Tom Holland is a British historian who set out to show that the arrival of Christianity was a disaster for the world. that the violence and divisions it generated destroyed earlier pagan civilisations that were, well, much more civilised. Studying the facts closely, however, he arrived at the very opposite conclusion. Overall, and in spite of many dark moments, Christianity brought a gentleness and compassion not seen before. In this it was a direct contrast with the cruelty and indifference of earlier civilisations.
There are still jealousies and rivalries among us, as Paul sees among the Christians of Corinth, but as long as they - and we - maintain contact with our Christian roots, these things should not take us over completely. They remain demons with which we must struggle but the Spirit comes to help us in our weakness in this area also.
The Christians at Corinth were already dividing into groups in some kind of competition with each other. Each group had its chosen leader and Paul reminds them of how contradictory this is, as if Christ could be divided.
Instead, as we see in the gospel reading, Christ is focused and single-minded. He is intent on the mission with which he has been entrusted, preaching, healing and casting out demons. He most definitely does not set up a party of followers or supporters, telling the disciples that he mst go on to the other places and communities to which he is sent.
His disciples are not so focused, not so single-minded, and become distracted in all kinds of ways. Jealousy and rivalry are never far away. In the Letter of James it is jealousy and selfish ambition which are the bugbears, the very ordinary tendencies, we might say, that assert themselves inevitably wherever human beings come together for some shared project or purpose.
But the Spirit comes to help us in our weakness. He is the Spirit of love, and it is only love that can cure our jealousies and our rivalries. The success of someone I don't particularly love becomes a threat to me and provokes envy. The success of someone I love is a success in which I share and provokes joy. It happens this way because it is love which binds us together as one family, making it possible for us to share life together and to rejoice in each other's gifts.
The love poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit is the extraordinary, supernatural gift which carries us beyond ordinary relating and builds a new civilisation, what we call the kingdom of God. We are all God's servants, fellow workers with each other, tending the garden together, building the house of God together.
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