On the Scandal of Christian Disunity
One of the great scandals of Christian history has been the increasing divisions between those who claim to be Christian. Beginning in A.D. 1054 with the first major schism, between East and West, on to the Anglican schism and Protestant "Reformation" of the 16th century, and up until today, the degree and number of separations has increased at a seemingly exponential rate. As a result, there are today many thousands of Christian sects. As the gap widens between authentic Catholic teaching and what is taught by this myriad of sects, the memory of a united Christianity has been all but lost, remembered mostly by those familiar with Church history. Even worse, with the advent of fables such as those told in Holy Blood, Holy Grail and The DaVinci Code, the heresies of the Gnostics are being rehabilitated as the "true" orthodox faith, and the Faith of the Church Fathers is painted as oppressive and "patriarchal". The only good thing to appear in this realm in the last century is a new allegiance between Catholics and many Evangelicals, as evinced in the pro-life movement, the popularity of Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ, and the opposition to The DaVinci Code. There is hope that this cooperation will one day bring many into the Church.
In my neighborhood, one can see how truly ridiculous the disunity has become. The banner in the first photo (in case you can't see it) says "The Redeemed Christian Church of God / Dayspring Chapel / (Center of Living Waters)". The fact that aside from the "Christian" appelation, there is no indication of creed or doctrinal belief mentioned in the name of this "church" shows how far from a unified Christianity that many of us are. This "church" is nothing more than a storefront in a strip mall, as shown in the next photo.
Here, in the second photo, is the church that is advertised in the banner above. What would be funny, were it not so sad, is that another even smaller "church" (shown below) is in the same strip mall. This is a church whose name is almost larger than its edifice.
In my neighborhood, one can see how truly ridiculous the disunity has become. The banner in the first photo (in case you can't see it) says "The Redeemed Christian Church of God / Dayspring Chapel / (Center of Living Waters)". The fact that aside from the "Christian" appelation, there is no indication of creed or doctrinal belief mentioned in the name of this "church" shows how far from a unified Christianity that many of us are. This "church" is nothing more than a storefront in a strip mall, as shown in the next photo.
Here, in the second photo, is the church that is advertised in the banner above. What would be funny, were it not so sad, is that another even smaller "church" (shown below) is in the same strip mall. This is a church whose name is almost larger than its edifice.
"...ut unum sint..."
