What ever disunites man from God, also disunites man from man.

“The deepest of level of communication is not communication, but communion. It is wordless ... beyond speech ... beyond concept.”  ― Thomas Merton: (1915 –1968) was an American Catholic writer, priest and Trappist monk of the Abbey of Gethsemani, Kentucky)

Gospel Text: (JN 17:20-26)

Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying:

"I pray not only for these,

but also for those who will believe in me through their word,

so that they may all be one,

as you, Father, are in me and I in you,

that they also may be in us,

that the world may believe that you sent me.

And I have given them the glory you gave me,

so that they may be one, as we are one,

I in them and you in me,

that they may be brought to perfection as one,

that the world may know that you sent me,

and that you loved them even as you loved me.

Father, they are your gift to me.

I wish that where I am they also may be with me,

that they may see my glory that you gave me,

because you loved me before the foundation of the world.

Righteous Father, the world also does not know you,

but I know you, and they know that you sent me.

I made known to them your name and I will make it known,

that the love with which you loved me

may be in them and I in them."

Today is all about unity. In the Gospel Jesus is praying for us. For you and me reading this now. He says specifically that he is not only praying for his people then and there, but for everyone who will learn of him, who will hear about him, and who will follow him. Not just the disciples there. Not just the people following him then, but everyone who will follow him in the future. That’s us. Here and now. And what he prays for is unity. He prays that we might all be connected like he is connected to God. As Jesus is one with the Father, he prays that we will be one with Jesus and with God and with each other. This is a vision of a unified church where we know God because we recognize Jesus, and we know each other because we all know Jesus. We know God’s love through Jesus and share that love with each other. His prayer for unity is that we might all be brought to perfection as one.

Wouldn’t that be great?