THE WORD BECAME FLESH

Thursday of the Seventh Week of Easter 

Acts 22:30-23:6-11

Ps 16

John 17:20-26

May they all be one

Jesus’ prayer for unity among his disciples in this morning’s gospel reading (Jn 17:20-26) has been an inspirational text for the whole ecumenical movement, especially since the Second Vatican Council. ‘May they all be one. Father, may they be one in us’. It is clear from that prayer of Jesus that authentic unity among his disciples will always be rooted in their communion with himself and with God the Father, ‘may they be one in us’. 

The deeper our communion with Jesus and God the Father, the more we will be in communion with each other. It is around the Lord that we come together. At the end of the gospel reading, Jesus prays that the love with which God has loved him may be in his disciples. It is the love of Jesus within us, the love of God within us, that will bring us into true communion. The kind of communion that Jesus prays for is not just the fruit of merely human love. It is the fruit of God’s love, of Jesus’ love within us and between us. If that divine love is to be within us and between us, we need to open ourselves to God’s love for us in Jesus, given to us through the Holy Spirit. 

An appropriate prayer in response to this morning’s gospel reading, especially as we approach the feast of Pentecost, would be, ‘Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and enkindle in us the fire of your love’. Jesus declares in our gospel reading that only if his love flows between us and overflows beyond us will our witness be recognized as authentic.

Let us pray: Heavenly Father, have mercy on all your people who have been redeemed by the precious blood of your Son who offered up his life for us on the cross. Amen.

+Remain blessed