Et Unum Sint - That they may be one

I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. In Nomine +

Jesus is praying for us.

Let that truth settle in your heart. Christ, facing betrayal, arrest, and death, turns His eyes to the future—and prays, not for himself, but for you and me. What does He ask for? Unity. Communion. Love. He prays that we may be one, as He is one with the Father.

This passage, in just a few short verses, takes us to the center of the Christian life: union with God and union with one another. Today, let us reflect on three dimensions of this passage:

1. Jesus' Vision for the Church: That They May Be One

2. The Purpose of Unity: So That the World May Believe

3. The Gift of Glory and Love: Sharing in the Divine Life

Jesus' Vision for the Church: That They May Be One

Jesus prays, “that they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us.” (v. 21)

Unity is not merely a human project or a political agreement. It is a divine calling. Jesus doesn’t simply ask that we “get along.” He desires that the Church, His Body, be united in the same way that He is united with the Father. This is nothing less than a call to Trinitarian communion.

The unity of the Church, then, is not about uniformity—it’s about communion. Many parts, many vocations, many cultures and peoples—but one Spirit, one faith, one baptism. The model is the Trinity: three Persons, perfectly united in love.

In the early Church, this unity was a profound witness. Saint Paul pleaded with the Corinthians to overcome their divisions. The Acts of the Apostles tells us that the early believers were “of one heart and one soul” (Acts 4:32). But even from the beginning, human weakness and sin have threatened this unity.

Today, we see how fractured the Christian world has become. There are thousands of denominations. Catholics, Anglicans, Orthodox, Protestants—divided. Even within the Church of england, we experience divisions—between parishes, between ideologies, between cultures. Be it about upholding the ancient teachings about the ordination of women, same-sex love or whether or not Christ is actually present at Mass – we are divided.

Jesus knew this would happen. That’s why He prayed for us.

And His prayer is not a vague hope—it is a powerful intercession. It is a calling. Jesus calls every every Christian to participate in the healing of division. Unity begins not in institutions but in the heart: in our willingness to forgive, to listen, to love.

Let us remember: unity is not optional. It is the will of Christ. It is a mark of the Church: one, holy, catholic, and apostolic. To be Catholic is to be committed to unity  in charity and communion.

The Purpose of Unity: So That the World May Believe

Jesus continues:

“So that the world may believe that you have sent me.”

Here is the missionary dimension of unity. Our communion with one another is not just for our own sake—it is a sign for the world. When the Church is one, the world can see the truth of Christ.

Conversely, when we are divided, the world is confused. Scandal weakens the witness of the Church. How often have people turned away from Christianity—not because of Christ—but because of the hypocrisy, pride, or infighting among Christians.

Jesus desires that His followers be so united, so full of mutual love, that the world sees something divine in us. As He said earlier in the Gospel: “By this all will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.”

This unity is not just organisational; it’s spiritual and visible. It expresses itself in common worship, in fidelity to the apostolic teaching, and in a shared mission of love and service.

Pope St. John Paul II, in his encyclical Ut Unum Sint – That they all should be one - , wrote that “the movement promoting Christian unity is not just some sort of ‘appendix’ which is added to the Church’s traditional activity. Rather, ecumenism is an organic part of her life and work” (Ut Unum Sint, 20). In other words, to evangelise effectively, we must seek unity sincerely.

We must ask ourselves: are we building up the Body of Christ in unity? Do our words and actions help reconcile, or do they deepen divisions? Do we pray for Christian unity as Jesus did?

The Gift of Glory and Love: Sharing in the Divine Life

Finally, Jesus prays:

 “The glory that you have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as we are one... I in them and you in me, that they may become completely one.”

This is perhaps the most astonishing line of the whole prayer. Jesus gives us His glory—the very glory He received from the Father. What is this glory? It is the presence of divine love—the Holy Spirit—poured into our hearts.

It is this glory, this love, that makes unity possible. We cannot achieve it by willpower or diplomacy. Only the transforming grace of God can draw us into real communion.

And then Jesus says:

 “Father, I desire that those also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory.”

This is the end goal of our faith. Union with God. To see the glory of Christ—not dimly, but face to face. Jesus longs for us to be with Him forever. He desires our salvation, our sanctification, our joy. Heaven is not just a reward—it is communion with God, forever.

This longing is the heart of the Eucharist. Every time we come to the altar, we are drawn into this divine prayer. In the Eucharist, we receive the Body of Christ so that we may become more fully the Body of Christ. We are united with Him and with one another.

The Eucharist is the sacrament of unity. That is why St. Paul warns the Corinthians not to receive it unworthily—especially if they are divided from one another. We cannot pretend to receive the One Christ while harbouring hatred in our hearts for our neighbour.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches:

 “The Eucharist is the efficacious sign and sublime cause of that communion in the divine life and that unity of the People of God by which the Church is kept in being.”

This is why reconciliation and charity must accompany every Eucharistic celebration.

Brothers and sisters, in this final portion of John 17, we have heard the prayer of Jesus—a prayer offered not just with words, but with His whole life. It is a prayer of love, of longing, of unity.

He prays for us. Not for himself. He prays for us. For you and me.

He prays that we may be one, as He and the Father are one. He prays that the world may believe through our unity. He prays that we may be with Him, forever, in glory.

Let us not treat this prayer lightly. It is a call to conversion. A call to healing. A call to mission.

Let us strive for unity in our families, our parishes, and in the Church. Let us forgive those who have wronged us. Let us resist the temptation to gossip, to sow division, or to pridefully judge others.

Let us pray—as Jesus AND Pope John Paul prayed—that we may all be one.

And let us remember: this is not our work alone. Christ is still praying for us. Right now, at the right hand of the Father, He intercedes for His Church.

I ask not only on behalf of these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me through their word, that they may all be one. In Nomine +