Word of Wisdom: Unity

“The essence of the beautiful is unity in variety.” Felix Mendelssohn

We live in a divided world, as have all humans since Cain slew his brother. Indeed, the inciting incident of that first fratricide was not enraged envy, but rather “The First Division” itself: the deception-induced doubt that created the opening crack in intimacy between created and Creator. Division begat death.

Thereafter, disunity defined the day, and from that time ‘til now “divide and conquer” has been the strategy of egotistic emperors, ambitious autocrats, tyrannical “Type As” and even passive-aggressive parents or acquaintances. Its application knows no bounds, as its proven effectiveness in extracting power from others is well-documented. And once the intentionally sown divisions take root, it seems the depressing—if not deadly—divisiveness will grow unchecked.

Until unity.

To be “united” with others is one of our deepest desires; to know that we are not alone in the agonies we endure compels us to cling to a cohort. Indeed, this impulse is so ingrained and important that without it, “divide and conquer” would be impotent as a stratagem; one cannot divide a group against “them” without first implanting the identity of a united “us”. Division, we begin to recognize, is a twisting of the original state of unity.

And in that recognition, we develop eyes to see the Divider behind the division.

Be it internal pride, external profiteers, or invisible powers and principalities, the one actually dividing almost always uses a “them” to distract or disguise. This alone ought to give us pause when our passions are inflamed in ways that affirm antagonism, foment fear, and undo unity.

But even more important is a vision of unity that transcends the petty particulars we’re prone to focus on. The English term is derived from the Latin unitas, meaning “oneness, sameness, or agreement”. It is rooted in unus, the word for “one”. And that, we are told by the One himself, is his desire for his sons.

That transcendent vision is what allows for reconciliation, even when dissent within a heart, a home, a huddle materializes. A football illustration: I recall a game we shouldn’t have been losing and how the tempers flared in the huddle between the different positions. Linemen yelling at me to throw the ball, me yelling at them to shut up and block. A quick reset on our shared, higher aim of moving down the field and scoring overcame quickly the momentary frustrations (it’s comforting to know even Hall of Famers experience this).

Yet there is a built-in trap in the Latin-rooted concept of unitas: the notion that “sameness” or “agreement” in all things is essential. No surprise, perhaps, as the Romans were empire builders—dividers and conquerors—par excellence, and unity in that controlling context presupposed a complete conformity. Not only did all roads lead to Rome, but all manners and customs must look like it as well.

The biblical notion encompasses substantially more freedom (surprise surprise). When a man and a woman become “one”, they become echad, just as God is “one”, echad. The hebraic term references not a solitary integer, but rather a unified whole. In other words (so to speak), the hebraic concept is not a singular, isolated sameness, but distinctiveness brought together. To the biblical mind, unity is more togetherness than agreement; more presence than sameness.

It is beautiful, and it is rare; perhaps that’s why the vision of brothers dwelling in unity—dwelling “together”—has its own psalm dedicated to it.

The rarity of this unified togetherness should make our hearts yearn for it, but also open our eyes to the obstacles to it; the powers and precedents behind disunity are greater than any one of us alone can overcome. As Tolkien put it, nothing demonstrates the power of the Dark Lord more clearly than “the estrangement that divides all those who still oppose him”. Our divisions declare the power of darkness; only a unity of ones collectively dependent on the One who is echad can overcome it.

Whether it is our own secrets that make us double-minded, our quarrels with our spouses that divide our unions, our frustrations with our children when they are not just like us, our fractious hyperventilating with fellow citizens, or our self-defining against the media-molded caricatures of “the others” around us—all are places we can seek unity, togetherness, echad in our daily lives. All are ways we can release grievance-based identity, receive spirit-filled rest, and proclaim through our very presence the One who is echad.

It is an aspect of our inheritance as sons of God to experience that unity, and to reflect its brilliance and strength to a divided world. To stand together; to walk together.

And no matter the challenges we must face, as Cap put it, “we’ll do that together, too.”

“Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind.” 1 Peter 3:8