The Apostle Paul’s letters to the Corinthians are his response to various questions the Corinthian believers have sent him on topics ranging from marriage and divorce to the use of spiritual gifts, such as speaking in tongues. In his first letter, he describes seven things that love is and does—love is patient; is kind; rejoices with truth; protects; trusts; hopes; and perseveres; and, eight that it is not or does not do—does not envy or boast; is not proud, rude, self-seeking, or easily angered; keeps no record of wrongs; and does not delight in evil. This is the core of Paul’s extended “hymn” to love, which itself forms the heart of a discourse by Paul on how believers should behave and relate when they meet for worship.

For Paul, as for all other New Testament writers, love is the touchstone of the Christian faith; this begins with God’s love. In the words of John’s Gospel: “God so loved the world” (3:16) that He sent His own son to die for the sins of man. That son, Jesus, shows that same love with acts of mercy, healing, and forgiveness, and tells His followers that love is the greatest commandment of all: love your neighbor, and “love the Lord your God with all your heart … with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).

The martyrs Spes, Caritas, and Fides, or Hope, Love (a modern translation for Caritas), and Faith, named after the three virtues, depicted in the Church of St. Martin, Cumbria, England.

Above all else

Writing to the Romans, Paul says: “you shall not commit adultery,” “you shall not murder,” “you shall not steal,” “you shall not covet,” which are summed up in one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Romans 13:9). Writing to the Corinthians, Paul applies this “royal law” in a particular context. The Corinthians, he believes, are far too individualistic. They pride themselves on spiritual gifts, such as speaking in tongues or prophecy, in a way that causes division. Love is missing, and Paul highlights the emptiness this causes in the first part of his hymn: “if I speak in the tongues of … angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal” (1 Corinthians 13:1).

The last section of Paul’s letter begins with the declaration, “love never fails” (13:8). In a world of constant change, he says, just three things last: faith, hope, and love. Of these three, Paul writes, the greatest is love. Love is produced by God’s Spirit and should guide the use of the Spirit’s gifts. While tongues and other gifts may fade and cease, love brings humility, unity, and peace.

Apostle of love

Some describe Paul as the “Apostle of love.” As he writes in his letter to the Galatians—where the issue is “Judaising” believers trying to impose circumcision on Gentile believers—“neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love” (Galatians 5:6).

Corinth

The believers in Corinth were citizens of a rich, culturally diverse metropolis. Much of its prosperity was because of its location on the isthmus connecting the Peloponnese with the rest of mainland Greece, commanding not one but two trade routes: from the south to the north between the Peloponnese and the rest of the mainland, and west to east between the Adriatic and Aegean seas. The capital of the Roman province of Achaea, Corinth had sizable foreign communities, which included Egyptians and Jews, as well as many native Greeks.

According to Acts 18:1–11, Paul arrived in Corinth for the first time around 50 CE during his second missionary journey, and stayed for 18 months with a Jew, Aquila, and his wife, Priscilla. The couple had fled from Rome the year before, after the Jews were expelled from the city.

The fractious church Paul helped to establish in Corinth remained close to his heart, and was the recipient of a number of the Apostle’s letters and appeals. Two of these letters became part of the New Testament as the books of 1 and 2 Corinthians.

See also: The Golden Rule • The Road to Damascus • Paul’s Arrest • Fruits of the Spirit