“Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you… my rock and my redeemer.”Psalm 19:14 NRSV

January 19-25 is on my liturgical calendar as the "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity." I get scared of the word "unity," since it is often used by members of the oppressive and/or dominant group to say to members of the oppressed and/or marginalized group, "You need to get on board with us in order for us to hear you." The destructive "us and them" mentality takes over, supporting the idea that "We're not trying to keep them out; they just don't want to play with us" or "If they wanted to be a part of us, they would act more like us." Oppressed people often get battered by the word "unity," as the dominant group uses it as a bipolar choice: "It's my way or the highway."

What does unity look like when it is just, or justice-filled? I'm not sure, and am open to ideas. Some might say "Agree to disagree," but i'm not convinced that's enough. I mean, i understand it: the United Methodist Church can't even do that when it comes to issues surrounding homosexuality! I would go a step further to include agreeing to love, support, and work with each other while disagreeing. It's a unification of the most important purpose -- to love & serve God & neighbor -- rather than logistical points about topics that do not hold a candle to the importance of that purpose.

A great gospel song made famous by Hezekiah Walker, written by David Frazier, paints a picture of the type of unity for which i pray. It says "I need you. You need me. We're all a part of God's body. Stand with me. Agree with me: we're all a part of God's body. It is God's will that every need be supplied. You are important to me. I need you to survive." I don't know what Mr. Frazier intended when he wrote these beautiful lyrics, but i like to think that when we are asking each other to agree, we are saying "Agree with me that we are, indeed, all a part of God's body." Many of our sisters and brothers are convinced that we need to agree IN ORDER to comprise God's body together; obviously, that is not my understanding! I will, however, agree to love, support, and work with them while we disagree.

Another important part of that eloquent song says “I’ll pray for you. You pray for me. I love you. I need you to survive. I won’t harm you with words from my mouth. I love you. I need you to survive”*. What a difficult and necessary commitment in discussions of unity! Many of us use words as weapons. This is not characteristic of liberal or conservative, young or old, or groups of any particular race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, level of ability or disability or any other factor. Rather, a human urge for dominance leads us to hurt each other with words from our mouths. I wish that the human urge was to help others with words from our mouths. Since it is not, we must pray for the strength and will to help and heal.

So, as I prepare for the upcoming Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, these are some of the thoughts I would like to keep entertaining. Perhaps the best prayer for Christian Unity is “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you… my rock and my redeemer.” If all of us pray that prayer together, we may startle ourselves with our group accomplishments, even while we disagree.

*As printed in Zion Still Sings for every Generation, © 2007 Abington Press.