Disagreements in society and in the life of the Church are inevitable. The early Church shows us a way to deal with these so that everyone is respected and Christian love can be maintained. Fr Richard reflects on today’s readings from Mass.
Readings for Thursday of the 5th week of Easter can be found here.
The former US President Bill Clinton once said that “politics is the art of compromise”. What he meant was that no matter how firmly held your principles, you’re unlikely to get everything you want. Sometimes, you have to let the other side get a bit of what they want as well. The art comes in knowing how much to compromise and when. Clinton tried to pioneer a so-called “Third Way” in American politics, bringing together left and right. That seems a world away from today’s divisive political world. It will be interesting to see if the art of compromise comes to Cardiff Bay after today’s election if, as expected, no single party has a majority.
The art of compromise is evident in today’s reading from Acts, which records the first big disagreement and the first big decision-making event of the early Church. The issue was whether Gentile converts to Christianity had to become Jews and adopt all 613 commands of the Torah, including circumcision for males. As we heard in yesterday’s reading, some Jewish Christians argued vehemently that they should, while Paul and Barnabas were on the other side. Today we learn that Peter agreed with his fellow apostles. James, Jesus’ brother, decides the matter with a compromise: the Gentiles will not have to adopt the whole of the Jewish law, but will be asked to abstain from certain foods and from sexual immorality, out of respect for their Jewish brothers and sisters.
This isn’t a political deal of the Clinton type, however. It is a decision guided by what God had been doing through the Holy Spirit in bringing the Gentiles to faith in Jesus. It is also rooted in the essence of what Jesus says in today’s Gospel when he says to the disciples “abide in my love”. Christian communities will not always agree. But the solution is not about one side winning and the other side losing. Rather, it is about working out, with God’s guidance, how we can best live together in love. Let us hope that that attitude will also be present in Cardiff Bay in the coming days and weeks!
Mass today is in St Dyfrig and St Samson at 10am.
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