In Christ There is no East or West

In Christ there is no East or West,
In Him no South or North;
But one great fellowship of love
Throughout the whole wide earth.

In Him shall true hearts everywhere
Their high communion find;
His service is the golden cord,
Close binding humankind.

Join hands, then, members of the faith,
Whatever your race may be!
Who serves my Father as His child
Is surely kin to me.

In Christ now meet both East and West,
In Him meet North and South;
All Christly souls are one in Him
Throughout the whole wide earth.

                                    John Oxenham

• If someone accuses you of being a bigot or being guilty of hatred and hate speech simply because you are a Christian, how will this hymn help you to answer respond with loving truth?
• What must happen if the vision of the first verse of the hymn is to be realized?
• What is the cord that this hymnwriter considers to be the bond that unites all people?
• One day Jesus’ family tried to call him out of a crowd of followers, and his response was that he was already with his family. In verse 2, who does the hymnwriter identify as his family?
• The news inspires fear. News images show warring factions doing real harm to one another. According to this hymn, what must happen to change that news? Where in the Bible did the hymnwriter find his ideas?