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The Catholic Telegraph
January 25, 2002These verses begin the main body of First Corinthians. In this first main division of the letter, Paul addresses the fundamental problem that lies behind almost everything else he will have to say to the Corinthians, the problem of divisions within the community which, in turn, is rooted in the question of ecclesial identity. What is important in being a Christian believer?
Paul begins with a solemn exhortation "in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ" that they not allow their community to be fragmented. In three different ways he urges them to pursue oneness of speech, of mind, and of purpose.
He is quick to explain why he admonishes them in this way. He has heard from members of the household of Chloe (perhaps some of her domestic slaves who had come from Corinth) that the community was infected with "rivalries." Nobody seems to know for sure the specific nature of these contentions. Apparently they were not serious enough to have caused the community to have split apart, but they were serious enough to be of concern to Paul.
The community seemed to have divided itself into factions, each of which claimed a particular loyalty. Some members belonged to "Paul’s group," some to Apollos’s, some to Kephas’s, some to Christ’s. (Apollos was a Jewish convert from Alexandria who was conspicuous for his learning and eloquence who had come to Corinth from Ephesus. Cephas is the apostle Peter, whose relationship with the Christians of Corinth is not known.) It may be that these groups were constituted by people who had been baptized by Paul, Apollos, or Cephas, or who were particularly charmed by the approach taken by the particular preacher. Those who claim to be in Christ’s group may be those who have not given their allegiance to any of the other groups.
In any case, Paul goes on to say that the important thing is not who baptized you, but who saved you. It is the one, undivided Christ who is savior and who died for us. Paul and Apollos and Cephas are all secondary to Christ. That’s what the Corinthians needed to remember.
In the verses omitted in our lectionary reading, Paul recalls that he didn’t personally baptize very many of the Corinthians, so that there were less grounds for a faction to be formed in his name. As our reading draws to its conclusion, we hear Paul saying that his responsibility was not the formal administration of baptism (which he apparently left to someone else) but the sober, unadorned proclamation of the gospel of Christ’s death.
Factionalism and division in the Church is not something that was confined to first century Corinth. It is still with us today in more than one way.
Most parishes of any size have their share of liberals and conservatives, of social action types and charismatic types, of people who will struggle mightily against moving a statue to a different place in church and others who don’t care whether there are any statues at all. A certain amount of this small time difference of taste and orientation is understandable and tolerable. There is enough variety in our Catholic faith to allow for differences of emphasis. But these differences of emphasis become destructive when they become so important that they overshadow more important things like the nature of our life together in Christ and our common need for Christ’s love and salvation. There is real danger in making secondary things primary.
But divisions in the Church are not confined to these parochial tensions. There is also the reality of full separation between various groups of people who claim to be followers of Christ. We have grown so used to having Catholics and Presbyterians and Methodists that we begin to think that that’s the way things are supposed to be. But they’re not. Vatican II (Decree on Ecumenism, no. 1) teaches us that this kind of division "openly contradicts the will of Christ, provides a stumbling block for the world, and inflicts damage on the most holy cause of proclaiming the gospel to every creature." These rifts are due to overemphasis or underemphasis on one or more aspects of Christ’s gospel, to errors on the part of individuals, to historical circumstances. In most cases everybody involved has to assume a share of responsibility for the fragmentation of the Church.
Putting things back together is an urgent task, but not an easy one. The Council’s Decree on Ecumenism (no. 4) calls for sensitivity, dialogue, study, and prayer. Above all, it calls for everyone to examine his or her "own faithfulness to Christ’s will for the Church."
A common thread of all these forms of factionalism, whether it be that of the Corinthians, or of parish members, or of whole church communities divided from one another, is the desire for independence, to go off on our own and insist on our own priorities. And that’s not what is important. What is important is belonging to Christ and subjecting ourselves to His will.
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Conversation Questions.
Have I experienced factionalism and division within the Church?
How can I contribute to healing the divisions of Christianity?
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