Dates
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is traditionally obse rved from the 18th to the 25th January – the octave of St. Peter and St. Pa ul. However, some areas observe it at Pentecost or some other time.
I ntroduction
Resources for 2019 have been prepared by Christians from Indonesia, the largest country in South East Asia, made up of more than 17, 000 islands, 1,340 different ethnic groups and over 740 local languages, un ited by one national language Bahasa Indonesia. With some 86% of its 260 mi llion people estimated to be Muslim, it has the largest Islamic population of any country. About 10% of Indonesians are Christian. Indonesians have li ved by the principle of gotong royong which is to live in ‘solidarity and b y collaboration’, regarding all Indonesians as brothers and sisters.
But gotong royong sits ill at ease with the neo-liberal approach to economi cs that has led to economic growth, and corruption infecting politics and b usiness, often with devastating effects on the environment. Meanwhile those who are supposed to promote justice and protect the weak fail to do so. As a consequence, a country rich in resources bears the burden of many people living in poverty. Particular ethnic and religious groups are often associ ated with wealth in ways that have fed tensions.
The Christians of In donesia found that the words of Deuteronomy, ‘Justice, and only justice, yo u shall pursue…'(see Deut. 16:18-20) spoke powerfully to their situation.
Order or download resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2019. Material for 2019 or iginates from the churches of Indonesia, where there is a strong emphasis u pon the need for unity alongside the nation’s ethnic and religious diversit y. The resources also highlight issues of economic injustice and how religi ous pluralism can face challenges in the face of radicalisation. The theme is based around Deuteronomy 16:18-20, ‘Justice, and only justice, you shall pursue…’
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