Holy Father, keep them in your name
that you have given me,
so that they may be one just as we are one.
Jesus prayed that his disciples would remain spiritually united, precisely because he knew that the tendency of the Evil One was to separate and to scatter. His Church was meant to be a gathering force, drawing together women and men, Gentiles and Jews. It was to be compromised of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. It was to be a manifestation on earth of the love that united the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in heaven. The supernatural glue of love known as the Holy Spirit was to be its binding force.
Unity was directly related to living out the commission of love. It was therefore to be the core identity of the Church. Obviously if the Church was to be the Body of Christ, severed limbs were antithetical to this identity. The Evil One sought to attack the unity of the Church precisely because he realized how essential unity was to its mission. If everyone was grounded in the same truth they would be, as a consequence, united. But if their unity was shattered so too would be their connection with the truth. They would be reduced to the postlapsarian state of Adam and Eve who lost their unity with God when they chose to decide for themselves about good and evil rather than consenting to the way things actually were in reality.
In many ways that Evil One has been sadly successful in his efforts, both by causing heresies and schisms leading people away from the true Church, and even by the political divisions and personality cults dividing the Church from within. Yet the prayer of Jesus has not failed, nor has it ceased to be efficacious. It is still possible for us to enter and remain in the unity Christ desired for us. But to do so we must remain in the care of those consecrated to continue the unifying ministry of Jesus toward us. The bishops and priests who remain in communion with the ancient Church and the modern Magisterium are the ones who can protect us in Jesus name, and guard us, so that none might be lost.
I know that after my departure savage wolves will come among you,
and they will not spare the flock.
And from your own group, men will come forward perverting the truth
to draw the disciples away after them.
Paul too realized that attacks on the Body of Christ would come from within as well as without. He commended the presbyters to vigilance, ensuring that they remained faithful to "that gracious word of his". It was not just an abstract word, but had the power to build up, both individuals, and the Church as a whole. This word is conveyed to us through the Scriptures and Apostolic tradition as authentically interpreted by the Magisterium of the Bishop of Rome and those in communion with him. As long as we remain under the protection of that powerful word we will be safe from the Evil One's attempts to undermine us. The result of preserving the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (see Ephesians 4:3) is not merely synchronicity of movement, as though we all become marionettes dancing in harmony. External conformity is not in itself union. True union, of the sort for which Jesus prayed, can be recognized because it results in the genuine joy that only love can give. It is what happens when we live for the purpose for which we were created.
I speak this in the world
so that they may share my joy completely.
So let's allow the mighty word of Jesus to build us together in union with one another, and to build, even a little more, his joy within our hearts.
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