St. Paul and Sexual Morality

Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator

We continue to read from St. Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians. In chapter five, St. Paul changes the subject of his writing and begins to deal with yet another problem that has arisen in the community of Corinth, that of sexual immorality. Again, it is important to remember the setting for this letter is a very busy, very commercial, and extremely varied city. It has been reported that Corinth had a thousand temple prostitutes, a claim that was a subject of boasting rather than shame. When St. Paul established the Christian community in Corinth, they were supposed to be a force for change in the sexual immorality of the city. Sadly, just the opposite happened. The Christian community had been "infected" by the morals of the city.

St. Paul's admonition in this case is very strong. They are to expel those who are guilty of incest. The language he uses makes it clear that such conduct cannot be tolerated. The sinners are to be expelled both for the sake of the health of the community as well as to "heal" the sinner. We must remember that being cut off from one's family and community was (is) an extreme punishment for the people of the Middle East. Perhaps the punishment will create the possibility of reconciliation once the sinner realizes the consequences of his actions.

There is no question that such issues still plague our human family. The gift of our sexuality is unparalleled. Through it we are made co-creators with God. It is precisely because of the powerful nature of this gift that it can be and often is a gift which is misused. Unfortunately, an active sex life has become a source of "recreation" for many people. Even more unfortunately, many do not consider sexual activity outside of marriage in the least bit sinful but simply a matter of ordinary behavior. We cannot afford to simply turn our heads away from this problem as it continues to threaten the spiritual health of the entire community.