10 September 2018
Monday of the Twenty-third Week in Ordinary Time
Perhaps only a deaf and blind man can deny that there is great chaos in the Church; the Church has dealt in length with factionalism between the liberal versus conservative, the progressive versus the traditionalist. And now we move to a new set of issues; the moral chaos and confusion due to the second wave of sexual abuse crises in the United States. Factionalism, moral chaos, and confusion is not new in Church history. In the first reading, we hear how Paul deals with sexual immorality as one of the believers in Corinth is having a sexual relationship with his stepmother. Much of the letter to Corinthians is how Paul deals with the polarization of the Corinthian community.
What is Paul’s solution? His solution is to connect the whole issue to Christ crucified as “our paschal lamb [who]…has been sacrificed.” In reflecting on Christ’s death, Paul is calling for the sanctification of the Church of God in Christ. Paul makes an effort to re-introduce the importance of the principle of communal holiness – separation from evil and its application to the current chaos. “Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened,” said Paul. He is using the image of leaven with the assumption that the behavior is wrong and dangerous to the Church and he calls to purge the evildoer from the community.
While Paul’s solution is not easily implemented in his time, it is certainly no easier 2000 years later. Perhaps at the minimum level, we need to begin to re-learn about the language of evil, evildoer, salvation, sin, heaven, and hell. In prayer today, reflect on whether this use of language is still influential. Then, ask God directly for an alternative way of dealing with the current chaos and crisis in the Church.