Tuesday, April 14, 2026

 

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37; John 3:7b-15)

“’How can this happen?’” Nicodemus asks Jesus in the gospel.  It’s the same question many would ask of the first reading.  How can people sell their houses and property and donate all the proceeds to the community? 

The Acts of the Apostles tells of Joseph’s generosity to illustrate the power of the Holy Spirit.  Under the Spirit’s guidance people put aside self-interest for the good of all.  It must be noted that the wholesale mutuality of the primitive Christian community is not perfect and does not prevail for long.  The story of Joseph’s selflessness is followed by the sober tale of a believer’s deception out of self-concern.  In the next chapter of Acts, the altercation between Greek-speaking and Hebrew-speaking disciples is related.  It may be concluded that the innocence of human nature is not restored by the Holy Spirit without an inclination to sin.

Christian shortcomings cause scandal both in the world and within the community.  At the end of the Middle Ages the selling of indulgences by clerics gave rise to the Protestant Reformation.  Today many are reserved about receiving the sacraments because of the revelations of child abuse by clergy.  And certainly Christians have been guilty of racial and religious bigotry over the centuries.  There is need for investigating these matters lest too severe judgments are made.  Yet repentance and penance are also in order.  It is not that the Spirit has abandoned the Church but that Church members have failed to follow its lead.  We must regularly turn back to the Spirit with sincere hearts.

Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37; John 3:7a-15)

Testy preachers sometimes refer to the first reading today as Communism in the early Church.  Of course, the practice of the Jerusalem Christian community has no resemblance to Marxist socialism.  It is more like the ideal of Catholic religious congregations.  Religious are supposed to submit all their possessions to the community.  The superior then sees that the goods are redistributed so that everyone’s needs are met. 

These rules, however, are often breached.  Many religious today have difficulty turning in everything they receive.  They are also reluctant to trust their fate completely to the discretion of a superior.  Interestingly, aberrations also creep into the Jerusalem community.  The very next passage in Acts tells of a couple who keep some of the receipts from the sale of its property.  Rather than giving all to the apostles, they evidently save some “just in case.”

Like the members of the early Church, we too have been called to a radical change of life.  We see our future secure not by our efforts but by the grace of Christ’s resurrection.  Once we make this realization, we become free women and men.  We can share our resources with others knowing that our generosity gives glory to God who loves us. 

Tuesday, April 14, 2015

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37; John 37b-15)

Over fifty years ago the Little Brothers of the Poor established their residence in a perilous neighborhood on Chicago’s near Northside.  The brothers were a society of French religious who came to the North America to serve the elderly.  For a number of years their community thrived as an oasis of peace in a violent area.  It nourished both heart and soul of those who came to assist them in  ministry.  The Little Brothers imaged in miniature what the author of Acts wishes to portray in today’s first reading.

The scene could hardly be more idyllic.  Scores of people (perhaps hundreds or even thousands) share the same thoughts and feelings.  No one goes in need because no one lords over anyone else.  Material resources are held in common with the apostles, tutored by Christ, serving as overseers.  These men command such trust that one community member puts his fortune at their disposition.

We should resist the impulse to form such a community today.  The one described here did not last long, nor have thousands of experimental communes throughout the centuries.  Those who aspire to this ideal, however, might try monastic life with proven rules and certain accommodations to fallen nature.  Nevertheless, we should be more generous with our resources by offering substantial portions for the benefit of the poor.

Tuesday, April 9, 2013

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37; John 3:7b-15)

When the archbishop of Buenos Aires went to Rome for the recent papal election, his friends persuaded him to accept a new pair of shoes.  Archbishop Bergoglio was not given to buying new clothes but did go out of his way to bless the needy.  He would have found himself at home in the first Christian community as reported in today’s passage from the Acts of the Apostles. 

