirit upon all the Churches spread throughout the world, so that, through this gift, Christians may overcome division and form strong bonds of unity.”
Earlier this week, during his Sunday Angelus, Pope Leo invited Catholic communities worldwide “to intensify their prayer during these days for the full, visible unity of all Christians.” As is customary on the Solemnity of the Conversion of Saint Paul, Pope Leo XIV will preside at the celebration of Vespers at 5:30 p.m. Rome time in the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls.
