HOLY SPIRIT: The Great Unifier
As a body is one though it has many parts, and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body, so also Christ. For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons, and we were all given to drink of one Spirit. (1 Cor 12:12-13)
This…scripture reading points to the unifying aspect of the Holy Spirit. There is only one Spirit that dwells within us all. It is One, indivisible but omnipresent and personal to each of us. Thomas Merton's essay 'Body of Broken Bones' brings to mind this unifying force of love brought forth by the Holy Spirit. At a very basic level of understanding, inside our deepest selves, there is a desire to be one with God. As we see God's presence — the Holy Spirit — in others, we want to be one with them too…The Spirit of God draws us together, it doesn't drive us apart. This scripture also fits in with…Pierre Teilhard de Chardin's essay ‘My Universe’ which was part of ‘Science and Christ’. His concept of creative union, in which 'all consistence comes from spirit,' is profound. Teilhard’s argument states that God's Spirit is what holds everything together in the world. It's the continuous unifying force that we live in. Perhaps the notion of the one Spirit can help us with discernment? If we are to all 'drink of one Spirit' could that be a guide to how we understand God's actions in our world, and in our lives?
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ PRAYER Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful and kindle in them the fire of your love. Send forth your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.
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