Members Of One Another
Ordinary Time
Office of Readings · St. Clement, Letter to the Corinthians
The command has been written: Cling to the saints, for those who cling to them will be sanctified. There is a passage in Scripture as well which states: With the innocent man you will be innocent, and with the chosen one you will be chosen also; likewise with the perverse you will deal perversely. Devote yourselves, then, to the innocent and the just; they are God’s chosen ones. Why are there strife and passion, schisms and even war among you? Do we not possess the same Spirit of grace which was given to us and the same calling in Christ? Why do we tear apart and divide the body of Christ? Why do we revolt against our own body? Why do we reach such a degree of insanity that we forget that we are members of one another? Do not forget the words of Jesus our Lord: Woe to that man; it would be better for him if he had not been born rather than scandalize one of my chosen ones. Indeed it would be better for him to have a great millstone round his neck and to be drowned in the sea than that he lead astray one of my chosen ones. Your division has led many astray, has made many doubt, has made many despair, and has brought grief upon us all. And still your rebellion continues. Pick up the letter of blessed Paul the apostle. What did he write to you at the beginning of his ministry? Even then you had developed factions. So Paul, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote to you concerning himself and Cephas and Apollos. But that division involved you in less sin because you were supporting apostles of high reputation and a person approved by them. We should put an end to this division immediately. Let us fall down before our master and implore his mercy with our tears. Then he will be reconciled to us and restore us to the practice of brotherly love that befits us. For this is the gate of justice that leads to life, as it is written: Open to me the gates of justice. When I have entered there, I shall praise the Lord. This is the gate of the Lord; the just shall enter through it. There are many gates which stand open, but the gate of justice is the gateway of Christ. All who enter through this gate are blessed, pursuing their way in holiness and justice, performing all their tasks without discord. A person may be faithful; he may have the power to utter hidden mysteries; he may be discriminating in the evaluation of what is said and pure in his actions. But the greater he seems to be, the more humbly he ought to act, and the more zealous he should be for the common good rather than his own interest.
Clement is writing to a church tearing itself apart, and he refuses to be diplomatic about it. Why are there strife and passion, schisms and even war among you? He keeps asking why, again and again, and the questions get sharper. Why do we tear apart and divide the body of Christ? Why do we revolt against our own body? Then the line that lands like a slap: we forget that we are members of one another. That is his whole diagnosis. The division is not a disagreement between separate parties. It is a body attacking itself, which is a kind of insanity, and he uses that exact word. He reminds them they share the same Spirit, the same calling in Christ. The fighting is not over something real enough to justify it. He is blunt about the cost too. Your division has led many astray, has made many doubt, has made many despair, and has brought grief upon us all. Notice the casualties are not the people fighting. They are the bystanders, the ones watching the body claw at itself and quietly losing heart. Then comes the turn, and it is gentle after all that severity. Let us fall down before our master and implore his mercy with our tears. The way back is not winning the argument. It is kneeling. And the closing thought reframes greatness entirely: the greater he seems to be, the more humbly he ought to act, the more zealous for the common good than his own interest. Importance, in this letter, is measured by how little you grab for yourself.
Today's intention
Today I'll choose the common good over winning in one place where I'd rather just win.