Thursday, 29 May 2025

We Are One

Ut omnes unum sint.


This latin phrase has been on the United Church of Canada crest since it was officially adopted in 1944, 19 years after the church was formed by a union of Methodist, Congregationalist and Presbyterian churches in 1925. I don’t know if it was top of everyone’s mind from the beginning, but the text it comes from was read at the inaugural service, June 10, 1925.


If you’re not up on your latin, it’s a quote from the Gospel of John, chapter 17, verse 21: “that all may be one.” An ideal expression of what it means to be united and uniting.


But I imagine (at least, I hope this was the case) that there might have been some discussion around it. I wasn’t there, but surely someone must have pointed out that, taken out of context, “that all may be one” might easily be misconstrued as implying uniformity, not unity. Those are two very different things and the United Church has never been about uniformity. Another expression for which the church is known is “unity in diversity.” That’s the difference. Unity acknowledges the diversity and uniqueness of everyone and invites inclusivity, seeking the most meaningful of common ground, that we are all children of God, one in spirit. 


I’m not suggesting that the United Church has cornered the market on inclusivity. In fact, I forever wish it were the norm and not something special. After all, I think that’s what Jesus was on about when he said it. When he lived it.


The context of that phrase is Jesus praying for his followers on the night that he was arrested. John tells a very different Last Supper story than the other gospels. At the end of the meal, Jesus talks to the disciples at length, a speech called The Farewell Discourse. I think it would have been more of a conversation than a speech, but the highlights are some pretty important and meaningful things and he offers the disciples affirmation, support and the challenge of living Jesus into the world after he’s gone. At the end of it, he prays.


He asks God to support and care for his disciples who he now sends into the world. And then he says “I ask not only on behalf of these but also on behalf of those who believe in me through their word, that they may all be one.” Just as he’s taught his closest followers that the divine spirit of God is in him and he’s shown them it’s in them as well, he knows that they will share that with others. 


That’s the “one-ness,” that Jesus has shown us the spirit of God is in him and he has shown the disciples that it’s in them and they will show others that is in them as well. In other words, Jesus prays not just for his followers, but those who follow them and come to know the divine spirit of God through them. And their followers. And their followers. 


They are all unique individuals. Paul will later share this with the people in Corinth by saying there are many gifts, but one spirit and that there is one body and we are all unique members of it. Our diversity isn’t just a gift, it’s an incredible strength to be embraced, engaged and celebrated.


That’s how all may be one. One Spirit which is inclusive of the great diversity of all creation and the connectedness of “all my relations.” One Spirit which is love.

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