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Friday of the Twenty-ninth Week in Ordinary Time Ephesians 4:1–6
We all speak about unity.
Unity in the family.
Unity in the Church.
Unity in society.
Unity among nations.
But unity is not easy.
We know this.
Pope Francis once wrote that God created all human beings equal in dignity
and called us to live as brothers and sisters.
But he also spoke about the shattered dreams of fraternity.
Saint Paul was concerned about the unity of the Church.
He explains that this unity has seven dimensions:
There is one Body:
the Church.
One Spirit:
the Holy Spirit given to us.
One hope:
the promise of God’s future.
One Lord:
Jesus Christ.
One faith:
the faith handed down from the apostles.
One baptism:
our dying and rising with Christ.
One God and Father of all,
who is over all,
through all,
and in all.
This is the deep foundation of Christian unity.
We are not one because we think the same about everything.
We are not one because we have the same personality,
the same culture,
the same history,
or the same wounds.
We are one because God is one.
We are one because Christ is one.
We are one because the Spirit has been given to us.
But what God gives,
we can neglect.
What God builds,
we can damage.
What God joins together,
we can tear apart.
So how do we preserve this unity?
Through
humility,
gentleness,
patience,
bearing with one another in love.
These are quiet virtues.
They do not impress the world.
They do not make headlines.
But without them, no community can survive.
Without humility, we become proud.
Without gentleness, we wound one another.
Without patience, we give up on people too quickly.
Without love, we only tolerate one another from a distance.
Unity is not preserved by beautiful speeches.
Unity is preserved by humble people.
By gentle people.
By patient people.
By people who carry one another’s weakness with love.
This is difficult.
Because we live in a time when everyone is told to defend himself,
to claim his rights,
to speak louder,
to win.
But Christ shows another way.
He was humble.
He was gentle.
He was patient.
He carried us in love.
So Paul says:
Make every effort to preserve the unity of the Spirit
through the bond of peace.
Peace is the thread that holds the garment together.
Peace is the quiet strength that keeps the Church from falling into pieces.
Today Paul asks us a simple question:
Do I protect unity,
or do I damage it?
In my family,
in my parish,
in my community,
in the Church,
am I a builder of peace?
Christ has made us one.
Now we must live as people who are one.
With humility.
With gentleness.
With patience.
Bearing with one another in love.
Biblical Reflections on the Gospel of Matthew
Scripture Attribution
New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition,
copyright © 1989, 1993
the Division of Christian Education of the National Council
of the Churches of
Christ in the United States of America.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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