Day 7 (part 1) - "... that all may be one"

Oh, my friends.  My heart is very full after today. It was a wonderful day in Busan.

The theme of today was unity. In worship and Bible study, we talked about Pentecost, and considered that unity can exist in the midst of diversity. That is on clear display this week - there are many differences between the people who are gathered, and yet we are trying to find areas where we can be unified.

The Unity Plenary this morning was quite moving. We heard from four speakers about our journey, as churches, toward Christian unity. We have come a long way, but there are still great divisions. One of the most obvious of these is that we cannot yet share the Eucharist around the same table.

• Metropolitan Nifon of Târgoviste, from the Romanian Orthodox Church, reminded us that Jesus loved all of the people he met, regardless of their religion, and that sometimes the greatest challenge to Christian unity is within our own constituencies. Patience, passion and hardwork will be required for unity.
• The Rev. Dr. Neville Callam, from the Baptist World Alliance, said that churches should work to address the conflicting moral issues we have so that we don't entrench societal divisions.
• Alice Fabian, from the United Congregational Church of Southern Africa, told us that there has been much work toward unity in South Africa, but that there is still work to do. She told us of two previously separate Zulu- and English-speaking congregations, using the same building, that have recently joined together to be one congregation.
• Bishop Mark MacDonald (a Canadian you may remember from yesterday's post) told of his ministry in the far north of North America, saying, "At 50 below zero, denominational differences disappear." He talked about the harsh conditions of the north (both human and environmental), and how people in the north are reminding the rest of us how to live faithfully on the land.

The conclusion of the plenary was a very special moment. A small group sat on the stage, in a semi-circle, facing away from us. They began singing Ubi Caritas from the Taizé Community, and we all joined in. The lyrics mean: Where true charity/love is, there is God. The people in the semi-circle then said "By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love one for another." in many languages. We then concluded with Laudate omnes gentes (Sing praises all you people, sing praises to the Lord). It was a truly wonderful moment.