March 10, 2014

The Reading: 1 Corinthians 1:10-17

Now I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you should be in agreement and that there should be no divisions among you, but that you should be united in the same mind and the same purpose. For it has been reported to me by Chloe’s people that there are quarrels among you, my brothers and sisters. What I mean is that each of you says, ‘I belong to Paul’, or ‘I belong to Apollos’, or ‘I belong to Cephas’, or ‘I belong to Christ.’ Has Christ been divided? Was Paul crucified for you? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul? I thank God that I baptized none of you except Crispus and Gaius, so that no one can say that you were baptized in my name. (I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond that, I do not know whether I baptized anyone else.) For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.

Questions for Reflection

Today we probably don’t base divisions in our churches on who was baptized by whom, but there are very real divisions nonetheless.  One estimate is that there are over 22,000 denominations in the US.  How do you feel about people from other churches, whether they are from a different denomination or whether they are simply from a different Episcopal church?  Within Holy Cross, how do you feel about those who usually attend 10 am service (if you are a 7:45 am person) or about those who attend the 7:45 am service (if you are a 10 am person)?  How do any differences you may notice compare with the fact that we were all baptized into Christ’s body?  How can we work to heal divisions in the church?

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