Ephesians 4:1-6; Psalm 23(24):1-6; Luke 12:54-59
Remembering, perhaps, Jesus' heartfelt prayer at the last supper - "Father, may they be one, as we are one", St Paul writing to the Ephesians prays for a perfect christian unity which we must admit, we are some way off. Or are we? Are we so very different from each other? Last year we heard from an academic survey that only 30% of American Catholics believe int he real presence of our Lord Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament of the Altar... which is something many other Christians do believe in. The differences between us are mostly in practice and tradition rather than in faith. We do all believe that Christ saves us, we are not saved by our own actions. We can and do all pray together in Jesus' own words - the Our Father. Let us also pray together the prayer from this letter to the Ephesians as we hear or read it today and think of our Christian family that although at times divided amongst itself (see yesterday's meditation) are still, one family, God's Family.
"Bear with one another charitably, in complete selflessness, gentleness and patience. Do all you can to preserve the unity of the Spirit by the peace that binds you together. There is one Body, one Spirit, just as you were all called into one and the same hope when you were called. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God who is Father of all, over all, through all and within all."