"That it is 'Christ crucified for you' who is the foundation of [the church's] new being is made clear by the ironic question in 1 Cor 1:13 'Was Paul Crucified for you?', linked to Paul's clear understanding that there is only one foundation, Christ Jesus (1 Cor. 3:11).
"It is this that is foundational of the community, and the way into participation in it is by imitation of the self-giving that led to Jesus' being crucified. Hence the centrality to Paul's discussion of the Eucharist...
"...it is the self-giving of the victimary body which is what enables the Corinthians to become one body in Christ. Hence also the necessity, for proper participation in the Eucharist, of a life that is an imitation of the self-giving of the victim.
"Paul illustrates this by himself being an example of something despised, an offscouring, with victimary signs, even calling himself a scapegoat (1 Cor 4:13), urging the Corinthians to become imitators of him (1 Cor 4:16) even as he is of Christ (11:1).
"It is his free self-giving, and willingness to subject himself to the condition of others, for their own sakes, that make Paul an imitator of Christ (1 Cor 9:19-23). That is to say that there is...
"...a particular antidote to the world of rivalistic desires and factiousness which is destroying the community: the learning of a new sort of desire which is not in rivalry with any desire at all, because it is the pacific imitation of the one who is on his way into expulsion.
"Paul gives specific content to the notion of 'flesh' here, out of which he urges his correspondents to grow. The flesh is precisely the world of rivalistic desire leading to futile foundationalism (1 Cor 3:1-4).
"Paul could not, in fact make it clearer than he does that the foundation that is Christ can only be lived from within a change of desires."
girardianlectionary.net/year_a/epiphan…
girardianlectionary.net/year_a/epiphan…
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
