"Discerning the Body" - reflections by Theodore Gill

I've just posted a reflection by my colleague Theo Gill from morning prayer today. I was still stuck in Geneva motor show traffic when prayers took place today (no doubt I will rant about that at some later date on my blog!). Fortunately, and unlike me, Theo writes what he is going to say so we can all share at least in the written word, though we unfortunately miss on his powerful delivery. I really must start recording chapel so we can have some podcasts - however, I do have a day job to consider so perhaps I am already getting too ambitious. It might be quite fun though.

Anyway Theo gave a passionate defence of and plea for unity around the one table - a plea to discern the body.

"Reading the letters of Paul, anachronistically speaking, is often like listening to one side of a telephone conversation. One has to imagine what is being said at the other end of the line. There are moments in early passages of this epistle when we imagine that all is not well at the Corinthian church, but as we reach the section that we know as chapter 11 there is no longer room for doubt. Paul begins to berate the Christians of Corinth for their unabashed disunity, their lack of hospitality – much less charity, their gluttony and drunkenness at the table of the Lord and – most of all – their failure to “discern the body” there."