It's All About Unity

Gospel	Mark 9:38-40 ©

You must not stop anyone from working miracles in my name

John said to Jesus, ‘Master, we saw a man who is not one of us casting out devils in your name; and because he was not one of us we tried to stop him.’ But Jesus said, ‘You must not stop him: no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me. Anyone who is not against us is for us.’

Unity is the one thing that is missing from the Christian faith. It is, of course, this situation can be laid at the feet of Mr. Martin Luther and those that came after him who tore the Church asunder.  But this reflection is not a rant about his actions or even the actions of others who, like Luther,  came and built churches in their own images and likeness to suit their own tastes and beliefs.  No, this is about all of us together, you know, unity.

• In spite of all of our differences, we have one Lord above who has saved us. 
• We worship God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
• God loves each of us, knows each of us by name, knows what is alive in our hearts and wants to be a personal friend.
• Our prayers and worship rise up to God and we are heard and He always answers.

If this is true, then does it really matter what church we belong to?  Wouldn't it make sense that God would make different flavors of Christianity to fit the needs of His people?  This sounds good but it is not God's will that each person is his own church.  It is not His will that each person interprets the Holy Bible on their own, there needs to be an authority to stabilize the Faith. 

It is in the Catholic Church where this authority rests.  The Sacred Tradition of the Church includes the Holy Bible and centuries of learned and faithful people have come together and given us the Bible we have today and the Church is the authority that tells us what it means based on the teachings of Jesus, the teaching of the Apostles, and the writings of the Church Fathers.  So it does matter what church we belong to.  

Now once I was a rabid Catholic.  I just knew that all Protestants were on an express trip to hell because they had walked away from the True Faith and were following a tradition where every man is a pope.  Then God refreshed my vision and showed me men and women of different Protestant faiths that loved the Lord and did good and lived worthy lives outside of the Catholic Church.  How would a loving God turn such people away?  The answer is that He wouldn't.  Jesus Himself says it best,  "Anyone who is not against us is for us."

So, I now believe what the Bride of Christ believes.  Yes, it is preferred that we all be one and be united in the Catholic Church but for those, through no fault of their own, are outside of it, they too shall have a share in the inheritance that God gives to His sons and daughters.   This being said, I have to mourn that some of my separated brothers and sisters, all of whom love the Lord and live in a way that is befitting a son or daughter of the Great King, are on this very day attempting to bring down the Bride of Christ and liken the Church to the Whore of Babylon.  This is a blasphemy that cannot be reconciled with the love of God.  These blasphemers are not our brothers and sisters.  They carry the flag of Christ, but they do not honor Him.  For those people, I can only pray. The tears of Jesus in the Garden on the day before He suffered were caused by our sins and His realization that His greatest wish would not be honored by His children, they would separate and separate again and again.  He will restore what needs to be restored when He returns.  We look forward to that day when once again all of us that call Jesus Lord will be of one mind and one Spirit.   AMEN!