We read in our first lesson that the earliest Christians were of “one heart and soul.” Such unity is God’s will for all of God’s children, all of us the world over, in every generation, but we don’t see that very often in our lives today. Nearly three millennia ago, the psalmist recognized “how good and pleasant it is, when brethren live together in unity,” unity, harmony, peace, with one another, with God, and with all creation. We know that is true, but somehow we find it difficult to live into such oneness. Impatience and intolerance toward one another produce problems in our relationships in our families, our communities, the world. “One heart and soul” seems to be an impossible dream.

Recently I came across a book with the intriguing title Wholeliness, which the author, Carmen Harra, defines as “The condition, state, or quality of being healed, whole, and in harmony with the Divine and all that exists.” Harra doesn’t find “one heart and soul” so impossible, difficult maybe, but possible. She says: “To end the divisiveness and strife on the planet, it’s essential that we recognize these sacred connections that exist beyond time, geographical boundaries, and all the other limitations we’ve invented to organize the tangible world. Now we know that we’re related beyond religion, ethnic group, or gender, our challenge is to stop making so much of our differences and balance what we understand about each other. . . . To embrace wholeliness is to renew our faith in the good of humanity and recognize that all souls are worth our efforts at progress and positive change.” (p.179)

The theme of oneness with God and all creation has been on my heart for some time, and I know that “one heart and soul” doesn’t happen overnight nor without openness and effort on our part. I offer the following prayer by Helen Weaver (Earth Prayers, edited by Roberts and Amido, p.115) as a way that we might cooperate with God in bringing “one heart and soul” to reality: “Almighty God, who are mother and father to us all, help us to know that we are all your children, that all nations belong to one great family, and all our religions lead to you. Multiply our prayers in every land until the whole Earth becomes your congregation, united in your love. Sustain our vision of a peaceful future, and give us strength to work unceasingly to make that vision real. Amen.”