My Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

Today marks the end of the Jubilee Year, 2000, the 'Lord's year of favour' (Isaiah 61.2). It has been both a celebration of the gift of Christ and a preparation for the Third Christian Millennium. The Year 2000 has been our threshold: a crossing over from one millennium to the next.

Now we begin a new page of our history. The twentieth century is behind us, with its remarkable achievements and dreadful violence. Yet this new page is already marked with the stains of war and distress. Our resolve to write on it a more noble history must be as firm as ever.

God the Father gives us all we need to create, in this world, the peace and love that God intends for all. In particular God gives us Christ, his Son, to be our Way, Truth and Life. Through the gift of the Holy Spirit, strengthened in us by the sacraments, we are enabled to follow the way of Christ in all we do and say.

In this coming year, I invite every one of you here, and every Catholic, to renew in your life the practice of daily prayer. Prayer is our first response to God. Prayer is turning to God, raising our mind and heart to God, or at least trying to do so. Prayer is our personal one-to-one with God. A life of faith is impossible without it.

In particular I want us all to mark out the weeks of Lent, this year, as a journey of prayer. I want us to make it together, encouraging one another to turn to God in prayer each day. In this journey we will praise God for his goodness, thank God for all his gifts and ask for all that we need.

Our Lenten journey is to be called "Walk with Me". The title is important. It is the invitation of Jesus to each one of us. He invites us to know that he is with us, in every circumstance. Christ is always at our side, despite our feelings to the contrary, especially when we are distressed and alone. Prayer each day helps us to recognise his presence. Prayer helps us to know and experience the comfort and courage that he alone can bring. Prayer opens our hearts to Christ, filling us with a sense of his presence, knowing the joy of his forgiving love.

But the title "Walk with Me" is important for another reason, too. In the weeks before Lent I ask each one of you to invite one other person, someone you know who does not normally come to church, to join you in this simple journey of prayer. "Walk with me," you can say 'just during these weeks of Lent, so that we can know God a little better". This might, at first, seem a difficult thing to do. But I think not. Most people have within them an instinct for God and may even welcome a word of encouragement and some practical help from you. Today you will receive cards with an invitation and a prayer. One is for you. One is for you to pass on. Do so in my name.

A simple Lenten prayer booklet is being prepared, with a copy not only for each of you but also one for you to hand on to your friend, the person you invite. It will be available soon. Your parish will offer you encouragement in this journey of prayer, both before and during Lent. Together we can grow in our love of the Lord, entrusting our cares to him, listening carefully to his Word and opening our hearts to his love. More details of these plans will come to you soon. For now let us begin our preparations, and our prayer, that this Year 2001 will be a new beginning in our life in the Church.

Today's feast of the Epiphany celebrates the meeting of Christ with 'the wise men from the East' (Mt. 2.1). It tells us that the Good News of Jesus Christ is intended for all. The message can reach across all boundaries. Let us play our part in extending the invitation of God's love, displayed so wonderfully in Christ Our Lord.

+Vincent Nichols
Archbishop of Birmingham