Focus on the giver of the gifts, the Spirit

January 18, 2004 -- 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time

By Fr. Richard Ver Bust

	Fr. Richard Ver Bust

We return this Sunday to readings from the ordinary time. For us it means a series of readings from the Letters of Paul and in particular his letter to the Corinthians. While we do not hear the whole letter on Sundays we will be listening to some key passages especially from the latter half of the letter.

In order to appreciate these writings of Paul we must realize that he created a whole new approach to the proclamation of the christian message.

When he wrote to the christian community their scripture, the Word of God, were the Sacred Books of Judaism. This is what was read in the liturgy of the word. Yet Paul wished also to communicate the christian message especially for those communities that he had formed. He, therefore, borrowed the literary form which existed in the Greek speaking world called letters. This means following a conventional form which already existed but which had not been specifically used for communicating the christian message. In this way he could keep in touch with the christian churches and also answer some of the very specific problems that they had. This means that what he wrote was very specific and that he was not writing a general essay for all people in all times. He did not envision himself to be writing Scripture. That only came later when people realized how special these writings were.

The First Letter to the Corinthians was one of the earliest of these writings probably dating from about 56 A.D.. Paul had established the christian community in Corinth in about 50 A.D. on his second missionary journey and now was writing because he had heard some disturbing news about the church in Corinth. They had split into factions and were fighting among themselves. There were other problems such as legal conflicts, certain members living in public sin, and a revival of old pagan practices. This letter then was written to and about the church in Corinth. It contains some of the earliest reflections on what a church community is and what it must do to live as authentic witness of Christ. It is also a witness to the mind and thought of Paul.

Our reading today is taken from a relatively late portion of this long letter. Remember there were no chapters and verses in the letters when they were originally written. This division only occurred in the Middle Ages and was useful for reference to specific passages. In this specific part Paul is dealing with different gifts individuals had received from the Spirit. There seems to have been a dispute over priorities in the gifts and some were envied because certain gifts were considered more important. Paul reminds them that more emphasis must be placed on the giver of the gifts that is the Spirit.

Paul thus is trying to emphasize why these gifts are given and that is for the benefit of the community not the individual. The Spirit has given these gifts so that the community might grow. It even today is easy to forget this thought.

(The late Fr. Richard Ver Bust directed the master's program in theology at St. Norbert College, De Pere.)