From: 1 Corinthians 1:17-25
An Appeal for Unity (Continuation)
[17] For Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the gospel,
and not with eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of
its power.
The Wisdom of the Cross
[18] For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but
to us who are being saved it is the power of God. [19] For it is
written, "I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the cleverness of
the clever I will thwart." [20] Where is the wise man? Where is the
scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the
wisdom of the world? [21] For since, in the wisdom of God, the world
did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of
what we preach to save those who believe. [22] For Jews demand signs
and Greeks seek wisdom, [23] but we preach Christ crucified, a
stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, [24] but to those who
are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the
wisdom of God. [25] For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and
the weakness of God is stronger than men.
Commentary:
17. In the first part of this verse St Paul is giving the reasons for
his actions as described in the preceding verses. The second part he
uses to broach a new subject--the huge difference between this world's
wisdom and the wisdom of God.
"Christ did not send me to baptize but to preach the Gospel": this is a
reminder that preaching is St Paul's main task, as it is of the other
Apostles (cf. Mk 3:14). This does not imply a belittling of Baptism: in
his mandate to the Apostles to go out into the whole world (cf. Mt
28:19-20), our Lord charged them to baptize as well as to preach, and
we know that St Paul did administer Baptism. But Baptism--the sacrament
of faith presupposes preaching: "faith comes from what is heard" (Rom
10:17). St Paul concentrates on preaching, leaving it to others to
baptize and gather the fruit--a further sign of his detachment and
upright intention.
In Christian catechesis, evangelization and the sacraments are
interdependent. Preaching can help people to receive the sacraments
with better dispositions, and it can make them more aware of what the
sacraments are; and the graces which the sacraments bring help them to
understand the preaching they hear and to be more docile to it.
"Evangelization thus exercises its full capacity when it achieves the
most intimate relationship, or better still a permanent and unbroken
intercommunication, between the Word and the Sacraments. In a certain
sense it is a mistake to make a contrast between evangelization and
sacramentalization, as is sometimes done. It is indeed true that a
certain way of administering the Sacraments, without the solid support
of catechesis regarding these same Sacraments and a global catechesis,
could end up by depriving them of their effectiveness to a great
extent. The role of evangelization is precisely to educate people in
the faith so as to lead each individual Christian to live the
Sacraments as true Sacraments of faith--and not to receive them
passively or apathetically" (Paul VI, "Evangelii Nuntiandi", 47).
1:18-4:21. St Paul's writings are not an academic study of particular
doctrinal subjects, one after the other, logically arranged. The
Apostle's lively mind and the letter-form he uses create an
interweaving of profound theological ideas, practical applications of
teaching and expressions of warm, apostolic affection. In this section
of the letter St Paul discusses the causes of divisions among the
Corinthian Christians: they have failed to discover where true wisdom
lies (1:18-3:3), or what the true mission of Church ministers is
(3:4-4:13). He ends this part of the letter with some words of warning
(4:14-21).
Human wisdom ought to be in line with the wisdom of God. But it has
gone off course and become "wisdom of the world", relying only on
miracles or on logic; only grace can make a person truly wise:
therefore, no Christian can boast of obtaining wisdom by his own
efforts (1:18-31). Even St Paul relied only on the wisdom of the Cross
(2:1-5).
Divine wisdom, which men are called to have a share in, is the plan of
salvation revealed by God and taught by the Holy Spirit (2:6-16); the
Corinthians have not yet attained it (3:1-3).
The Corinthians' second shortcoming is that they fail to understand the
role of Church ministers: these are not working for themselves but for
the building-up of the whole Church; every Christian--and the entire
Church--belongs to God and Christ alone (3:4-23); Christians are not to
sit in judgment over God's ministers: God is their judge (4:1-7).
Therefore, the important thing is for Christians to be faithful and to
abound in the grace of God, even if the holders of Church office are
not very impressive (4:8-13).
18-19. The cross of Christ leads the way to true wisdom and prudence.
No one may remain indifferent to it. Some people see the message of the
Cross, "the word of the cross", as folly: these are on the road to
perdition. Others--those who are on the road to salvation--are
discovering that the Cross is "the power of God", because it has
conquered the devil and sin. The Church has always seen the Cross in
this light: "This is the wood of the cross, on which hung the Savior of
the world" ("Roman Missal", Good Friday liturgy).
