Together on the Journey:
A Weekly Blog
It’s early on Friday morning, and I’m sitting in my office with the sun streaming in. It’s very cold outside, but you’d never know it just by looking out the window. But as I sit here this morning, I am thinking about how the weather is expected to shift over the weekend. As of now, we are expecting a large snow storm on Sunday, and I’m meeting with the leadership team today to make contingency plans. And quite honestly, expecting a giant snow storm this week almost makes me laugh a little, because this week is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, and nothing is more uniting in Canada than a giant snow storm.
The first major weather event I remember as a kid was the giant ice storm of 1997. The trees were coated in ice, we lost power for 5 days, and the major form of entertainment for my brothers and I was watching giant branches fall from the trees in the backyard. There was no school and no warm food, but we made do. We BBQ’d outside anything that was in the freezer and went over to our neighbour’s house to play games. I learned how to play poker. We all slept in the living room in front of the fireplace to stay warm. We listened to the radio. It’s five days that stick very clearly in my memory even years later.
The reason this particular weather event stays in my memory so clearly is not because of those things I just stated, but the feelings I remember in coming together as a community. We helped each other out, we checked in on vulnerable people, and we shared what we had. In other words, we came together with a common goal of getting through, and it’s that sense of unity that I will always remember.
The Week of Prayer for Christian Unity takes place in the northern hemisphere from January 18 to 25 every year. And this celebration is important because in the gospel of John, Jesus prays that his followers may all be one, just like he and the Father are one, so that the world may believe and have life in his name. Here, Christian unity is made central to the very being of the church, and to its witness and mission in the world.
Throughout the history of Christianity, we have fallen short of this original vision of Jesus for all his followers to be one. There are many divisions among us, often for very legitimate reasons. However, there are many Christians who are seeking to heal these divisions while honouring our diversity, through ecumenical dialogue, common action, and relationship building. The celebration of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity is both the seed and the fruit for this striving for unity in diversity.
And so this Sunday, we will be marking the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity with a pulpit swap, and we will welcome Rev. Tim Bruneau from St. Giles Presbyterian just down the hill. And as we mark this week, let us remember the importance of this celebration, and the overarching goal of finding unity in diversity. And on a smaller scale, let us come together as neighbours, just like we do during questionable weather.
– Jess