AUGUST 9, 2026

In today’s Epistle, S. Paul continues his teaching on the nature of the Body of Christ. Remember that the church at Corinth, founded by S. Paul, had not grown to Christian maturity. Owing to the composition of its members, largely Gentile and formerly pagan, as well as the hedonistic influence of the city of Corinth, the Christian community had become mired in a mixture of pride and self-centeredness.

These vices had led to various factions within the Corinthian church. Instead of a sense of cohesion and unity, there was discord and animosity. This had prevented the church from growing spiritually and exercising its mission. 

We might here recall that the Church exists firstly to worship God. As the extension of the Incarnation, the Church as the Body of Christ gives glory to the Father. But the Church also exists so that its members may grow into the perfect image of Christ. Whether in this life or in the next part of life (Purgatory), we are to become perfected in grace so that we might partake fully in the Divine Nature (II Peter 1:4). Thirdly, the Church exists as a witness of the love of God towards His creation. As Christians live out their love one towards another, and as they reveal this love through word (evangelization) and deed (acts of mercy), the world becomes transformed to its original divine purpose: that the cosmos might become a temple filled with God’s glory, and where man – united to Christ – offers all creation back to Father.

S. Paul uses an example from their own experience to illustrate these principles. The Corinthians had demonstrated a number of charismatic gifts – healings, glossolalia, prophecies, and so forth. However, they believed there to be a hierarchy in how these gifts were distributed, glossolalia being the most important. These gifts were not given to divide the congregation into factions, but to build up and unify the Body of Christ. They were not to be an occasion of pride, for they are distributed by the Spirit of God and thus are not our own. The Corinthians’ spiritual immaturity led them to use for their own self-advancement the very gifts God had given them to build up the whole.

While we may not have the same manifestation of spiritual gifts in the life of the Church today, we have every confidence that the Holy Ghost continues to pour out those gifts necessary for the edification and building up of the Body of Christ. Some forget that S. Paul wrote that the gift of speaking in tongues will end some day. One reason for this may be that we have the canon of Holy Scripture – the Word of God – that speaks directly to us today. Remember that in S. Paul’s day, the New Testament was still being written and far from being codified into a distinct canon of books.

The two-fold question before us today is this: do we know what gift we have been given, and are we using it as God would have us use it? On the matter of our gifts, what things come naturally or easily to us? Are we good at encouraging others? We have some in our parish who exercise the gift of encouragement in remarkable ways. How about the gift of hospitality? Who would doubt that we are also greatly blessed in this regard! There are other gifts as well that come to mind, such as administration. See how these gifts blend together to build us up into a cohesive family. But there are others who might step forward and share their gifts within our own parish.

S. Paul is clear on this point – we each have been given a specific gift. It is up to us to discover that gift and then to put it to use as God wills, for the building up not just of this parish, but the entire Body of Christ!

GFK