Advent Word: Unity

I continue to use each daily word from the 2019 Advent Word Calendar as a focus for a brief reflection.

This is the 3rd year I have done this during Advent.

I have found this discipline helpful. Rather like a daily Bible lectionary reading, it makes me focus on something I might not have chosen myself. That process often leads to creative surprises or challenges.

Today's Advent Word is 'Unity'.

At a time of considerable political disunity just now in UK politics in the run-up to a General Election in a few days time, the idea of unity among people in the UK seems like a utopian dream. In a democracy, I think it is good to disagree about political policies. The alternative would be a dictatorship - and potentially an evil dictatorship where all dissent is repressed. One of the many problems we have now in the UK is we seem to have forgotten (if we ever knew) how to treat each other with respect, in order to foster good disagreement, to listen to each other as well as present our own views.

To me, unity is about learning to live together in harmony, whether we agree with each other or not. It is about unity in diversity. It is about peace and requires bridge building between people. The Christian church should be a model of how to do this. Here and there it is, but in so many ways we fail to maintain "the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

There is a wonderful vision of unity in Psalm 133, a song of Aaron and entitled in my Bible "The Blessedness of Unity".

"How very good and pleasant it is 

when kindred live together in unity! 

It is like the precious oil on the head. 

running down upon the beard, 

on the beard of Aaron, 

running down over the collar of his robes. 

It is like the dew of Hermon, 

which falls on the mountains of Zion. 

for there the Lord ordained his blessing, 

life forevermore." 

Psalm 133: 1 - 3 NRSV

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