Written by Sr. Rosemary Finnegan O.P.
Lest we think Paul sat down one day to write just a friendly letter to the church in Corinth, such was not the case. He wrote to the church in Corinth because of, believe it or not, their misbehaviors: scandals, crises, divisions and disagreements. Sound familiar? Paul had to write to them to give them guidance and encouragement, teaching them to follow Christ faithfully at all times.
The Church in Corinth was a young church and it was having ‘growing pains’. Members were both Jewish, Christians, and Gentiles and each community group had different leaders who disagreed on how to worship. Everyone had an opinion on how to practice their food laws, and wealthy members were ignoring those who were poor. Those who were gifted claimed to be more important than other people.
They were a divided, confused community so Paul presents a picture of unity to them. He encourages them to celebrate their diversity and challenges them to be unified, telling them we are all different parts of the same Body of Christ. Each part is important, interdependent and interconnected to each other.
The story is told of a little girl who came home from school one day crying because she had been given only a small part in the children’s program, while her playmate got the leading role. After drying her tears, her mother took off her watch and put it in the little girl’s hand.
‘What do you see?’ she asked.
‘A gold case, a face, and two hands,’ she replied.
Opening the back, Mom repeated the question. And the daughter responded: “I see many tiny wheels.”
‘This watch would be useless,’ her Mother said, ‘without every part—even the ones you can hardly see.’
Paul’s teaching is good for us to remember: we all have a purpose and a function in the Church.
We are reminded by St. Paul’s message to be centered again: that we are the church, that we differ from one another, that we should build one another up in love and call one another to accountability. Above all, to affirm again that what is central to our faith is to witness to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
