NOTES for Rom 16:1-24

Paul's letters often end with rather long lists of the names of those with whom God had brought him together in one way or another during his apostolic ministry. These names say nothing to us; they are not found anywhere except in Paul's own letters. His addressees were probably familiar with all the names the apostle mentions, or with the people who bore them. But what are they to us?

And yet the matter is not so simple. The Church exists not only in history, not only in time. It also exists above time. Above history. In the Kingdom, where there is no history as we know it, and none of the linear time to which we are accustomed. In the Kingdom, where no name and no person is forgotten, wherever and whenever that person lived, and wherever and whenever he met Christ and entered into the life of the Kingdom.

For Paul himself the Kingdom is an absolute and unconditional reality. And that means that for him there are no distances and no separations. Everyone with whom he has entered into relationship becomes his own forever. And not because the apostle has a good memory, though he probably had no problems with memory.

It is simply that all the relationships Paul formed with one person or another were part of the Kingdom. Because he had no other life. Therefore all of them belong to eternity no less than to time. Or even more: for the Kingdom is only projected into that stream of time in which we live, while in its fullness it exists where all such streams in all their multitude merge into the harmonious unity that we call eternity.

The uniqueness of relationship with each person and to each person is possible only from eternity, as a projection of relationships formed in eternity into that temporal stream which, through misunderstanding, we often consider the only reality. But for Paul the eternity of the Kingdom was far more real than the ever-slipping stream that we call reality. And in this eternity of the Kingdom he remembers all those with whom God brought him together and clearly sees all whom he remembers.

Passing on greetings and introducing those whom he wanted to introduce to the Roman Christians, Paul probably does not accidentally mention each person's merits and the role each of those introduced played in his life and ministry. After all, the ministry both of Paul himself and of those whom he introduces to the Roman church (as well as those to whom he sends greetings) was not simply church ministry. Above all, it was witness to the Kingdom and witness of the Kingdom. And such shared witness is what binds Christians in our not yet fully transformed world.

Properly speaking, only such a bond can be called spiritual in the strict sense of the word. In fact, any relationships between people in our transforming world remain purely natural, a matter of nature, until the breath of Christ and the Kingdom enters them, the breath that is, properly speaking, the "spirit" mentioned in the familiar Russian Synodal translation. And the breath of the Kingdom can enter interpersonal relationships only when the very life of those whom these relationships bind belongs to the Kingdom.

But in our not yet fully transformed world, to live in the Kingdom means to bear witness; it cannot be otherwise, for the Kingdom that the Savior brought into the world is "not of this world." The world can see it only thanks to those who, like Jesus Himself, show it to the world. And the world also looks at the relationships of such witnesses with one another as witness, because if a person has become a witness of the Kingdom, his whole life becomes witness. Therefore any relationships of Christians with one another become a joint witness to the Kingdom, not only when two people preach together or carry out some other church ministry, but also when they simply appear together before people's eyes.

One could say that the very coexistence of Christians becomes a witness (or, if they forget this, an anti-witness) of the Kingdom. And Paul, understanding this perfectly, recalls above all those moments of common witness in which, as is clear, his connection with those he mentions in his letter was most vividly revealed. So even greetings and introductions become, under his pen, a witness to the Kingdom.

As he concludes his letter, Paul asks the Roman Christians to avoid those who bring divisions into the community, reminding them that they need to be "wise about what is good and innocent about what is evil" (vv. 17-19). This appeal was entirely natural in the context of everything Paul had written to the church in Rome about Christ, about the Kingdom, and about spiritual life. Wisdom, understood as most biblical authors usually understand it, that is, as an art or practical skill, meant nothing less, when applied to goodness, than the art of righteous living and the skill of following the Torah. Such skill was necessary for those who wanted to walk the path of righteousness before Jesus Christ came into the world, but it was especially important for those who chose to follow Christ and live in the Kingdom. In the present age, the age of the Kingdom's confrontation with a world not yet fully transformed, the requirement to follow the Torah and walk the path of righteousness is, for those who have chosen the Kingdom, essentially a daily confirmation of the choice once made and the promises once given.

Yet choosing the Kingdom does not mean that the faithful reject the world: they will have to be witnesses to Christ and to the Kingdom precisely here, in our world, which is being transformed and yet still resists Christ and the Kingdom. They will have to face the evil in which the world lies every day and every hour. In such an encounter, simplicity, of course in the biblical sense of the word, becomes absolutely necessary. In the biblical and Gospel sense, simplicity has nothing to do with stupidity, naivete, or lack of knowledge. The corresponding Greek word means first of all that spiritual wholeness of the person without which righteousness is impossible in principle. Without such simplicity, it is impossible to follow Christ, impossible to receive the Kingdom, and impossible to live in it. The apostle understands this well, and at the end of his letter he once again reminds the Roman Christians of the main thing that forms the foundation of the spiritual life of everyone who walks the path of righteousness and seeks the Kingdom.

Paul especially warns the recipients of his epistle against fellowship with those who bring divisions into the life of the community and what the Synodal translation calls "temptation," something that can serve as a stumbling block and a reason for discord. It is hard to say exactly what the apostle has in mind: this could mean the disputes he himself mentions about observing the religious prescriptions of Judaism, or something else about which Paul does not speak.

