False Unity

Starter Prayer:  "Jesus, our Scapegoat, you forever show us on the cross both the human problem and the divine solution.  Help me to be part of your solution and to stop creating and persecuting scapegoats.  I now know that I might just be killing you."  (From Wondrous Encounters by Richard Rohr)

False unity is fleeting because it has something temporary at its center.  I think of how the fans at a winning game of the Cleveland Indians all give each other "high-fives" and broad smiles as they walk around the many halls at Progressive Stadium.  The crowds stand up and cheer in unison, and sometimes even participate in "the wave".  Yet this same multitude will be at each other's throats as they compete for the open space in the line of cars exiting the parking lot -- unity is gone, because the unifying quality (the game) is over.

True unity binds individuals together in a way that transcends circumstances.  Not only are the units drawn together into one, but the marks of delineation are virtually air brushed away so that oneness is complete and inseparable regardless of time, space or context.  This type of true unity is rare.  In fact, most people resist it even though it sounds good at the start.  True unity transforms what was two into one... and the mass grows exponentially with what is true and eternally loving and wise at the center.

The cross in our sanctuary is huge -- nearly 25 feet tall.  I often envision it as a powerful magnet where God's love attracts every aspect of human suffering and every hunger for love that enters the space.  I can see each person propelled by that magnetism and literally stuck to the cross where God's love melts us into one.

The problem is suffering and hunger that must be drawn into God's heart.  The solution is God's power to transform the suffering into life, love, generosity, mercy and compassion for all.