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Jesus prays that we may be one as he and God the Father are one. In speaking about Christian unity or ecumenism it is common to quote this and similar sayings of Jesus. While such sayings of Jesus give urgency to the work of Christian unity and point, at least indirectly, to the scandal of disunity, we should realize that in the historical context of Jesus' life, Christian unity was not an issue and therefore not the immediate and deepest meaning of Jesus' words. In writing his Gospel, St. John showed that the real meaning of the book of Genesis appears in the life and work of Jesus, especially when he reverses all the catastrophes which occurred. Thus in Chapter 6, when Jesus speaks of the Eucharist, there are many echoes of the story of Adam and Eve, reaching a climax when Jesus affirmed that he would not drive away anyone who came to him, reversing the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden.
Therefore we best read Jesus' doctrine about unity as the unity of the whole human race, that unity which was destroyed at the Tower of Babel [Genesis 11].
Father in heaven, in union with Your Son, Jesus Christ Our Lord and Saviour, we pray for the unity of all whom you have created in Your image and likeness.
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DAILY OFFERING
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Eternal Father, I offer You everything I do this day; my thoughts, words, joys and sufferings. Grant that, vivified by the Holy Spirit and united to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, my life this day may be of service to You and to others. I also pray that all those preparing for marriage discover in Sacrament the source of Christ's grace for living a fithful and fruitful love. Amen.
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PRAYING WITH THE CHURCH
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INTENTION
That the shameful and monstrous trafficking in human beings, which sadly involves millions of women and children, may stop.
Elaboration
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