The Divine Lamp

What follows is my own “free-wheeling” translation/interpretation of the beginning of St Thomas Aquinas’s first lecture on 1 Corinthians, which consists of his commentary on 1:1-9. Aquinas would have used the Latin Vulgate for his text; I provide the text of the New Latin Vulgate, along with the RSV. Comments and ideas specifically my own are in italics.

New Latin Vulgate:

1 Paulus, vocatus apostolus Christi Iesu per voluntatem Dei, et Sosthenes frater
2 ecclesiae Dei, quae est Corinthi, sanctificatis in Christo Iesu, vocatis sanctis cum omnibus, qui invocant nomen Domini nostri Iesu Christi in omni loco ipsorum et nostro:
3 gratia vobis et pax a Deo Patre nostro et Domino Iesu Christo.
4 Gratias ago Deo meo semper pro vobis in gratia Dei, quae data est vobis in Christo Iesu,
5 quia in omnibus divites facti estis in illo, in omni verbo et in omni scientia,
6 sicut testimonium Christi confirmatum est in vobis,
7 ita ut nihil vobis desit in ulla donatione, exspectantibus revelationem Domini nostri Iesu Christi;
8 qui et confirmabit vos usque ad finem sine crimine in die Domini nostri Iesu Christi.
9 Fidelis Deus, per quem vocati estis in communionem Filii eius Iesu Christi Domini nostri.

Revised Standard Version:

1 Paul, called by the will of God to be an apostle of Christ Jesus, and our brother Sosthenes, 2 To the church of God which is at Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints together with all those who in every place call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, both their Lord and ours: 3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
4 I give thanks to God always for you because of the grace of God which was given you in Christ Jesus, 5 that in every way you were enriched in him with all speech and all knowledge — 6 even as the testimony to Christ was confirmed among you — 7 so that you are not lacking in any spiritual gift, as you wait for the revealing of our Lord Jesus Christ; 8 who will sustain you to the end, guiltless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9 God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Notes on 1 Corinthians 1:1
The opening of the letter consists of two parts: the first part (vss 1-3) consist of the address and greeting, while the second part (vss 4-9) contains in summary fashion, the major theme(s) of the letter. Concerning the first part (1-3), St Paul does three things: 1. He identifies himself and Sosthenes as the senders of the letter[Vs 1]; 2. he identifies the recipients of the letter [vs 2]; 3. he wishes upon them grace and peace [vs 3].

Concerning verse 1 he mentions himself as the primary sender of the letter, and describes himself with his name, Paul. The significance of this name has already been dealt with fully by us in our lecture on the Letter to the Romans. It is enough here to note that the name is given as a mark of the Apostles humility, meaning as it does a small size or portion, thus it witnesses too the Apostles humility: “Though little (Latin parvulus, same root as Paulus) in your own sight, are you not at the head of the tribes of Israel?” (1 Samuel 15:17). “Thou hast hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to babes (Latin: parvulis) [Matthew 11:25].

After this, still in verse 1, he goes on to denote his dignity. He begins by noting how his dignity was obtained from God, namely, he was “called” to it, for, concerning an office: “One does not take the honor upon himself, but is called by God, as Aaron was” (Hebrews 5:4). Who can forget the sad and terrible fate of Korah and his followers, who rebelled against this same Aaron (and Moses as well), thinking they could take their offices for themselves: “they assembled themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said to them, “You have gone too far! For all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the LORD is among them; why then do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the LORD?”…And fire came forth from the Lord, and consumed” them (see Num 16). And did not Jeroboam bring himself and his line to a bad end because he had not the office to make priests: “After this thing Jeroboam did not turn from his evil way, but made priests for the high places again from among all the people; any who would, he consecrated to be priests of the high places. 34 And this thing became sin to the house of Jeroboam, so as to cut it off and to destroy it from the face of the earth” (1 Kings 13:33-34).

The dignity to which St Paul was called was to be “an apostle of Jesus Christ.” This is the greatest dignity one can obtain to in the Church and it (apostle) means “one who is sent.” A man is not his own envoy but is sent by another with greater authority, to act in his name, hence we read in Luke: “He chose from them twelve, whom he named apostles” (6:13). This was done, says St Mark “that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons” (3:14-15. NAB). “God,” writes Paul, latter in this letter, “has appointed in the Church, first apostles.”

The Apostle then goes on to note from whence this dignity comes, saying : “by the will of God.” This will is the good pleasure of Him who chooses the right man for any job: “The government of the earth is in the hands of the Lord, and over it he will raise up the right man for the time” (Sirach 10:4).

“But,” one may say, “how can you take this text seriously? Was Jeroboam, the rebel, the right man for the job? Was Peter, who denied the Lord three times? Was Nero, who bloodied his hands with countless murders?”

Jeroboam was indeed the right man for the job! He sinned, and as a consequence suffered, then repented, then re-embraced his sin; but if He failed it is because HE failed, not God. Or have you forgotten free will?

Peter, apparently in the prime of his life insisted that he would follow the Lord even to death, but he failed. But did not our Blessed Lord, in predicting his failure, not also-and in the same breath!- predict his rehabilitation? “I will go before you to Galilee. There you will see me.” Peter was indeed the right man for the job! for “he learned obedience through what he suffered” (Hebrews 5:8). What he failed to do in the prime of his life he did do as an old man, being led where he did not wish to go, stretching out his hands and being crucified in imitation of his Lord, thereby glorifying God (John 21:18-19). As for others:

Sometimes gets gives authority to a man on account of the sins of others “He makes a man that is a hypocrite to reign for the sins of the people” (Jo 34:30). Such a happening is not due to God’s salvific will but from His indignation: “I have given you kings in my anger, and I have taken them away in my wrath” (Hosea 13:11). But even this was oriented towards their salvation (see Hosea 14).

Share This