4th after epiphany year b - 1 corinthians

1 Corinthians 8:1-13

Now concerning food sacrificed to idols:

     we know that “all of us possess knowledge.”

          Knowledge puffs up,

               but love builds up. 

          ²Anyone who claims to know something

               does not yet have the necessary knowledge; 

          ³but anyone who loves God

               is known by God.

⁴Hence, as to the eating of food offered to idols,

     we know that “no idol in the world really exists,”

     and that “there is no God but one.” 

          ⁵Indeed, even though there may be so-called gods 

               in heaven or on earth—

                    as in fact there are many gods and many lords— 

                         ⁶yet for us there is one God, the Mother,

                              from whom are all things

                              and for whom we exist,

                         and one Lord, Jesus Christ,

                              through whom are all things

                              and through whom we exist.

⁷It is not everyone, however, who has this knowledge.

     Since some have become so accustomed to idols until now,

          they still think of the food they eat as food offered to an idol;

          and their conscience,

               being weak,

                    is defiled. 

     ⁸“Food will not bring us close to God.”

          We are no worse off if we do not eat,

          and no better off if we do. 

     ⁹But take care that this liberty of yours

          does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. 

               ¹⁰For if others see you,

                    who possess knowledge,

                         eating in the temple of an idol,

                    might they not,

                         since their conscience is weak,

                              be encouraged 

                                   to the point of eating food sacrificed to idols? 

               ¹¹So by your knowledge those weak believers

                    for whom Christ died

                         are destroyed. 

               ¹²But when you thus sin against members of your family,

                    and wound their conscience when it is weak,

                         you sin against Christ. 

               ¹³Therefore, if food is a cause of their falling,

                    I will never eat meat,

                         so that I may not cause one of them to fall.

Queeries for the text:
Is knowledge an idol?  Is Paul an anti-intellectual?  
Is Paul coming out against belief as subscription to/knowledge of doctrinal beliefs?
What are the other gods?  Who are the  other lords?
How many times have people justified queerphobic words or actions with v. 9?
Where is the line between challenging someone's faith and becoming a stumbling block?
How reasonable is it to restrict ourselves for the sake of someone else's faith?
Does being our truest selves or not being our truest selves become the stumbling block?
Is not living out my full queerness becoming a stumbling block for those who still think it's a sin or those who are struggling to figure out their faith and sexuality/gender identity?
Is conversion therapy the real stumbling block?

What are your queeries?

3rd after epiphany year b - 1 corinthians

1 Corinthians 7:29-31

²⁹I mean, siblings,

     the appointed time has grown short;

     from now on,

          let even those who are married be 

               as though they were not,

          ³⁰and those who mourn 

               as though they were not mourning,

          and those who rejoice 

               as though they were not rejoicing,

          and those who buy 

               as though they had no possessions, 

          ³¹and those who deal with the world 

               as though they had no dealings with it.

                    For the present form of this world is passing away.


Queeries for the text:
How short is the time?  An inch?  A foot?  A minute?  A mile?
How do you act as though you weren't married?  No sex?  Lots of sex?  Move out?  Break family ties?  Give back the wedding presents?  
Does Paul want us to live into our truer selves with respect to consensual sexual desires and forego the pressure the dominant culture places on what counts as "appropriate"?
If we can't mourn or rejoice, how should we feel?
How do you act as if you have no possessions?
How do you not deal with this world?
What is it about the present form that is passing away?
Is the old form done yet?
Can we burn it all down now?



What are your queeries?