He teaches philosophy at the Catholic Institute of Sydney. Thanks to him and the Sydney Catholic Weekly for permission to use the article here. We would never have heard of that garment had his executioners not gambled for the possession of it. The seamless garment of Jesus has now become the seamless garment of Christ and His Church, a symbol of the way our very differences come together to make us one - thousands of single threads intricately woven to form just one garment. It was not by chance that the gospel writer made the point that Jesus' garment was without seam.
Seams mean separate sections.
Without seams, the garment has no sections and it cannot be taken apart. Often in the history of the church, there has been this human tendency to insert seams into the garment. When its members become part of these different sections, each can become a little suspicious of the other. Sometimes in the Church today, I sense this same inclination to put people into different compartments and then be wary of those who are not travelling in the same compartment as us on the pilgrim journey. We can forget, for instance, that some, in following Christ, are called to place their emphasis on charity.