(Please read this Scripture passage first, before the homily.)
In baptism, we are incorporated and made into the Body of Christ. Christ is the universal head of the great cosmos, the resplendent and glorified Lord of heaven and earth. We are baptized into this splendor.
The letter invokes the example of Paul, the prisoner for the Lord. We are to live in a manner worthy of our call. We are to be like Christ, the Great Triumphant Lord, and like Paul, the prisoner for the Lord.
Our oneness with Christ is expressed by our oneness with one another in the Church. We must hear the signs of this oneness: one Body, not two or more; one Spirit not more than one; one hope, not many hopes; one Lord, not many Lords; one faith, not many faiths; one baptism, not more than one; one God, not more than one; and one Father, not many fathers. This one God is Father of all, not of some only; is over all, not only of some; through all, not only of some; and in all, not only of some. It all is one, and the one is for all.
There are some consequences in this for us. Both of our major presidential candidates are baptized Christians. Each has received the same baptism and acknowledges the same one Lord that we ourselves do. We have no right to call each other names, but we must live in a manner worthy of our call in humility, gentleness and patience.
Baptism is the sacrament of conversion. We accept baptisms conferred by Protestant churches. If we welcome them into the Catholic Church, we do not call them converts, as if they had nothing beforehand, but we welcome them into full union. We recognize the conversion indicated by their baptism. We are grateful for the works of their families and pastors to instill in them love for God and Christ.
There is only one heaven. Catholics do not have one heaven and Protestants another. There is not one heaven for the baptized and another for the unbaptized. There is only one heaven.
There is only one God, not three, four or more. Our faith in this one God demands that we make greater efforts at recognizing all individuals and peoples of the world as one with us. The pandemic has helped us see this unity and the need to recognize this unity.
We invoke once again the great King of the Cosmos, the Lord Jesus Christ. We likewise invoke the example of Paul, the prisoner for the Lord. We must strive to preserve the unity of the spirit through the bond of peace. This shows out oneness with the first, second and all generations of Christians.