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Thursday of the Twenty-first Week in Ordinary Time Memorial of Saint Monica
1 Corinthians 1:1–9
The community in Corinth gave Paul many troubles.
There were divisions. There was pride. There were scandals. There were arguments about spiritual gifts.
And yet, Paul begins his letter by calling them:
the Church of God which is in Corinth.
This is striking.
Paul does not say: the problem in Corinth, the failure in Corinth, the disappointment in Corinth.
He says:
the Church of God.
That does not mean Paul was blind. He knew their sins very well. He will correct them strongly in the rest of the letter.
But he does not begin with their failure.
He begins with what God has done.
They belong to God. They have been sanctified in Christ Jesus. They are called to be saints.
This is the heart of the Christian life.
We are not saints because we are already perfect. We are called saints because God has touched us, washed us, and placed us in Christ.
Holiness does not begin with our achievement. It begins with God’s grace.
But grace is not an excuse to remain the same.
Paul says they are sanctified, and they are called to be saints.
The first word tells us what God has done. The second word tells us what we must become.
They must become what they have received.
That is also true for us.
We are baptized, but still unfinished. We belong to Christ, but still need conversion. We are members of the Church, but still carry weakness, pride, fear, and sin.
The Church is not a museum of finished saints. She is a people being formed by grace.
This is important today.
Many people look at the Church and see only weakness. Many people look at themselves and see only failure. Many families look at their wounds and think nothing holy can grow there.
Saint Monica knew something about this.
She lived with sorrow, waiting, prayer, and tears. Her family was not perfect. Her son Augustine was not yet the saint we know today.
But God was not finished.
That is Paul’s hope too.
He does not trust first in the Corinthians. He trusts in God.
God is faithful.
God has begun his work in them. God will strengthen them until the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.
So today, do not define yourself by your worst moment. Do not define another person by what is still broken.
Ask instead:
What is God calling me to become? What is God still doing in this person?
Then take one step that matches your calling.
Speak with more humility. Serve without showing off. Ask forgiveness. Return to prayer.
In Christ, we are not finished.
But we are called.
And the call is clear:
to live in communion with Jesus Christ, and by grace, to become saints.
Biblical Reflections on the Gospel of Matthew
Scripture Attribution
New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition,
copyright © 1989, 1993
the Division of Christian Education of the National Council
of the Churches of
Christ in the United States of America.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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