Reflection on Galatians 2:1-2, 7-14

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Wednesday, October 7, 2020

In this part of his letter to the church in Galatia, St. Paul does four things: firstly, he recounts how the leaders from Jerusalem— Peter, James and John recognized his ministry, approved his ‘gospel’ and formed a partnership with him for the preaching of the gospel to the Gentiles. Secondly, he narrates the hypocrisy of Cephas (Peter). According to Paul, Peter used to eat together with the Gentiles, but when some people came from James, Peter began to draw back and separated himself, because he was afraid of the circumcised. Thirdly, he reports the consequence of Peter’s action …the rest of the Jews acted hypocritically along with him. The hypocrisy of Peter set a bad example for other Jews, including Barnabas, Paul’s own companion. Fourthly, Paul tells what he did— he confronts Peter in the presence of all: If you, though a Jew, are living like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?

Paul’s criticism of Peter is due to a change of behavior that had negative consequences. The issue was whether Jewish Christians should share meals with Gentile Christians. To maintain ritual purity, Jews normally abstained from eating with non-Jews. The question is how Jewish Christians should conduct their relationships with Gentile Christians. When Peter first came to Antioch, it was not a problem for him to eat with the Gentiles. But when some Jewish Christians who were associated with James arrived from Jerusalem, Peter was afraid of the circumcision faction— those who believed that Gentile Christians should be circumcised. If he continued to eat with Gentile Christians, he would lose the trust of this faction in Jerusalem and perhaps arouse their opposition to the Gentile mission. In the end, Peter chose to avoid these potential difficulties, at least for the time being. Now, Peter’s choice was not based on doctrine but on pragmatic grounds. His decision however had significant repercussions, because the other Jewish Christians in Antioch imitated his practice. Even Barnabas, Paul’s partner in the mission of evangelizing Gentiles was carried away in this bad direction. The result divided the church of Antioch into two groups— Jews and Gentiles. Eventually, the Gentile Christians began to get the impression that for them to avoid being considered unclean and be able to share meals with Jewish Christians, their old brothers and sisters in faith, they needed to submit to Jewish observances. The division caused by this singular act of Peter began to undermine the unity of the Body of Christ. 

Paul rejected this situation. He acknowledged the behavior of Peter and his imitators as hypocrisy. Peter was hiding his convictions and acting as though he shared the ideas of the strict faction of the Jewish Christians who were aligned with James. Sincerity is a vital Christian virtue applauded in the writings of Peter, James, and Paul, and Jesus himself denounces hypocrisy in the Gospel (Matt. 23). Paul recognizes that Peter’s conduct is not consistent with the truth of the gospel. It gave rise to division in the house of God between Jewish and Gentiles Christians, which is dangerous. Consequently, Paul had to intervene forcefully by criticizing Peter in public in order to put an end to the pretense. It is important to note that Paul’s reproach of Peter does not in any way question Peter’s doctrine or his habitual conduct. It only concerns his recent behavior that was not consistent with his core belief. To stop Peter’s actions that were scandalous, Paul reveals Peter’s inconsistency, thereby bring to an end the false impression that Peter considered the Gentile Christians unclean. 

Paul’s letter also reveals his true temperament, that he is not the kind of leader that is afraid of conflict. He did not criticize Peter’s behavior behind his back as most people do, rather, he courageously confronted him to his face. His confrontation helped Peter, his imitators, the Gentile Christians and the Body of Christ. When a member of the Church is in error, we should summon the courage to put them right. Fraternal correction demands it.