Unity in diversity or ... diversity in unity?

One of the phrases most of associated with the ecumenical movement in the past fifty years has been the slogan, "Unity in Diversity", the idea that church unity does not mean uniformity. It has also been suggested that this slogan has influenced the European Union in its quest - it is used as the title for a document setting out different persectives and common goals in the enlerged EU. But one of the issues I have been wrestling with recently is whether it is better now to speak of "Diveristy in Unity" - in other words: rather than taking the idea of unity as normative and explaining how this does not mean uniformity, one starts with the diversity that exists in the worldwide Christian community and asks how this diversity may be held in unity.

Against this background I was interested to see the paper presented at the recent American Academy of Religion meetng by Carlos Bedoya, Trinity College, Dublin, on '"Belonging in Unity" or "Unity in Belonging"? The Postmodern Challenge of Difference to Ecumenical Ecclesiology'. Unfortunately there is no synopsis of this paper, but looking at Bedoya's research area provides much food for thought:

His project centres on the issue of alterity and difference in the ecumenical endeavour for Church unity with a specific focus on the theology of John Zizioulas.  The underlining question of his research regards how Church unity can be conceived in a post-modern, post-metaphysical epoch where relativism and multiculturalism are the prevalent trends in society at large.  Specifically, how can the churches come to be unified without loss of respective identity or particularity, and how can this be achieved in an age where respect for ‘otherness’ is placed above any trend towards totalization, and within a context that respects difference without it becoming a threat or hindrance to unification?