by Liz Parsons, Director of Pastoral Development​

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As the Feast of Pentecost approaches, and we remember the moment when the early Christians were flooded with the Holy Spirit and carried the Gospel out into the crowds, Christians across our own region are preparing to come together in celebration at this year’s Two Cathedrals Pentecost Walk. Inspired by Pope John Paul II’s journey down Hope Street in 1982, the tradition of the Two Cathedrals Pentecost Walk has become a cherished feature of Christian life in Liverpool.

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It’s been an exciting year for ecumenism in our region and beyond. Last October, we witnessed an astounding moment, as Pope Leo XIV and King Charles prayed side by side in the Sistine Chapel. For the first time since the Reformation, a British monarch and a Pope prayed together, standing as a reminder that the story of our journey towards unity is still unfolding.

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Those of our readers who remember the 1960s and 70s may well recall that our own region has not always enjoyed such a strong tradition of ecumenism. When Archbishop Derek Worlock arrived in Liverpool in 1976, he was initiated into a city with an especially painful history of sectarian division. Although it was the case that in the difficult years that preceded him, quieter forms of ecumenism were already at work behind the scenes, especially in the friendships of church leaders such as Archbishop George Andrew Beck and Bishop Stuart Blanch, the transformation of the archdiocese into a place where Christians confidently work together took decades of hard work and individual decisions to seek out friendship and reconciliation.

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From this foundation, a pact once made between Archbishop Worlock and Bishop Sheppard would eventually emerge as the ordinary way of Christian life for our churches: “Do everything together, except the things which conscience forces us to do apart”.

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However, the story of ecumenism in our region is not only written in the friendships of bishops and archbishops, nor at the level of kings and popes! At a more local level, many of our parishes have formed their own Christian friendships, especially through more practical acts of compassion in their communities. Across the archdiocesan region are countless stories of Christians from different denominations coming together to respond to emerging needs through setting up foodbanks, warm spaces, support hubs, and much more. In these spaces, ecumenism is part and parcel of ordinary Christian life, through a natural response to the Gospel’s call to love our neighbour.

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But our ecumenical way of life consists not only of working together but celebrating together too, and this spirit will be captured at this year’s Two Cathedrals Walk, which will take place on Sunday 24 May at 3pm. All are warmly welcome to join us in gathering at the Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King for a walk down Hope Street to Liverpool Cathedral in a time of joint celebration.

 

For more information, visit: https://www.ctmr.org.uk/Groups/341586/Pentecost.aspx