The saints have rejoiced in this truth: "O most precious gift of the
Cross! How splendid it looks! [...] It is a tree which begets life,
without causing death; which sheds light, without casting shadows;
which leads to Paradise and does not expel anyone therefrom; it is the
wood which Christ ascended, as a king mounting his chariot, to defeat
the devil who had usurped the power of death, and to set mankind free
from the thrall in which the devil held it. This wood, on which the
Lord, valiant fighter in the combat, was wounded in his divine hands
and feet and side, healed the effects of sins and the wounds which the
pernicious dragon had inflicted on our nature [...]. That supreme
wisdom, which, so to speak, burgeoned on the Cross, exposed the boasts
and the foolish arrogance of the wisdom of the world" (St Theodore the
Studite, "Oratio In Adorationem Crucis").
In the Cross the words of Isaiah (29:14) quoted by St Paul are
fulfilled. Simplicity and humility are needed if one is to discover
the divine wisdom of the Cross. 'The message of Christ's cross", St
Thomas says, "contains some- thing which to human wisdom seems
impossible--that God should die, or that the Almighty should give
himself up into the power of violent men. It also contains things which
seem to be contrary to worldly prudence--for instance, someone being
able to flee from contradictions and yet not doing so" ("Commentary on
1 Cor, ad loc.").
20-25. After stressing the importance of the message of the Cross, St
Paul now contrasts the wisdom of God and the wisdom of the world.
By "wisdom of the world" he means the attitude of man when he is not
pursuing his proper goal: this term "world", which has various meanings
in Sacred Scripture (cf. note on Jn 17:14-16), in St Paul has the
pejorative meaning of "all sinful men", people estranged from God (cf.
1 Cor 1:27; 2:12; 3:19; 5:10; 11:32). This human wisdom cannot attain
knowledge of God (cf. Rom 1:19-25), either because it demands external
signs or because it accepts only rational arguments.
For the Jews only signs will do--miracles which prove God's presence
(cf. Mt 12:38ff; Lk 11:29); they want to base their faith on things
the senses can perceive. For people with this attitude, the cross of
Christ is a scandal, that is, a stumbling block, which makes it
impossible for them to gain access to divine things, because they have
in some way imposed limits as to how God may reveal himself and how he
may not.
The Greeks--St Paul is referring to the Rationalists of his time--think
that they are the arbiters of truth, and that anything which cannot be
proved by logical argument is nonsense. "For the world, that is, for
the prudent of the world, their wisdom turned into blindness; it could
not lead them to see God [...]. Therefore, since the world had become
puffed up by the vanity of its dogmas, the Lord set in place the faith
whereby believers would be saved by what seemed unworthy and foolish,
so that, all human conjecture being of no avail, only the grace of God
might reveal what the human mind cannot take in" (St Leo the Great,
"Fifth Nativity Sermon").
Christians, whom God has called out from among the Jews and the
Gentiles, do attain the wisdom of God, which consists in faith, "a
supernatural virtue. By that faith, with the inspiration and help of
God's grace, we believe that what he has revealed is true--not because
its intrinsic truth is seen by the natural light of reason, but because
of the authority of God who reveals it, who can neither deceive nor be
deceived" (Vatican I, "Dei Filius", chap. 3). The same council goes on
to teach that faith is in conformity with reason (cf. Rom 12:1) and
that, in addition to God's help, external signs--miracles and
prophecies--and rational argument do act as supports of faith.
21. "In the wisdom of God ...": this has been interpreted in two ways,
which complement one another. Roughly, the first interpretation is
this: according to God's most wise designs, since the world could not
attain knowledge of God by its own efforts, through philosophy, through
those elaborate systems of thought the Greeks were so proud of, God
decided to save believers through the preaching of the Cross, which to
human eyes seemed foolishness, a stumbling block (v. 22).
The second interpretation, favored by many Fathers and by St Thomas
Aquinas, contrasts divine wisdom--as manifested in creation and in the
Old Testament--with human wisdom. It runs on these lines: since the
world, because of its distorted view of things, failed to attain
knowledge of God, despite the way he manifested himself in creation
(cf. Rom 1:19-20) and Sacred Scripture, God has decided to save man in
a remarkable, paradoxical way which better reflects divine wisdom--the
preaching of the Cross.
