Feuds Prevent Unity

In The Adventures Of Huckleberry Finn, there is the story of Huck’s friend, Buck, wanting to kill someone. They talk. Huck wonders what happened! What did this person do to get Buck so upset that he is ready to kill him? Eventually the reason is revealed, “Why, nothing, it’s on account of the feud. Huck is still puzzled. He asks, “What’s a feud?” Buck goes onto to let Huck – who apparently is ignorant of what a feud is – what the word means. A feud begins when two men quarrel and then one of them kills the other. Then the dead man’s kin kills the murder and so on and so on until a chain reaction of killings keeps on going. Once everyone is dead, the feud ends. “What caused the feud in the first place?” asks Huck. “Doesn’t anyone know?” Buck, in essence, tells Huck that they don’t know now what caused the feud in the first place. It appears that it had a life of its own… We have a feud in our Second Reading this weekend from 1 Corinthians. Paul was in Ephesus when he learns of the quarreling that is happening at the church of Corinth. What was the cause of this feud? The reading indicates that there are four different groups who are arguing. Paul’s concern is that these four different attitudes could have a negative effect on the Corinthian church. After all, Paul is the founder of this church due to his prolific preaching. Paul strives to resolve the conflict. Paul is quite direct and blunt. He tells them that he was NOT crucified for them. They were NOT baptized in Paul’s name. Attachment to Christ is the foundation and not to anyone who serves Jesus…What kinds of feuds have erupted in your life? Your family? Your friends? Are they still ongoing? Or can you be the one who puts a stop to it? Discord, feuds, battles, altercation, conflict, bickering, dissension, fights, hostility, vendetta, combat, grudge, quarreling, squabble, rivalry or falling out – all of these lead to a separation and not a unity. Paul reminds the people of Corinth – and us – that unity is the goal that Jesus came and died for. What are we doing to help build this unity in our lives, our family and our friends?

Msgr. Mike