Call to Unity

Sunday 18 January 2026
Revd Sophie Ferguson

This day marks the start of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

For 2026, the resources for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity have been prepared by the Armenian Apostolic Church, together with the Armenian Catholic and Evangelical Churches. Drawing upon prayers and hymns that originated in the ancient monasteries and churches of Armenia, some dating as far back as the fourth century. They have asked the world’s Churches to pray for peace. They have called the week ‘One Body, One Spirit’, based on the Apostle Paul’s teachings, imploring those who proclaim Christ to unite in a single hope.

What does it mean to proclaim something as true? Even more so, how do we proclaim something that people can unite around? We have a battle of voices in our world today, with very dominant voices taking the stage… need I mention names? Proclaiming anything as truth today can be a weighty task.

On the global stage, it seems that any message or public announcement is met with trepidation, conflict, and cynicism, as people from every nation search for truth.

Can I mention here that our Lent series, which has just been publicised, will explore these very questions. This year’s Lent Lectures will examine Christian perspectives on truth in our own age.

What is true? Who can we trust? What is real, when we face the rise of AI, the spread of fake news, corrupt leadership, and the influence of social media?

Navigating this age, we are part of a Church of England that is in the business of proclamation. The Church of England’s vocation is, and always has been, to proclaim the good news of Jesus Christ afresh in each generation to the people of England.

So, what is the Church announcing and proclaiming as good news for this generation, in this new year ahead of us—2026?

In our readings this evening, two very different voices speak to us: Ezekiel, the prophet of exile, and Paul, the apostle defending the true gospel. Separated by centuries, culture, and circumstance, they are united by one profound truth: God has spoken, and the message entrusted to them is to be proclaimed.

Paul writes to the Galatians with remarkable urgency. He insists that the gospel he proclaims is not a human invention: “I did not receive it from a human source, nor was I taught it,” he says, “but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ.” Paul knows how easily the gospel can be reshaped to suit the spirit of the age, and he will have none of it. The gospel, according to Paul, is not up for modification. He has a true message to proclaim.

Ezekiel, too, is sent to a people who are resistant, stubborn, and weary of hearing God’s voice. “Whether they hear or refuse to hear,” Ezekiel must speak. Neither prophet is promised success. Neither is assured that their words will be welcomed, understood, or acted upon and yet both feel the call to proclaim the truth given to them by God.

Calling…Calling is an important word for every generation of the Church. What are we being called to proclaim afresh now?

Each age faces its own unique challenges. There is always a temptation to believe that this generation is uniquely difficult, uniquely resistant, uniquely distracted. Although at present, it does seem that we face global challenges of a scale not seen before.

In Scripture, God has always spoken into complexity: in times of war, in times of trouble, and in times of doubt. The task is not to invent a new Christ for a new age, but to proclaim the same Christ. And, as the Church of England wisely puts it, to proclaim Christ afresh.

I therefore find it contradictory to that calling that the Church of England appears somewhat stale rather than fresh in its recent discussions on sexuality and relationships. The Church faces deeply hurtful, difficult, and trying decisions as it meets next month at General Synod to discuss the House of Bishops’ proposals on the Prayers of Love and Faith.

Proclaiming Christ today is not an easy task, especially when we are a divided Church, but this has always been the case from generation to generation.

At the heart of proclaiming Christ afresh should not be novelty, but people authentically sharing their experience of a loving God. Not louder voices like those dominating the world stage, but truer ones. Listening to victims and those on the margins, rather than the most powerful. Not anxious relevance that chases trends, but deep faithfulness to what we hold most dear.

Maybe…just maybe, we proclaim Christ afresh in our generation not because we are strong, persuasive, or in agreement about the deepest and most complex elements of our humanity, but because God’s word endures.

With global conflict as it stands, the call for unity in the Church is more imperative than ever. Our single hope, as the Armenian Church implores, is for the Church across the world this year to hold on to our oneness in Christ amidst our diversity. To hold onto Christ… Christ who came to bring peace.

Can the Church at least agree on that?

Amen.