In both interpretations it is clear that the Apostle is trying to
squeeze into one expression a number of truths--that God's salvific
plans are eternal; that human wisdom, which is capable, on its own, of
discovering God through his works, has become darkened; that the Cross
is the climax of the all-wise plans of God; that man cannot be truly
wise unless he accepts "the wisdom of the cross", no matter how
paradoxical it may seem.
25. In his plan of salvation God our Lord wants to use things which to
man's mind seem foolish and weak, so that his wisdom and power will
shine out all the more. "All that Jesus Christ did for us has been
meritorious for us; it has all been necessary and advantageous to our
salvation; his very weakness has been for us no less useful than his
majesty. For, if by the power of his divinity he has released us from
the captivity of sin, he has also, through the weakness of his flesh,
destroyed death's rights. As the Apostle so beautifully said, 'the
weakness of God is stronger than men'; indeed, by this folly he has
been pleased to save the world by combating the wisdom of the world and
confounding the wise; for, possessing the nature of God and being equal
to God, he abased himself, taking the form of a servant; being rich, he
became poor for love of us: being great, he became little; being
exalted, humble; he became weak, who was powerful; he suffered hunger
and thirst, he wore himself out on the roads and suffered of his own
free will and not by necessity. This type of folly, I repeat: has it
not meant for us a way of wisdom, a model of justice and an example of
holiness, as the same Apostle says: 'The foolishness of God is wiser
than men'? So true is this, that death has freed us from death, life
has freed us from error, and grace from sin" (St Bernard, "De Laudibus
Novae Militiae", XI, 27).
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.
From: Matthew 25:1-13
The Parable of the Wise and Foolish Maidens
(Jesus said to His disciples,) [1] "Then the Kingdom of Heaven shall be
compared to ten maidens who took their lamps and went to meet the
bridegroom. [2] Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. [3]
For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; [4]
but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. [5] As the
bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept. [6] But at
midnight there was a cry, `Behold the bridegroom! Come out to meet
him.' [7] Then all those maidens rose and trimmed their lamps. [8] And
the foolish said to the wise, `Give us some of your oil, for our lamps
are going out.' [9] But the wise replied, `Perhaps there will not be
enough for us and for you; go rather to the dealers and buy for
yourselves.' [10] And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and
those who were ready went in with him to the marriage feast; and the
door was shut. [11] Afterwards the other maidens came also, saying,
`Lord, lord, open to us.' [12] But he replied, `Truly, I say to you, I
do not know you.' [13] Watch therefore, for you know neither the day
nor the hour."
Commentary:
1-46. The whole of chapter 25 is a practical application of the
teaching contained in chapter 24. With these parables of the wise and
foolish virgins and of the talents, and His teaching on the Last
Judgment, our Lord is again emphasizing the need for vigilance (cf.
note on Matthew 24:42). In this sense, chapter 25 makes chapter 24
more intelligible.
1-13. The main lesson of this parable has to do with the need to be on
the alert: in practice, this means having the light of faith, which is
kept alive with the oil of charity. Jewish weddings were held in the
house of the bride's father. The virgins are young unmarried girls,
bridesmaids who are in the bride's house waiting for the bridegroom to
arrive. The parable centers on the attitude one should adopt up to the
time when the bridegroom comes. In other words, it is not enough to
know that one is "inside" the Kingdom, the Church: one has to be on the
watch and be preparing for Christ's coming by doing good works.
This vigilance should be continuous and unflagging, because the devil
is forever after us, prowling around "like a roaring lion, seeking
someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8). "Watch with the heart, watch with
faith, watch with love, watch with charity, watch with good works
[...]; make ready the lamps, make sure they do not go out [...], renew
them with the inner oil of an upright conscience; then shall the
Bridegroom enfold you in the embrace of His love and bring you into His
banquet room, where your lamp can never be extinguished" (St.
Augustine, "Sermon", 93).
Source: "The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries". Biblical text
taken from the Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries
made by members of the Faculty of Theology of the University of
Navarre, Spain. Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock,
Co. Dublin, Ireland.
Reading I 