However, disputes about religion have always divided people, and therefore one may think that the apostle advises avoiding precisely them, as he writes about this in his epistle to the Roman church. Paul does not advise entering into disputes on these themes with those who want to start them. He understands perfectly that zealots of religion absolutely need disputes for self-assertion and for proving their religious rightness, whereas people living a genuine Christian life do not need them at all.

Any disputes about rites, rituals, and other religious prescriptions are harmful to spiritual life in general because they distract from the main thing: from relationships with God and with Christ, and from the spiritual work connected with strengthening and deepening them. The wisdom that Paul advises his addressees to keep is connected precisely with the practice of such relationships: this was the meaning of the word "wisdom" in Gospel times.

At the same time, wisdom was understood not as theory, but precisely as practice, to which the apostle calls his readers. As for unnecessary disputes, the apostle recommends the "simplicity" that presupposed nonparticipation in evil, at least the corresponding Greek word means exactly this: nonparticipation in evil, abstaining from it. This is understandable: it hardly makes sense to argue seriously with people who, in Paul's words, "serve their own belly."

And the point here, of course, is not that the disputants were striving to gain some material benefit from their disputes and from victory in debates, although in certain cases influence in the community could be used in that way. The point is that self-assertion was more important to them than the search for truth. It is quite obvious that if a dispute from the beginning has self-assertion as its goal, participating in it is useless: it is not one of those disputes in which truth is born. And therefore, for a Christian, participation in such disputes is only a waste of time that distracts from the main thing: from the Kingdom and its life.

In the Christian world, there is such a "talk of the town" - the ecumenism. Which say, the division in Church is a grievous problem, carrier of misfortunes and offences. So thus, today’s words of the apostle Paul speak in particular about divisions: mark them which cause divisions and offences. The second word sounds in the original as "skandala", and it entered our modern language without translation. The danger of divisions and scandals (mainly the clarification of relationship in the style " you are wrong"), as we see, existed still approximately 58 years A.D., when was written the epistle. The apostle lets know that those who sow ill-feeling between men serve themselves, and not Christ.

We sometimes think that some or other divisions can be justified and understood? But no, it is impossible. When a scandalous clarification of relationship leads to divorce in the family - it is a misfortune and sin. Even in the Church. It’s a hurtful idea for Christians of any confessions. There are still on this subject these words of the same apostle Paul: "ye [you] which are spiritual, restore such an one in the spirit of meekness" (Gal. 6:1). These words are also hurtful, because we are often guilty against these words. There are always at least two parties in a scandal. And I am afraid that both must be considered of scandalous.

But here is what is important: the ecumenist expects here to hear from the apostle something like "admonish them, so that you stay together "; and the anti-ecumenist: "give them to satan ". But the apostle says "avoid them ", and it is absolutely the accurate translation of the Greek word “ekklinete”. Avoid, because your road is not here. And where then? The apostle wishes to the addressees of the epistle to be wise unto that which is good and akeraious, pure, intact to evil.

"Simple" in the translation of the "King James version" is not the antonym of "wise". The matter is about that, we should succeed in good and keep ourselves from evil (" Little children, keep yourselves from idols", 1Jn. 5:21). The way of unity in Church is not only in the clarification of relationships and their following restoration. The way of unity is succeed in good. The church always goes on this way, but it is a spiritual phenomenon, and history, as a human sight, records essentially the palpable. We see by the way an example to it in the acts of the ecumenical Councils: they long to formulate the truth, instead of clearing up as we say today with bad.

In the Christian world there is a certain byword: ecumenism. To be sure, the division of the Church is a grave problem that brings both grief and temptation. And Paul's words today speak precisely about divisions: beware of those who bring divisions and temptations. The second word in the original is skandala, and it has entered our modern language without translation. The danger of divisions and scandals, mainly confrontations in the style of "you are wrong," existed, as we see, as early as about A.D. 58, when the epistle was written. The apostle says that people who sow strife serve themselves, not Christ.

We sometimes think that one division or another can be justified and understood. No, it cannot. When a scandalous confrontation in a family leads to divorce, it is grief and sin. In the Church it is the same. This is an offensive thought for Christians of every confession. There are also words on this subject from the same apostle Paul: "you who are spiritual should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness" (Gal. 6:1). They are offensive too, because we are often guilty against these words. In a scandal there are always at least two sides. I am afraid both must be considered scandal-makers.

But here is what matters: an ecumenist expects to hear from the apostle something like, "admonish such people so that you may remain together"; an anti-ecumenist expects, "deliver them to Satan." But the apostle says, "avoid them," and this is an entirely exact translation of the Greek ekklinete. Avoid them, because your road is not here. Where is it? The apostle wants the recipients of the letter to be wise in what is good and akeraious, pure, uninjured in regard to evil. "Simple" in the Russian and Slavonic translations is not the opposite of wisdom. The point is that one should make progress in good and keep oneself from evil ("Children, keep yourselves from idols," 1 John 5:21). The path of unity in the Church is not so much in sorting out relationships and then restoring them. The path of unity is progress in good. The Church always follows this path, but this is a spiritual reality, while history, as a human view, records mainly what can be touched. Incidentally, we see an example of this in the actions of the Ecumenical Councils: they seek to formulate the truth, not to deal, as people now say, with the bad ones.