Corinthians 1 Corinthians: Chapter 11 Summary

Cover It Up, Ladies

  • Now Paul has some advice for the ladies. Girls, keep your heads covered in church.
  • Why? Well, Paul's glad you asked. See, "Christ is the head of every man, and the husband is the head of his wife." Get it? No…
  • Women should wear veils when they prophesy or pray. It's pretty disgraceful not to. A lady might as well shave her head while she's at it. Uh-oh. Sinead O'Connor is in trouble.
  • Guys, on the other hand, shouldn't wear anything on their heads. That's because they're made in the image of God. Huh?
  • See, it all goes back to Genesis. God made Adam in his image and then, like a whole paragraph later, made Eve from his rib. It's a very important distinction.
  • Don't get Paul wrong. Men and women need each other. In fact, you might say that even though Eve was created using Adam rib, every other man on the face of the earth has been created using a lady's womb. So thank your mother, okay?
  • Paul finishes up by explaining that all this is just natural. Guys have short hair. Girls have long hair. Guys let it all hang out and ladies keep it covered. Obviously, Paul never listened to "Free to Be You and Me."

Communal Problems

  • Okay, so now Paul moves onto other pressing worship issues: what's the deal with communion in Corinth?
  • Paul's been hearing some rumors. Bad ones. It seems that when the church gets together to eat, people are not sharing. Uh-oh.
  • Some (rich) people eat a whole fancy meal and some (poor) people don't get anything.
  • This sucks. Paul's pretty ticked about it, too.
  • Seriously, Corinthians? Ever heard of eating at home? Why would you guys get together to celebrate Christ and then act like selfish jerks? Not cool.
  • Paul explains how he taught them how to celebrate the Eucharistic meal. And they are mostly definitely not living up to his standards.
  • In fact, they're making things worse for themselves. Jesus knows how they're acting and they're going to have to answer for it. Unless they straighten up.
  • Paul's advice? Try waiting until everyone gets there to start the meal. If you're so hungry that you have to gorge yourself in front of everyone else, have a snack before you come. Seriously. Sharing is caring.