In the Gospel of John, Jesus told his followers: “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I love you, so must you love one another.” A scholar has estimated that there are some 34,000 separate Christian denominations, and so this commandment seems to have been broken 34,000 times.
Historically, Christians have been a particularly fractious people, frequently declaring others to be heretics and breaking communion over matters of doctrine that seem trivial to outsiders. Often these disagreements have erupted into deadly conflict:
• The destruction of Eastern Orthodox Constantinople by Catholic Crusaders on their way to wrest the Holy Land from Muslims during the 13th century
• Eight wars of religion in Europe between 1562 and 1598
• More than 3,700 deaths in Northern Ireland during sectarian violence between 1969 and 2000.
Fortunately, Christians behaving violently against each other is now mainly in the past; Protestants, Roman Catholics, Orthodox and other followers of Jesus are now more likely to pray together than to shoot at each other.
An example of this change in attitude is the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, this year observed Jan. 18-25. The roots of this tradition date back to the late 19th century and a man named Paul James Watson, an Episcopal priest in New York’s Hudson Valley.
In 1898, Father Watson co-founded, with Lurana Mary White, the Society of the Atonement at Graymoor, a Franciscan order had both male friars and female sisters. Watson was a vigorous advocate of Anglican and Roman Catholic reunion, and his followers held the first Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 1908.
The following year the order was received into the Roman Catholic Church, but they adopted as their mission a fervent effort to advance the cause of Christian unity, what has become known as “the ecumenical movement.” Since then they have worked through the World Council of Churches and the Vatican Council for Promoting Christian Unity toward this goal; they have provided themes, texts, and other materials for use by groups around the world during the Week’s observances.
On Jan. 20 a Prayer Service was held at Mission San Juan Bautista sponsored by the local Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement and the Hollister Ministerial Association. Congregations from across San Benito County were represented, including the following clergy:
• The Rev. Jim Henry, Pastor, San Juan Mission
• The Rev. Ardyss Golden, Pastor, Hollister United Methodist Church
• The Rev. Mike Hogg, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church of Hollister
• The Rev. Amy Denney Zuniga, Priest in Charge, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church
• The Rev. Bob Rufener, Pastor, Abundant Life Church Foursquare Church
• The Rev. Rudy Ruiz, Pastor, St. Benedict’s/Sacred Heart Catholic Church
• The Rev. Van Wolverton, Deacon, San Juan Mission
Gathered in the historic mission church, site of more than two centuries of Christian worship, the clergy, lay people and religious sisters sang hymns, heard Scripture readings and prayed together that the vision of Jesus for the unity of his followers would someday become a reality.
