John 17. 20-26
Because we are loved by the same god,
we are already one.
We see it all the time. So much so that we, probably, don’t even notice it, anymore. The Great Seal of the United States of America. It’s there on the side of Air Force One. There on the lectern of every speech and every presser. On the flags behind that lectern. It’s on the back of every dollar bill and behind Abe’s left shoulder on every five. Just hours after the Continental Congress adopted the Declaration that first Fourth, they voted to design a seal – this seal – to represent the new nation. Actually, it took six years to accomplish. Six years and five tries. But here it is …
The eagle. The thirteen stars above its head. The shield with thirteen stripes. In one talon, the olive branch with thirteen olives and thirteen leaves. Thirteen arrows, in the other talon. And then, the banner in its beak emblazoned with thirteen letters. E PLURIBUS UNUM. “Out of many, one!” For a hundred seventy-five years, those letters functioned as the de facto motto of our country. Then, in 1957, Congress adopted another phrase. “In God We Trust.” But in spite of that, E PLURIBUS UNUM is still an important phrase for us. OUT OF MANY ONE. Only one problem. After nearly two-and-a-half centuries, we still don’t know what, exactly, it means … to be one.
At first, it was all about those thirteens! A kind of triskaideka-tarianism! Thirteen states, one nation! One nation, thirteen states! United States is, united states are! Later on, it came to stand for our reality as a nation of immigrants. E PLURIBUS UNUM. OUT OF MANY ONE. ONE OUT OF MANY. But what is it that makes us one? Is it that we all speak the same language? Is it that we dream the same dreams? Have the same enemies? Is it a common confession? Everyone is created equal! Or is the truth not as self-evident as it once was? Or is it the economics? The opportunities? Two cars in every garage? A chicken in every pot? Is it standing for the national anthem? Flying the flag on holidays? Truth is, we just don’t know. All we have to do is look around us to see that. We’re heavy on the E PLURIBUS and light on the UNUM.
Well, as I read through the gospel for the first time, again, this past week, I realized that we can say the same thing about the church. On the night in which he was betrayed – at least, according to John – Jesus prays, “I ask that they may all be one!” That’s the church’s version of E PLURIBUS. And we, as well, don’t understand what, exactly, it means. There are thirty-nine different denominations of Lutherans alone in the United States! Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. Lutheran Congregations in Mission for Christ. The North American Lutheran Church. Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod. Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod. And those are just a handful! Thirty-nine denominations. And that’s not counting the two-or-three persons who meet in their homes because they can’t agree with any of those thirty-nine. All told, there are over two hundred Christian denominations, here in America. Over two hundred …
E PLURIBUS UNUM. I ASK THAT THEY MAY ALL BE ONE. But what is it that brings us together? And more importantly, what is it that keeps us together? Is it when we all believe the same thing? When we dot the same ‘i’s? Cross the same ‘t’s? Is it when we sing from the same book? Say the same prayers? Follow the same script? Are we one when our leaders tell us we’re one? With the Episcopalians? With the Presbyterians? With the Methodists?
(Just a quick aside … The words we just heard? Jesus wasn’t talking to us! Jesus isn’t talking to us! Unity isn’t a commandment we obey. It’s not a suggestion we follow. Not a moral or an ethic or a principle, a should or ought or must. It’s a prayer! He’s talking to god! And he’s asking the Father to make us one! And that happens not when we want it to happen or when we wish it to happen. It happens when god makes it happen. Specifically, it happens when god loves! When god so loves the cosmos! When the Father loves the Son! When the Son loves us!)
It’s pretty simple, actually. God loves. Jesus loves. We love. And it’s that love, that being loved, that loving, that unites us! That makes us one! “I made your name known to them,” Jesus prays, “made it known and continue making it known, so that the love with which you have loved me may be in them!” It’s not the creed or the confession! It’s not the service book or the hymnal! It’s not habits or customs or traditions! Unless, of course, the tradition isn’t lording over each other … or being tyrants … but, instead, is love! The Father loves! The Son loves! And the church, in turn, loves, as well! Loves not by gazing into the eyes of god, but in looking – with god – in the same direction. Not loving god, but loving the world, the cosmos, that god loves! That’s unity! That’s oneness! UNUM!
It’s knowing – without a doubt … knowing – with all our heart … that it’s people! All people! Each and every! One and all! It’s people that is – people that are – that matter most!
We’re a part of each other! All of us! We belong to each other! And yet, we forget that! Forget it, if we ever learned it, to begin with! Instead, we lay down the law. We draw lines in the sand. We give each other hell. Truth is, we’re here for one reason and for one reason alone. We’re here to be loved; and in being loved, we are here to love! Let that sink in! We’re here to be loved; and in being loved, we are here to love! We’re here to be loved; and in being loved, we are here to love! Church unity isn’t about shaking fists in the air or raising voices. According to John, it’s getting up from the table, rolling up our sleeves, kneeling down before the people around us, and washing their feet. Washing their feet even as they betray us. Washing their feet even as they deny they know. Washing their feet even as they turn their backs on us and run away.
That is what brings us together! That’s what keeps us together! Our E PLURIBUS UNUM! Turning the other! Going the extra! Doing unto! We just don’t tolerate each other. We don’t just put up with each other. We treasure each other! Cherish each other! My friends, we love! We love like god first loved us! Love like god continues to love! We love just like Jesus!