Some people want to belong without belonging. They are the ones whose obituaries read, “Dorothy was a lifelong member of St. John’s Church”–except that no one at St. John’s can ever remember meeting her, although ninety-three-year-old Mrs. Smith thinks that maybe Dorothy was once in a wedding she attended, and there is an entry for her in the baptism register, though nothing after that.

As far as 1 Corinthians is concerned, there is no such thing as belonging without participating. That abrogates the nature of the body. A body does not work when one part checks out for a few years; not only will its function be unfulfilled, but the rest of the body will be thrown out of balance.

Belonging is not a one-sided affair. We are given the gift of belonging at baptism, but we are also signing up for the responsibility of functioning as part of the body of Christ.

in Feasting on the Word, Year C