This Sunday (Nov. 21) marks the 40th anniversary of the promulgation of Unitatis Redintegratio, the Decree on Ecumenism from the Second Vatican Council.

On Nov. 13 in the Vatican Basilica, Pope John Paul II presided at a celebration of Vespers that included bishops and delegates from other churches and ecclesial communities, as well as faithful from the diocese of Rome.

"Our age longs for peace," the pope said. "The Church, a credible sign and instrument of Christ's peace, must be committed to overcome the divisions among Christians and must be ever more a witness of the peace that Christ offers the world."

Despite the fact that the path "is still long and tedious," the pope said, we must not lose hope. "Doing what is possible starting right now makes us grow in unity and gives us the enthusiasm to overcome difficulties.... The unity of one church, which already exists in the Catholic Church and which can never be lost, guarantees us that one day the unity of all Christians will become a reality."

While many inside and outside the Catholic Church have since discussed (and at times argued) what it means to be "separated from" the faith, it is clear that the ensuing four decades have, in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, been increasingly filled with efforts to promote and improve relations among not only other Christian faiths, but of non-Christian religions as well.

In that light, The Tidings presents this week a photographic look at some (and certainly not all) of the highlights in local interfaith and ecumenical efforts involving the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.