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2 Corinthians: Paul at His Most Vulnerable
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Readings for Daily Masses in Weeks 10 - 11 of Ordinary Time, Year I
St. Peter Crying Before the Virgin (detail) - Guercino
Of the 13 epistles written by or attributed to St. Paul, none leads to more questions than the one we call “The Second Letter to the Corinthians.” It shows Paul at his most emotional, arguing with a community who inspired him both to great love and to enormous frustration. It also features some of Paul’s best use of Greek rhetorical techniques.
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Origins of 2 Corinthians
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We believe that Paul originally established the Christian community in Corinth, with the assistance of Priscilla and Aquila, a married couple, during an 18-month period that included at least part of the year 51 AD when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia. (See Acts 18:12 - 17.)
2 Corinthians features several abrupt changes in thought flow, while also covering some topics multiple times. This evidence, combined with Paul’s own comments about his correspondence history, has led some scholars to conclude that the apostle wrote at least five distinct letters to the Corinthian Christian community:-
Letter #1 — lost to history
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Letter #2 — called "1 Corinthians” in the New Testament
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Letter #3 — lost to history
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Letters #4 & #5 — perhaps combined together into “2 Corinthians”
The specific references in 2:12 - 13, 7:5 - 6, 8:1 - 4, and 9:2 - 4 indicate that Paul wrote at least some parts of
2 Corinthians while in Macedonia. With our knowledge of Paul’s missionary travels, it seems most likely Paul wrote these portions of 2 Corinthians in the autumn of 57 AD. -
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Paul’s Most Intriguing Letter
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The Apostle Paul - Rembrandt van Rijn
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In 2 Corinthians, Paul refers to his personal circumstances, including the hardships he has endured on his missionary travels, the challenges others have lobbed against his apostolic teaching authority, and his own sins and failings. Unfortunately, Paul fails to give sufficient details for us to conclude what the exact circumstances were. While it may be fruitful for each of us to imagine Paul’s specific challenges and relate them to our own personal situation, nearly two millennia of speculation has not yielded many definitive answers.
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Perhaps more than any other book of the Bible, 2 Corinthians demonstrates the rewards of praying about our daily drudgeries that may at first glance seem far removed from the spiritual life. Vacillating between anger and affection for the Corinthians, Paul brings theological perspectives to the communal sharing of material goods, to the necessity of resolving interpersonal conflicts, and to the benefits of interpreting our personal circumstances through Christ’s passion and resurrection.
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Three Major Themes in 2 Corinthians
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2 Corinthians finds Paul on the defensive. Apparently, the Corinthian community is upset that Paul has changed his travel plans (1:12 - 2:13). Paul had originally planned to visit Corinth on his way both to and from Macedonia, but he decided not to because the Corinthians were already upset at him from another letter he sent to them earlier (perhaps 1 Corinthians). Paul claims in 7:5 - 16 that the conflict has been resolved, due to the Corinthians repenting of their behaviors that had caused him to chide them in the previous letter.
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The Martyrdom of Saint Paul - Robert Reid
Paul is also threatened by another conflict that may be related to the first. Other Christian missionaries have passed through Corinth since Paul’s departure, and they have taught the community with a difference in content and/or style from Paul. Now, the community is confused and divided. Paul spends much of
2 Corinthians (both 2:14 - 7:4 and 10:1 - 13:10) defending his teaching authority. Along the way, he discloses theological insights and personal details:-
In 5:11 - 21, Paul gives us the basis of our theology of reconciliation. We are to be ambassadors of reconciliation to one another, since God sent Christ to reconcile the universe to its purpose. (We hear a portion of this passage every year on Ash Wednesday.)
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In 11:23 - 28, Paul reveals the extent of the ways he has suffered: dangers from weather and criminals while traveling, physical tortures from those who disagree with his teaching, plus the stresses of tending to the communities he established.
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In 12:7 - 10, Paul speaks of a “thorn in the flesh” with which he is beset, leading him to conclude, “when I am weak, then I am strong.”
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Chapters 8 - 9 set out the theology that stewardship—sharing our material goods with others—“is not only supplying the needs of the holy ones but is also overflowing in many acts of thanksgiving to God.” The Acts of the Apostles repeatedly tells of Paul collecting financial contributions from the Greek Christians of Asia Minor and Greece to assist the Jewish Christians suffering in Jerusalem. (Paul covered his own expenses through a combination of working as a canvas maker and receiving donations from Lydia and other wealthy Christians in Philippi.)
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Why Study 2 Corinthians?
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As the introduction to 2 Corinthians in the New American Bible states, “The emotional tone of the letter, its lack of order, and our ignorance of some of its background do not make it easy to follow, but it amply repays the effort required of the reader.” May our study of 2 Corinthians benefit not only ourselves, but our relationships with God and our neighbors!
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The response to the first reading during these weeks is always from the Book of Psalms. The gospel readings are taken from the Gospel of Matthew, chapters 5 - 6.
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