Reflecting today on the subject of ecumenism at breakfast in conversation with one of my oldest best
friends who is also a theology buff just like me, I decided to write this post. I have to say that the church, perhaps,
has never really been one or united one hundred percent because we are all
different, and God created us as such. Moreover, it was evident that from the beginning
there was division in the Church, as St. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 1: 11-13: “For
it has been reported to me by Chlo'e's people that there is quarreling among
you, my brethren. What I mean is that each one of you says, "I belong to
Paul," or "I belong to Apol'los," or "I belong to
Cephas," or "I belong to Christ." Is Christ divided (RSV Bible)?”
Obliviously, this type of division was not what Jesus intended or else he would
not have prayed in John 17: 21, "I pray that they may all be one…."
Indeed, Jesus prayed that we would be one. But, today we have
many types of Protestants, other Christian groups, and Evangelicals, and so on.
We have Eastern Orthodox, we have Anglicans, and we have the Western Church
(Roman Catholic) which is the largest Christian denomination. If one thinks
about it, all of these make up the two billion plus humans that call themselves
Christian or followers of Christ. Why so many different types? Well, this is a complex answer, but obviously
everyone individually thinks that they are right or have the correct
understanding of the truth. How right does each think that they are? Is it to
the extreme that some think they are right, and all others are wrong? The
answer to this is really that it doesn't matter what you are or what
denomination you are if you think your right and others are completely wrong
then you're probably a fundamentalist. Honestly, the highest probability is
that perhaps all of us have a little bit of the truth, but no one has all of
the truth, and we can learn from anybody on understanding God’s will. Moreover,
there is a not so cute story that sounds cute found in the Book of Numbers 22:
21-34, it is the story of Balaam and his Donkey. In this story God uses a
donkey to talk to Balaam to make him understand that he is wrong, although I
don’t want to give you too much detail about the story, so you can read it for
yourself. But, the bottom line is that we can be as hard headed as Balaam
thinking we are right, even in the way we understand Scripture or history, and
unknowingly we may be on a collision course with what Christ was and was really
saying to us.
I hate taking Scriptures out of context, but a favorite
Evangelical verse is found in Romans 3:23, and in it St. Paul said: “all have
sinned and fall short of the glory of God….” We are all sinners, so deal with
it! Also, in 1 Corinthians 10:12, St. Paul said: “Therefore let anyone who
thinks that he stands take heed lest he fall.” Personally, no matter what denomination
you may be, I suggest that if you think that you are standing upright, be
careful because if you are promoting division it does not sound like you understand
the prayer of Jesus in John 17: 21, "I pray that they may all be
one…."Furthermore, I would recommend that you read the story I mentioned
about Balaam, and ask yourself if you are on a collision course against the
will of Christ?
One of the most ecumenical experiences I have happens to me almost
weekly at the church I attend during communion or the Eucharist. I am not an
official parishioner, per se, but I do attend regularly to Trinity Cathedral
in Miami. One of the things I love to hear regularly is when Dean Douglas McCaleb
says before the Lord’s Supper: “what follows is not a Protestant table or a
Catholic table, this is God’s table and in God's table all are welcome.” Thinking
about it, this is how we should all treat each other always, just like a family
that shares a table thanks to Jesus Christ. In John 14: 34-35, Jesus said: “A
new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; even as I have loved
you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are my
disciples, if you have love for one another (RSV Bible)." I think this
blog post is over now, and I will leave it up to you to ponder, as the popular
phrase says, “enough said!” Blessings!
Reference:
RSV Bible
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