Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying: "Holy
Father, I pray not only for them, 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." John 17: 20 –
26
I find this Gospel to be so pertinent for our time. Today
we are treated to Jesus praying for his loved ones and friends. Jesus prays
that we all may be one. His desire is for us to be unified. Wouldn’t it be
great if our world would embrace Jesus’ invitation to be one. He is not asking
for us to be cookie cutter molds – he desires us to be open to one another and
to take each person where there are. We have so many diverse personalities
making up our world that it is not always easy to be one. Each one of us has to
make the choice to live out Jesus’ prayer to be willing to embrace relationship
with one another. Take some time to reflect on God’s invitation to you. Are you
able to accept God’s invitation that we may come one?
