2ND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME (YEAR B)

1st Reading      1 Samuel 3: 3b-10.19

Psalm                 40: 2 & 4ab. 7-8a. 8b-9. 10 (R. cf. 8a & 9a)

2nd Reading    1 Corinthians 6:13c-15a.17-20

Gospel                John 1: 35-42.

WHAT DOES THE GOSPEL REQUIRE OF MY BODY?

We have been brought to the infant stages of Ordinary Time, Year B, with our first reading from 1 Samuel, and today, we are presented with the passage about the call of Samuel (1 Sam. 3:3b-10.19). The setting is the TEMPLE, and this setting holds much meaning for our reflection on this 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time. 

I believe that the setting of the Temple in the first reading forms the basis for bringing together Paul's teaching about the BODY (2nd Reading, 1 Corinthians 6: 13c-15a. 17-20) and Jesus' response to the question, "Where are you staying?", a question seeking location. Paul makes this linkage conspicuous in asking, "Do you not know that your BODY is a Temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God" (1 Cor. 6: 19). 

Now, we are left to understand what Paul refers to as BODY and how that relates to the TEMPLE. I want to suggest that Paul makes allusions to two levels of BODY. Interestingly, he refers to the two levels with the same Greek word — SŌMA. One level is literal, and the other is figurative. What Paul called BODY is that which is seen, the physical body. 

The Corinthians are known for many slogans. One of them is that "all things are lawful for me" (1 Cor. 6: 12) for which they can do anything within the confines of the secular law so far as the law permits it. It even concerns food that has been sacrificed to idols. Paul attacks this slogan and teaches that food is good, but there is food that destroys. Remember that immediately we mention eating food sacrificed to other gods, we are dealing with an age-old forbidden practice—ADULTERY. The Greek word used for IMMORALITY in the 2nd reading is PORNEIA. It is the same word used for FORNICATION (Matt. 15: 19). While Paul does not mention adultery because it is another Greek word (MOICHAO), it extensively deals with adultery because it is an act of infidelity and unfaithfulness. Rightly so, eating any kind of food, even those sacrificed to idols, makes one unfaithful to God. Remember that whenever Israelites turn against God, they are seen as adulterous. It is a similar phenomenon that is at play here. The implication is that not everything builds up the body; there are things that cause its destruction. In fact, the body is the Lord's, and if it will be raised up (1 Cor. 6: 14), dignity has to be accorded that body. The body is sacred. 

The concern is that many things are lawful, but, in the light of the Gospel, they are not encouraged because they take us away from true faith. The body is holy and should not be treated as "anything." By this, we deal with issues of sexual immorality clear in today's world —Abortion, Homosexuality, Contraception, etc. The slogan should not be "all things are lawful for me" as the secular law permits it. The law can allow it, but what does the Gospel say? The slogan should be "What is lawful for me as the Gospel permits?".

Paul carries this teaching of the body and elevates it to the domain of collectiveness, where he talks about the body being a Temple of the Holy Spirit. The word used for TEMPLE in this context is NAÓS. It is used for the Temple of Jerusalem, but only for the sacred edifice (or sanctuary) itself. That is where the glory and power of God dwell. I want to suggest that even as he talks about the sacredness of the Body, he talks about the body in reference to a community of believers. The community is holy, just like the sanctuary of the Jerusalem Temple. If Christianity must be meaningful to non-believers, then the holiness of the community must be seen in the comportment of each member. This is because it is the individuals that form the Church, the community, the one body.

If we are to identify our true vocations, then it is sure within the communities of faith (the bodies) we come from. We have the opportunity to make those communities (those bodies) holy in order to sanctify our vocations. Every physical activity, everything done to and with the body, has spiritual and moral implications.

Today, the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time (Year B), let us change the slogan. It should rather be "What does the Gospel require of my body?".

Pax et Bonum