Charity registration No. SC002876   Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Main Menu Notices Page 4 Page 5 Sunday January 22nd. 2012 or the past four hundred  years, the unity of the  Church founded by Christ  has been torn apart.  On Calvary, the crude Roman  soldiers drew lots for the seamless  robe which Our Lord had been  wearing. It was the work of very  skilled hands, possibly woven by  Our Blessed Lady, our Lord’s  mother. It was unique and beautiful  and could fetch a good price, so  they bartered for it. The seamless  robe is a symbol of the unity of the  Church for which Our Lord prayed  at the Last Supper: “Father, may  the all be one as you and I are  one”. What the Roman soldiers did  not tear apart, Christians did!    Down the centuries Christians have been persecuted for their faith, thousands martyred rather than betray Christ. In Europe, the Reformation destroyed that unity, and again the seamless robe of Christ was divided. In our own country, the Catholic faith was outlawed, and monasteries and destroyed, altars desecrated and  the celebration of Mass forbidden.  The new penal laws were to deprive Catholics of all that was dear to them, and forbade them to practice their faith under the threat of imprisonment and loss of their land. Priests were outlawed and threatened with death if caught saying Mass. With the passing of the centuries, how things have changed, and now there is not only tolerance, but an immense desire by most Christians to seek a unity and try to repair the damage of centuries so that Christ’s prayer may yet be fulfilled. The essential driving force to seek this longed-for peace and our trust in each other is LOVE. Today, Churches of all denominations share so many things together—joint ecumenical services, making themselves responsible for a host of charities to help the poor and needy, and just being friendly and neighbourly in a way that expresses the love of Christ we have for each other. By our common baptism we are all sons and daughters of Christ in one great family. Whatever divisions have been caused in the family over the years, we, in our age, are striving to heal these and live in close harmony with each other. Someone expressed this very beautifully. He said: “Imagine a cartwheel; the circumference of the wheel is bound with iron—a symbol of our common baptism; the spokes are the different denominations; the hub is Christ. As the spokes draw closer to the hub, they automatically draw closer to each other until they finally merge in the hub.” There is an old Latin saying: Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est—where there is charity and love, God is present there. May we continue and increase in our love and trust of each other as members of a broken family which  is trying to come together. Let us leave the outcome and guidance to the Holy Spirit that in God’s own good time Christ’s prayer at the Last Supper will be fulfilled: “Father, may they all be one as you and I are one” Week of Prayer for Unity ends Wednesday, January 25th.