In the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls yesterday, Pope Francis celebrated Second Vespers on the Solemnity of the Conversion of St. Paul, which closes the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. In his homily, the Pontiff emphasized the call to conversion of heart: only love "that does not return to the past to distance itself or point fingers, only this love that in the name of God puts its brother before the iron defense of its own religious system, will unite us". At the end of Francis' homily, it was the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby - received this morning by the Pope at the Vatican - who offered his reflections in which he entrusted the path to unity to God and Mary, asking for the gifts of freedom "from the chains of hatred" and "love" which is the very fruit of freedom. Together with the Anglican archbishop, Francis gave the mandate to the bishops of the Catholic and Anglican churches, members of the International Commission for Unity and Mission, that together they may witness to the unity willed by God in their respective regions.
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