Fifteenth Sunday after Pentecost
by the Revd Dr Robert Wilson PhD (Cantab), Old Roman Apostolate UK
Let us work good to all men, but especially to those who are of the household of faith
These words from the epistle to the Galatians form part of St. Paul’s exhortation to the faithful to live by the Spirit. They are to bear one another’s burdens and so fulfil the Law of Christ. If a man thinks that he is something when he is nothing he deceives himself. God is not mocked. As someone sows, so shall he reap. It is therefore necessary to do good to all men, but especially those who are of the household of faith.
But, we might say, is there not a basic contradiction at this point? St. Paul exhorts the Galatians to do good to all, but then he seemingly goes against himself and privileges fellow Christians, those who are of the household of faith. Is not the message of divine charity being narrowed down from all humanity to an in- group of believers? Jesus, after all, reached out to all in need, including those who were shunned by respectable society, tax collectors, prostitutes and other notorious sinners. He taught the importance of turning the other cheek and going the second mile, of loving enemies, of praying for those who persecute us and doing good to those who hate us. Has not St. Paul turned back on this basic message by privileging those who are of the household of faith?
It should at once be said in response that it is not true to say that St. Paul reduced Jesus’ message of divine charity extended to all to one primarily directed at fellow believers. His epistles clearly show that he knew and exhorted the faithful to follow Jesus’ teaching about blessing persecutors, of not repaying evil by evil, but overcoming evil with good (Romans 12). This was the divine charity that suffereth long and is kind, that envieth not, that rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth.
However, it is certainly true that the primary emphasis of St. Paul’s exhortation to the faithful to exercise charity is directed at fellow believers, rather than the world as a whole. In part this is because his epistles are written to fellow Christians and so they not unreasonably place greatest emphasis on doing good especially to those who are of the household of faith. But it is also a reflection of the fact that the Gospel is not an abstract message about universal philanthrophy, but is rather about events that happened in a very specific time and place in first century Palestine, the good news of salvation that came through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The divine charity was at work when God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself in very specific events and so likewise showing charity towards others can only be done not by making pronouncements about good will to all, but rather in minute particulars.
Central to St. Paul’s message was that the Church was the Body of Christ, the organism by which the Gospel was proclaimed in the world. It was through the Church that the good news that the principalities and powers (the dark forces that seem to rule this present world) had finally been defeated by the cross, was made known to the world. Hence, Christians above all should exemplify among themselves the divine charity, not because it should be confined only to fellow believers, but because if they did not show love to one another it rendered their proclamation and preaching worthless. To say that the principal sign of the divine charity was expressed in the love the faithful show to one another, was not to say that it should be confined to that.
Jesus himself not only taught and exemplified the breath of the divine love by his reaching out to the social outcasts of his age. He also showed the depth of the divine love in the love that was expressed between his closest disciples, whose feet he washed on the same night on which he was betrayed (John 13). It was on that same occasion that he exhorted his disciples to love one another, as he had loved them. It was a message not addressed to the world as a whole in the first instance, but to his immediate disciples because through them it would be made known to the world. Hence, when St. Paul exhorted the Galatians to do good to all, but especially those who are of the household of faith, he was not distorting Jesus’ message, but rather reaffirming it.
It is important to emphasise this point at the present time, because it is now often commonly supposed that the best way for Christians to do good is not by individual acts of charity towards one another, but rather by aligning themselves with a contemporary political party or programme. Thus, on one side there are those who reduce the Christian faith to progressive politics. It is said that the Church in the past has been too preoccupied with internal matters and insufficiently concerned with the world as a whole. The best way to make good this deficit is to align with a contemporary progressive political programme and this will help fulfil Jesus’ message about reaching out to those most in need and the social outcasts of our age. But the problem is that insufficient attention is then played to the fact that our basic problem lies not so much in man’s environment but in man himself. Hence, our attempts to provide structural solutions will always be limited by our fallen human nature. The mistake made by the progressive political idealist, despite his good intentions, is that he often fails to recognise this.
On the other side are those who reduce the Christian faith to conservative politics. It seems that we are living in an age of cultural decline and it is said that the best way to help halt this is for the Church to join forces with conservative forces that remain in society. Only by so doing can the Church regain the ground that it has now lost in western societies. But the problem with this is that it often involves forming alliances with people whose religious commitment is very questionable. Many conservative politicians speak about the importance of Christianity as a stabilising force in society, but they have no specific Christian faith themselves. The Christian faith, they say, may not be true, but it is at least a positive force on society. On the contrary, the Christian faith can only be a positive force on society if it is true, not simply as an instrument of social control used by moralising politicians trying to impose on others something that they do not even believe in themselves.
Perhaps the first Christians did have it right after all. Rather than trying to join forces with other movements at work in their time they preached the Gospel, the good news of salvation through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. They lived by the fruits of the Spirit, doing good to all, but especially to those who are of the household of faith. At first this had little impact and the Church remained small, but it gradually grew so that by the third century Christians formed a substantial minority of the population of the Roman Empire. In the following century the faith finally gained toleration and the age of persecution ended. It had been achieved not by the Church aligning itself with another faction or movement, but by preaching the Gospel in word and in deed, through exercising charity towards one another.
Let us therefore take heed to St. Paul’s exhortation today and strive to do good to all, but especially those who are of the household of faith.
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