A call to honesty...

Jesus prayed that we (believers) might be one even as He and the Father are one. Yet it only takes a cursory glance at the church today to see that we are far from being one. In my little corner of Canada alone there are 5 different types of Baptists. And a look at the differences in our statements of Faith shows that the divisions have been made over non-essential issues. Of course, each group has the final word on these issues, at least to the point that it keeps them separated from one another. I was reflecting on this because of a quote from N.T. Wright taken from a lecture that he gave at Regent College back in 1988. He said, "My experience is that unity is a by-product of honesty...". Is that what keeps us apart? Our fear of being honest and saying that we don't quite understand everything? My prayer is for a generation of people who will seek to "speak the truth in love", being honest about what we know to be true, and honest about what we aren't sure about.