One Body, Many Parts

I was talking with a parishoner today and a thought came to mind of a trend I have begun to notice in the church. The tendency that we have as people, and especially as Christians, to desire similarity. The church is a diverse place and it needs to be so or we will not have the flexibility and grace to worship and live with those who are different than we are.

I have spoken a number of times with people in the church who are exasperated by how few others are doing the things that they value, "I volunteer down at the soup kitchen and no one else wants to come down with me from the church," or "I was the only person who noticed so-and-so, a newcomer this Sunday, and welcomed them." These are common statements. I completely understand their sentiment. My heart often feels the same way, "If only they would..."

I wonder if what we are really saying is, "Why can't they be more like me and value the same things as I value?" The problem with this thinking may be obvious, but as Christians, we tend to couch it in Christian terms and think, "Christians should want to help the poor at the soup kitchen, where are they?" and "Why isn't everyone welcoming the newcomers?" They certainly seem like fair statements. Jesus said we should care for the poor and so we should do things like serve at a soup kitchen. We as a church want to be welcoming so we should make a point to notice new people, right?

What we often fail to realize is that more often than not, the soup kitchen is located in a church and staffed by Christians. Our view of the church and of Christians can be very myopic and we forget that the church is much bigger than we can often see. Should we invite others to serve with us in what we do? Of course, but let us remember that there is one body that is the church and it has many parts. If we are a "hand" it is easy to forget that an "eye" would not serve the church better by trying to be a "hand" like us.

Jesus has set us free of the punishment we deserve on account of the law. He has suffered for us and we have died with him in and been raised to new life in our baptism. We serve as the Spirit moves in us to serve. That is always going to be different than how another is moved...that is okay. It has to be okay or soon enough we will start to expect everyone to be a "hand" or an "eye." This is what Paul is protesting when he says:

"The eye cannot say to the hand, 'I have no need of you,' nor again the head to the feet, 'I have no need of you.' On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indespensable, and on those parts of the body we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require." (1Cor 12:21-24)

Jesus said a lot of things about how we ought to live, but over all of his command we must remember his description of the Kingdom, "So the last shall be first and the first last." (Matt 20:16). The things of God are confusing and most often the opposite from the way we think they "ought" to be. We quickly overlook ourselves when asking why those in the church are not doing something we think they should. We ask why no one is doing it forgetting that we are (I assume). And if we are doing it, then maybe we can relax a little and take comfort in the fact that God has not forgotten the least of these in our church and that he, through us, is caring for his people and the world he loves and has created.