Is there any hope for religious unity?

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“Do not think that I came to send peace upon earth: I came not to send peace, but the sword.”
-Matthew 10:34

I want for there to be religious unity, but where ever I turn, there seems to be nothing but conflict. Such conflict is not only to be found between the major world religions, but within Catholicism in respect to the Pope Francis’ recent Church statements! (I wanted to provide some links, but they seemed to have been deleted. Thank God!) Anyway, is there any hope for religious unity? I believe so, but I would like (name removed by moderator)ut from the CAF community.
 
As long as you deal with humanity, you will only find Token unity.
 
There is always hope…Hope is one of the three biggies among the virtues is it not?
👍

Of course your question is quite broad. The probability of “religious unity” will depend on how narrowly or broadly you are thinking here. The probability of greater unity among Christians is higher than the probability between Christians and Jews or between Christians and Muslims - or between Hindu and Buddhist - or whatever combination of these you wish to look at.

The keys to building unity stem from a combination of Love and humility. It must stem from a desire for unity among God’s people. Such desire builds on the commands of God and Christ that we love one another and serve one another - That we be humble and seek God’s truth together as a community in prayer. Thus true unity cannot be imposed from the outside, but must be fostered and desired from within.

Within such a culture, even disagreements can be handled relatively amicably. Without such a culture, even small disagreements can (an likely will) result in disunity.

Ultimately Christ will bring about complete unity at His second coming.

Peace
James
 
I do hope their is unity, I’m reminded of how Jesus prayed at getsemeni and prayed to the father and said them let them be 1 as we are1. This happens several more times throughout the Bible, were it is mentioned that we are 1 body with Jesus being the head.

I do hope for nity, I think the major step will be with the Orthodox Church uniting with the CC, after that I think things will be easier.
 
At the rate our secular culture is going, there will be Christian reunification in just a few generations. It’s hard to squabble over doctrinal quibbles when you’re sharing the blockhouse of a ‘re-education camp.’
 
manualman said:
At the rate our secular culture is going, there will be Christian reunification in just a few generations. It’s hard to squabble over doctrinal quibbles when you’re sharing the blockhouse of a ‘re-education camp.’
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The Eucharist and our Blessed Mother are quibbles? ( Never mind the authority issue) 🙂
 
Jesus certainly desires oneness amongst his disciples.

My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me. I have given them the glory that you gave me, that they may be one as we are one— I in them and you in me—so that they may be brought to complete unity. Then the world will know that you sent me and have loved them even as you have loved me.
John 17:20-23

We can start with that goal first 😉
 
An interesting question to ponder. I believe there is always hope for such unity, but definitely not in the way that image portrays, as the classic three monotheistic religions. To me, the image suggests some sort of syncretism, leaving aside the strange attributes such as flames emanating from the mouths of the Christians and Muslims but not the Jews, the strange legs and the fact that it’s Cabalistic imagery from the 18th century.

I do not believe there is “hope” for such a syncretic future, nor that is somehow desirable. A syncretic religion is almost definitely false.

I do, however, believe that it is both possible (in principle) and desirable that all the world be of the one same religion, provided it is the True One. And I’m quite sure we all agree on what that is. 🙂

As for Christian unity, I also believe that is possible, and more likely than complete religious unity. To be quite honest though, I somehow think that there are those who will always hold on to their beliefs, even if all the rest of Christendom were to reunite. In my view, those would most likely stem from Protestantism rather than Eastern Orthodoxy. Some fringe group, an offshoot of an offshoot of Protestantism, possibly.
 
johnnyc176 said:
The Eucharist and our Blessed Mother are quibbles? ( Never mind the authority issue) 🙂
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No, of course not. But the underlying reason protestants grew to reject both are basically quibbles.

In my opinion, the protestants who reject the sacramental nature of the Eucharist got there by over-reacting against attention to the externals of religion simultaneous with neglect of the essential point of the gospel (repentance and salvation!). Their response eventually amounted to an attitude where ANY external manifestation of faith was denigrated and thus sacraments had to be hooey.

Such elaborate and fragile objections can only build up (IMO) in a comfortable culture. If / when Christianity becomes a hated minority, the Eucharist is going to start looking awfully good to many who rejected it when times were easy.
 
By religious unity I’m not in any way suggesting one religion, but all religions under one common umbrella; each religion keeping its unique identity, with the other religions respecting that identity through LOVE and understanding; the major religions living in peace and harmony through coexistence. The major religions uniting to promoting common social causes. For example: How do we put LOVE into the global economy? Again, I personally believe it will take a uniting of the world’s major religions–such as a common cause to end extreme poverty in the world using an unprecedented lobbying power.
 
You got the memo about man’s fallen nature, right? 😦

There is sometimes a tendency to forget all that it implies. Man’s fallen nature makes utopian dreams just fantasies this side of the afterlife. Not that we don’t work towards peaceful coexistence, but to expect it is just naïve. Sorry.
 
manualman said:
You got the memo about man’s fallen nature, right? 😦

There is sometimes a tendency to forget all that it implies. Man’s fallen nature makes utopian dreams just fantasies this side of the afterlife. Not that we don’t work towards peaceful coexistence, but to expect it is just naïve. Sorry.
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What’s so utopian about the major religions pulling together to promote common causes? Did you hear of the recent groundbreaking work in Catholic/Jewish relations? vaticaninsider.lastampa.it/en/the-vatican/detail/articolo/francesco-francis-francisco-28206/
 
“Indeed, the Catholic Church is set apart and distinguished by these three characteristics: unity of doctrine, unity of organization, unity of worship. This unity is so conspicuous that by it all men can find and recognize the Catholic Church. It is the will of God, the Church’s founder, that all the sheep should eventually gather into this one fold, under the guidance of one shepherd. All God’s children are summoned to their father’s only home, and its cornerstone is Peter. All men should work together like brothers to become part of this single kingdom of God; for the citizens of that kingdom are united in peace and harmony on earth that they might enjoy eternal happiness some day in heaven.” - Ad Petri Cathedram, Pope John XXIII
 
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