Monday of the Sixth Week of Easter

They will expel you from the synagogues;

in fact, the hour is coming when everyone who kills you

will think he is offering worship to God.

The Reformation will soon celebrate its 500^th anniversary. Historians doubt that Martin Luther actually nailed his ninety-five theses to the church door, but he did make a controversial statement, not unlike protests inspired Christians had always raised against the status quo. His movement somehow blossomed into the present state when western Christianity seems permanently divided into many parts.

Given the contention and controversy we find in the gospels, we should not be surprised if life among Christians is still filled with disagreements and arguments. The wonder is that two people can agree on anything in spiritual matters! The Catholic writers, Joseph and Lois Bird, once observed that all marriages are “mixed marriages.”

It’s inevitable too, that some of the denominations and sects, finding themselves vastly outnumbered in an ocean of controversy, will distinguish themselves with hostile, even vicious attitudes toward others. They will certainly “expel” dissenters from their congregations; hopefully they will not kill them in the manner Jesus predicted.

But if, in the practice of our own particular brand of Christianity, we prefer to practice reverent tolerance, we should be especially patient with those who despise us. That’s how they practice fidelity to their God. We can neither deny the authority of the scripture passages they cite nor claim utter innocence in the face of their accusations. Who knows, they might be right?

Father Juniper Cummings tells the story of Saint John of the Cross, one of the founding reformers of the Carmelite Order. For whatever reason his superior decided he should be disciplined and he was ordered to kneel by the refectory door. As each brother entered the dining room, the superior demanded, he should rap John on the head with his cord. The story goes that John was delighted with this punishment. He profited by suffering the humiliation of Jesus while the brothers profited by their humble obedience! What could be wrong with that?

If and when the Holy Spirit chooses to reunite Jesus’ church, it will not happen because you or I thought it should happen, but because God’s leading light brought us mysteriously, miraculously and unexpectedly into unity.