It is often said that the Acts of the Apostles paints an idealized picture of the early Christians.  Although the reading today sounds almost too good to be true, the author reports that not everyone is quite so magnanimous as St. Barnabas who gives the sum of the proceeds from the sale of his house to the apostles.  He also tells of a couple who retained for themselves some of the money from the sale of their property.  To whatever extent communal sharing is actually lived in Acts, the author sees it as an outpouring of the grace of the Holy Spirit.

Communitarian life, as most religious know, can be daunting.  Especially when we are hurting, it is hard to see others’ needs as greater than our own.  Yet as much as we can practice it now, we will be prepared to enter the Reign of God.

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37; John 3:7b-15)

Once as a class project a group of students asked associates to donate their coats to the poor. A number of the associates, thinking their donations were merely an academic exercise, handed over their coats with full expectation of reclaiming them. But when the class ended, the group conducting the exercise indicated that they intended to take the coats to a redistribution center.

Complete sharing is a remarkable phenomenon. The reading from Acts proclaims that “with great power the Apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord...” It does not specify the acts of witness, but certainly its next sentence describing people selling their property so that sales’ proceeds might be given to the Apostles for redistribution provides a remarkable testimony of faith.

Such attempts at radical communal sharing usually break down like chain letters after a short while. It is commonly thought that Luke, the writer of Acts, is giving an idealized portrait of the apostolic community in the text today. But just because experiments in communal sharing fail to maintain the high ideals they set out to achieve does not mean that they should not be proclaimed. A sage once commented, “Giving has never made anyone poor.” Indeed, the opposite forms the truism. Stories inspiring people to give more cause many to grow rich, spiritually at least but also, rather mysteriously, materially as well.

Homilette for Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37; John 3:7a-15)

Testy preachers sometimes refer to the first reading today as Communism in the early Church. Of course, the practice of the first Jerusalem Christians has no resemblance to Marxist socialism. It is more like the ideal of Catholic religious congregations where members are supposed to submit all their possessions to the superior who sees that are redistributed equitably. The rule, however, is often breached. Many religious today have difficulty turning in everything they receive and are also reluctant to trust their fate completely to the discretion of another. Interestingly, aberrations also creep into the Jerusalem community. The very next passage in Acts tells of a couple who keep some of the receipts from the sale of its property rather than giving all to the apostles as is the custom.

Like the early Church, Christ’s resurrection from the dead calls us to a radical change in our lives. We not only help others but try to dedicate ourselves to the Lord in every way. The experience of others not being as needy as they appear and the attraction of goods other than living for Christ may disillusion many. We should count on Easter grace to enable us to both understand the human condition and become tolerant of some human failings. Nevertheless, we do not want the tempering of our idealism to erode the desire to unite ourselves wholly with the risen Lord.

Homilette for April 1, 2008

Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:32-37)

Once a man was going to give a substantial piece of real estate to a church association. Perhaps he had in mind the first reading today where Joseph Barnabas sells his property and gives the entire proceeds to the Jerusalem church community. However, the man’s wife was opposed to giving away the land. She objected that they had children who some day might need extra resources to get by.

Often, it seems, genuine impediments arise in the quest for Church unity. The man wanting to give property to the church association was probably well-intentioned. However, for the sake of his wife’s peace he might have found a more congenial way to lend support. In the early church community of Jerusalem as well impediments to unity creep in. The reading today certainly highlights both generosity and unity as a hallmark of the Christian community following Jesus’ resurrection. But the very next chapter in the book relates how another man similarly sells his property, pretends to give the whole payment to the community, but actually retains part for himself.

Church unity is both a reality to be witnessed and an ideal to be achieved. We are one when we gather together for Mass on Sunday and when we take up a collection for disaster victims. But, of course, not everybody in the community attends Sunday Mass or contributes to relief efforts. We have to try to understand their reasons for lagging support, pray that they may be reconciled with us, and perhaps remind them of how Jesus’ resurrection impels all of his followers to stand together.