Saturday of the Twenty-second Week in Ordinary Time

Today's Mass Readings

In today’s reading from first Corinthians, Paul points out two connected ways that the Corinthian church is not upholding what it has been taught by Paul himself. 1) They have not understood that everything they have is a gift from God. 2) They act as if the Kingdom of God has come in its entirety already. These two aspects of Paul’s critique of the Corinthians are important points of reflection for us today. It was only a week ago that we heard Paul driving home the point that the Corinthians (and Christians in general) were not among the most esteemed in this world, but were nevertheless exalted in God’s eyes (see 1 Cor 1:26-27). This week we learn more about Paul’s motives – he is challenging the Corinthians’ pursuit of power and honor.

He begins by targeting their boasting – what can there possibly be to boast about if everything comes from God? The glory belongs to God. Paul lays the sarcasm on thick when he says, “I wish that you had become kings, so that we also might become kings with you” (1Cor 4:8).

He goes on to explain further this contrast between “you” (the Corinthians) and “we” (the apostles). Notice that Paul’s denigration of the apostles has a sharp rhetorical edge. Remember Jesus’ exhortation in the gospels that the first shall be last and the last shall be first? Remember the beatitudes and their corresponding woes? Those who are humbled will be exalted and those who are exalted will be humbled. Notice the future tense. There is a time coming in the future when these reversals will happen – when the poor will be rich, when the foolish will be seen as wise. This, of course, we understand as happening at the second coming of Jesus.

The Corinthians have already deemed themselves first, exalted, and rich!!! Paul rebukes them sharply, showing that the apostles who have become the “world’s rubbish” are more closely following Christ. For Christ inaugurated the Kingdom of God, but it has not come in its completion – after all there is still suffering, there are still tears, there is still sadness. And Christians are called to be right in the thick of it, not standing “honorably” above it.

Let us learn from the Corinthians’ mistakes. Today, let us spend some time reflecting upon what it means to say that everything is God’s gift. How does that re-center our lives? How does it change how we receive praise? Further, let us reflect upon the Kingdom of God as both already here – the grace of Christ, but not yet fulfilled – Christ will come again. How does that shape how we as Christians act in world, what we do, where we are? How does it shape how we receive hardship, how we understand it?

- Tim Gabrielli