Unity

In light of yesterday's "What's Next?" meeting at church, I felt this was most timely (emphasis mine):

 The Eucharist is the sacrament of unity.  It makes us into one body.  The apostle Paul writes:  "As there is one loaf, so we, although there are many of us, are one single body, for we all share in the one loaf" (1 Corinthians 10:17).

The Eucharist is much more than a place where we celebrate our unity in Christ.  The Eucharist creates this unity.  By eating from the same bread and drinking from the same cup, we become the body of Christ present in the world.  Just as Christ becomes really present to us in the breaking of the bread, we become really present to one another as brothers and sisters of Christ, members of the same body.  Thus the Eucharist not only signifies unity but also creates it.                                 Henri Nouwen