Waiting, As One
In these days of waiting as we continue to shelter in place, we remember how the disciples gathered in an upper room, waiting for the Spirit to transform the church around the world, waiting for the outpouring of power that came at Pentecost. In today’s gospel reading, Jesus prays for his followers and for their mission in his name. Jesus prays that they may be united, as he is united with the Father.
Our world is so often so starkly divided -- by political, cultural, social, religious, and economic divisions and more. Many of these divisions have been made yet more pronounced by the coronavirus pandemic. Even as it affects everyone all around the globe, access to health care or ethnicity or types of employment exacerbate its impact on different people.
As we wait today and as we confront the many challenges of one terrible strain of the flu, let us be as one: let us be united in compassion and hope. Pentecost and the powerful display of the Spirit is coming -- and the Spirit has already been poured out upon us. We have been made one in baptism. Jesus still prays for us, and for the unity that God intends for the whole human family.
