Broken for Others

“Why not rather put up with injustice? Why not rather let yourselves be cheated? Instead, you inflict injustice and cheat, and this to brothers.”

We continue in our 1streading with St. Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians. Today’s problem with them is that they are so un-Christian towards one another, they have to turn to the secular authorities, to the non-Christian authorities, to settle their internal affairs. This is simply not right. In the first place, St. Paul teaches them that they are to one day judge angels, judge the entire universe in and with Christ. Shouldn’t they be wise enough to judge themselves?

But of course, the real problem is that they’ve failed to be like Christ in the first place. Christ, who humbled himself to take on the form of a slave, and a slave being that kind of person who does his duty not only unthanked, but rather is beaten even for doing his duty. Christ himself permitted injustice be inflicted upon him; Christ himself allowed himself to be cheated. If we are to bear the name of Christ as Christians, we should be willing to do the same.

Mother [Teresa] sets a good example here, and I’m ashamed to admit that many times I fail to live up to it. I’m thinking of that famous story of when she visited the shopkeeper to ask for food for the poor and the sick and the hungry. To which he said, “Here, take this,” and he spat right on her open palm. She simply wiped her hand on her habit, bowed to him, and said, “Thank you. That was for me. Now, please give me something for my children.” And he was moved to tears.

Brothers and sisters, Christ himself was willing to be broken for our sake. As we prepare to receive that very same Christ, broken in the Eucharistic bread for us, may we have the courage and the strength to be ourselves broken for others.