Pope Francis Calls for Unified Easter Celebration in 2025
During an ecumenical evening prayer service marking the conclusion of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, Pope Francis renewed the Catholic Church’s commitment to adopting a common date for celebrating Easter across Western and Eastern Christian traditions.
Speaking at Rome’s Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, the pope highlighted the unique opportunity presented by 2025, when Easter on the Gregorian and Julian calendars coincides. “I renew my appeal that this coincidence may serve as a call to all Christians to take a decisive step forward toward unity around a common date for Easter,” he said.
Pope Francis reaffirmed the Catholic Church’s openness to aligning with any date agreed upon by Christian communities, underscoring the importance of unity. “The Catholic Church is open to accepting the date that everyone wants: a date of unity,” he stated.
The 2025 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity coincides with the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, which established a common creed and a method for calculating Easter. While the council set Easter as the first Sunday after the first full moon following the spring equinox, divisions emerged after the Gregorian calendar reform in 1582, which corrected the Julian calendar’s drift from the solar year. The calendar reform led to discrepancies in the date of Easter, with Eastern Christians often celebrating weeks later.
Pope Francis said that the Catholic Church remains aligned with the position officially adopted by St. Paul VI in the 1960s: the Church will accept a common Easter date if Eastern Christians agree.
The ecumenical service began with Pope Francis praying at the tomb of St. Paul. Orthodox Metropolitan Polykarpos of Italy and Malta and Anglican Archbishop Ian Ernest, director of the Anglican Centre in Rome, joined him. Together, they imparted a final blessing to the gathered faithful.
See Also: Indian Court stops Christian man from burying his father
The service centred on the theme of the 2025 prayer week, inspired by Jesus’ question to Martha of Bethany: “Do you believe this?” from the Gospel of John. Reflecting on Martha’s encounter with Jesus, Pope Francis emphasised hope and unity, even in the face of despair.
“Hope can falter following difficult experiences such as painful losses or bitter disappointments,” he said. “Although each of us may experience moments of despair, the Gospel tells us that Jesus always restores hope because he raises us up from the ashes of death.”
Pope Francis acknowledged challenges in the search for Christian unity, describing ecumenical dialogue as sometimes appearing “doomed to failure.” Yet he urged Christians to trust in Jesus as the resurrection and the life, who rewards efforts toward unity and grace.
The pontiff called the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea “a year of grace” and an opportunity for Christians to rediscover their shared faith. “Let us preserve unity! Let us always move forward! May the unity we all are searching for be found,” he said.
Content Credit| Ajibola Emmanuel Adebayo
Picture Credit | https://www.britannica.com/