1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17
Chapter 1
10
Discord in Corinth
I urge you, brothers and sisters, in the name of Christ Jesus, our Lord, to stay united and avoid divisions; please be perfectly united with one mind and one judgment.11
I heard from people at Cloe’s house about your rivalries.
12
What I mean is this: some say, ‘I am for Paul,’ and others say, ‘I am for Apollos,’ or ‘I am for Peter,’ or ‘I am for Christ.’
13
Is Christ divided? Or have I, Paul, been crucified for you? Have you been baptized in the name of Paul?
17
The Message of the Cross17For Christ didn’t send me to baptize, but to proclaim his gospel. And not with eloquent words! That would be like erasing the cross of Christ.
Commentaries
Discord in Corinth.
After this dense and systematic introduction, Paul gets straight to the central issue in the community: divisions and rivalries, ongoing problems for the Church of God throughout the ages. Paul doesn’t detail the divisions, but the tone of the letter makes the allusion clear: discrimination and differences among rich Christians (some) and poor Christians (the majority); slaves and free people; women and men; educated (some) and uneducated (the majority); charismatic and conservative; Jews and Greeks; public sinners and honest people. Christ and the Church are linked in such a way (cf. 12:27) that divisions within the Church are as foolish as if Christ were divided.