Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY
Br. Bernard Delcourt, OHC
Epiphany 3 A - Sunday, January 22, 2023
At the Last Supper, Jesus prayed "that they all may be one." (cf. John 17:21)
From January 18 to January 25, Christian churches around the world observe the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. That we all may be One.
The Church Unity Octave, a forerunner of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, was developed by Father Paul Wattson, a Franciscan Friar of the Atonement, at Graymoor in Garrison, 35 miles South of here on the other side of the river.
It was first observed at Graymoor, in 1908. It is now observed worldwide.
Today’s epistle is right on point.
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In this morning’s passage of Paul’s first epistle to the Corinthians, he enjoins his brothers and sisters in the Jesus movement to unity. Christian unity is important at the local level and at the universal level. But unity is challenged at both levels.
Paul starts at the local level. Which is where our behaviors have the most impact. He warns against cliques and factions. Cliques and factions are contentious self-seeking groups within a larger community.
In the church at Corinth, Paul is concerned by sub-groups that have formed in identification and allegiance to whomever has baptized them. This seems to be happening regardless of whether those baptizers even know about or approve of those cliques.
And in claiming this allegiance to their respective baptizers, the cliques disagree with and oppose one another. They introduce incoherence and confusion in the larger community. They do not embody love of their neighbor as Jesus asks them to.
As Paul suggests, one may even claim allegiance to Jesus to attempt to justify one’s clique. One can say “I belong to Christ” and be self-seeking and contentious in doing it. That doesn’t cut it with Paul.
Jesus said “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another.” (John 13:34)
So the alternative to self-seeking, contentious behavior is to love God and neighbor as oneself. It helps to remember that I and the person I may be in contention with are both in God and beloved of God.
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This call to unity also serves at the level of the whole Body of Christ, the whole church, the whole world.
A man drew a diagram of the Christian Church in this way: He drew it as a circle with several radii converging on the center which he called “Christ.” On the different radii, he wrote the names of the different denominations of Christians. Underneath he wrote the words, “The nearer to the center, Christ, the nearer to each other.”
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What can keep us from a unity centered on Jesus, the Christ?
In Christ, divisions between church bodies, races, backgrounds, educational levels, incomes, political affiliation, break down. We should help, not hinder, that breakdown.
In Christ there is no north or south, no east or west. In Christ there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female. We are all one as we are one in the Lord. So let us act “as if” until we really believe it.
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One of the root problems of our culture today is that we have politicized everything. I am right. Therefore you are wrong. And my side needs to win at all costs. And I only listen to the ones who think and talk like me, lest I should walk in your shoes for a couple of miles.
We are called to be one with Christ and with each other. To be closer to the LORD means that we will draw nearer to each other; to draw closer to our fellow believers means that we have come nearer to the LORD.
The unity of God’s people is God-pleasing in itself. Remember how Jesus prayed in John’s Gospel that his followers would be one with each other just as he and the Father were one.
Jesus said “that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:21)
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Christian unity is for the sake of the whole world. Human unity - including Christianity but going well beyond that to all Creation - is for the sake of the world.
How we bring about peace, justice and love for all - the Kingdom of God - hinges on our ability to seek common purpose among Christians, but also among all humans.
Jesus helps us with that. We need to keep praying for God’s peace, justice and love to prevail everywhere, not just among Christians. And we need to act in accordance with our prayers.
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When Paul talks about having one mind, he is speaking of unity not uniformity. This unity enriches diversity - a real rainbow of peoples, ideas, cultures, goals.
But Jesus-centered unity does not reside in our best thought, our best behavior, or our pedigreed background. Our unity is in Jesus Christ. Do we learn from Him; do we follow Him; do we love Him?
As we accept each other, speak well of each other, interpret the actions of each other in the kindest way, as we love each other, we come closer to Christ.
As we learn and study and worship and pray together, we come closer to the cross of Christ and to each other.
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Beloved Jesus, the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. But to us who follow you, it is the power of God. As you were raised up on the cross, you lovingly embraced us all with no exception. Give us to embrace all of your beloved Creation as our Sister, as our Brother, without exceptions.
Amen.
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