This Sunday is the last Sunday of the Easter season. “I will not leave you orphans, says the Lord. I will come back to you, and your hearts will rejoice.” At this moment in our lives we need to rejoice. During the isolation, separation and fears that exist as we struggle with the Coronavirus Pandemic, violence and racial struggles we sometimes feel alone. In weeks following Jesus’ resurrection, he has appeared to his disciples who were struck with fear.  When Jesus appeared to them, they could not recognize him except in the “breaking of the bread.” We are continually challenged to recognized Jesus in the face of our sisters and brothers who are all struggling.  Many times, we struggle to find peace in our hearts and confidence that God will never leave us in our grief.

As we conclude the Easter season, Jesus offers this prayer: Lifting up his eyes to heaven, Jesus prayed saying: “Holy Father, keep them in your name that you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are one. When I was with them I protected them in the name that you gave me, and I guarded them, and none of them was lost. But now I am coming to you. I speak this in the world so that they may share my joy completely."
 
On this 7th Sunday of Easter, Jesus prays for the unity of his disciples and all believers. He reminds us that unity is not an option but is required of those who say they love the Lord. He makes this speech at the end of the Last Supper.  Jesus knew that after his death, his disciples would not be united but that division would arise among them. As disciples of Jesus, we must resist the temptation to be divided or to cause division within the community.

Several important themes appear in this prayer. First, Jesus' prayer reaffirms the complete union between himself and the Father. Throughout John's Gospel, Jesus is presented as being one with the Father.  Jesus is sent by the Father to do his work on earth. In today's reading, Jesus includes all his disciples in this union with the Father. We are reminded that Christ is the source of Christian unity. We are all united with one another and with God. The heart of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples and for us is that God will keep us united as Jesus and the Father are united and that God will protect us always.