Abstract:
Paul uses the word ἑνότης twice in Ephesians (4:3, 13), and quite strangely, those are the only
two places where the feminine noun features in the whole of the New Testament. In the two
passages where they appear, they both relate to invisible unity, the unity of the Spirit that
produces a common faith and knowledge of the Son of God – εἰς τὴν ἑνότητα τῆς πίστεως καὶ τῆς
ἐπιγνώσεως τοῦ υἱοῦ τοῦ Θεοῦ. Such unity suggests that ecumenism amongst Christian
denominations is not only a possibility, it is also a necessity as far as we all profess one Christ.
This unity is however far from ecclesiological unionism. Considering that the church appears
weak from the outside when its diverse lines of doctrine, sacraments and ministerial ethics are
emphasised. This suggests that a reasonable antidote would be the emphasis on the philosophy
of unity amidst our diversity especially to the hearing of non-Christians.
CONTRIBUTION : This study makes firm the belief that Christianity is formed on divergent
traditions that produced various strands of practices, which in turn produce different Christian
sects and denominations, and a reverse is not possible. It then suggests a bonding in faith
through the invisibility of henotic unity, which the pericope suggests. This will help the church
to amass a stronger defence politically and structurally against rival religions and social
organisations even in the midst of doctrinal differences.
