As a body is one though it has many parts,
and all the parts of the body, though many, are one body,
so also Christ.
For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one Body,
whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free persons,
and we were all given to drink of one Spirit.
Now the body is not a single part, but many.
Now you are Christ’s Body, and individually parts of it. (1 Cor 12:12-14,27)
There is something that I think “believers” fail to recognize and/or remember: we are all one body.
We spend our lives thinking of ourselves as separate.
We differentiate one from another for many reasons: race, religion, creed, ethnicity, socio-economic level, sexual orientation, political persuasion, et cetera.
When we do so, we sort people into “right” and “wrong” categories.
If we are all one body, if we are all a part of Christ, how can any part be “wrong”?
How can we treat another person as if that person is not important? As if that person has no right to be? As if that person should be considered an outcast or shunned?
We are all parts of the Body of Christ and, as such, need to remember that we need one another.
In his first letter to the Church in Corinth, St. Paul is trying to remind the people that they are all one. Jesus came for all. He died for all. He rose from the dead for all. He extends the invitation for eternal life to all.
Simple.
Period.
End of story.
If it is so clear-cut, why do we still differentiate? Why do we still hate? Why do we still keep people out of our lives?
FAITH ACTION: Is there anyone you have cut out of your life? Is there any reason not to extend an olive branch to that person today? Reach out to that person if at all possible. If you feel that the relationship is truly irreconcilable, say a prayer for that person (and yourself).