Second Sunday of Easter, Year B: Sunday, April 8, 2018

Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, NY
Br.  Bernard Delcourt, OHC
Second Sunday of Easter Year B- Sunday, April 8, 2018 


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Br. Bernard Delcourt, OHC

Christ is risen. The Lord is risen indeed. Alleluia!

And now what? Now, let us live up to the Kingdom of God which Christ announces here and now. The Acts of the Apostles describes a Jesus movement which strives to live into the Kingdom of God as it spreads abroad. Now that the Risen Christ is with us, around us and in us, let us build the in-breaking Kingdom of God with renewed vigor here and now.

Here is what our reading from the Acts of the Apostles has to say about the budding Kingdom of God. Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common.

With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.

There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need.

After Jesus’ resurrection the community of his followers blossomed despite the challenges of opposition from the religious authorities and diffidence from the Roman overlords.

Our first text today was from the Acts of the Apostles. Its author, Luke, tells us of a community numbering in the thousands and animated by the dynamism and charism of the apostles. This community was fired up to live up to Jesus’ teachings. Jesus’ teachings are summarized in the golden commandment.

Luke’s version of that commandment is “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself.”

How do I love my neighbour as myself if I am richly blessed with worldly possessions? These early Jesus followers did their utmost to put loving their neighbour into practice.

“...the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul” Luke tells us.  This indicates a departure from the dualism of “I and Them” to move towards the non-dual engagement of “I and Us.” They recognized that their truest selves required including the other, the neighbour, in their self-love. I am loving you as your being a part of who I am, not as a separate, independent and somewhat remote reality.

In order to love their neighbor as themselves, they committed to leave no one in need. This is just as the Jewish law had commanded in Deuteronomy 15: “Open your hand to the poor and needy neighbour in your land (Deuteronomy 15:11b).” But that passage of Deuteronomy suggested being liberal in lending to the poor and needy, not in outright giving. But it also asked of Israelites to be willing to forgive debts not yet repaid by the sabbath year (every seventh year). It is unclear whether the sabbath of debt was ever actually enacted on a large scale.

But the early Jesus community goes beyond lending to the needy. They move towards common property of resources.  A radical move in any period of time. It is likely that they took heed of Jesus’ admonition that “Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God (Luke 18:25).” Instead of lending to the poor among them what they needed to get by, those with real estate willingly chose to sell it and offer the proceeds to the apostles for distribution as needed.

The verses following our passage tell us of Barnabas who gladly sold a field that belonged to him and brought the proceeds to the apostles. A few verses later, we hear the unhappy story of donors who pretend to give the full proceeds of their sale while holding back a fraction for themselves. They are accused by Peter and struck dead. Much emphasis then is put on being a willing, cheerful and generous giver; on not holding back for future contingencies. This is a hard act to follow for us.

The Jesus movement probably thought of Jesus’ return as a short to medium-term occurrence. They wanted to set their lives in order sooner rather than later. They modeled their lives on the life of Jesus, going beyond what the Jewish law commanded them to achieve. How can we emulate that primitive 

Christian emphasis on common good in order to ensure the personal wellbeing of all?
Our culture ever more emphasizes how we should rely on ourselves to accumulate what is needed to live more than comfortably. We live in a society that nurtures the myth of total individual autonomy. We live in a society that creates and cultivates our wants well above what our actual needs are.

How do we live as Christians so that there be enough for absolutely everyone? Enough shelter, enough food, enough education, enough healthcare, enough peace for absolutely everyone. Remember that in Christ no one is excluded as not being my neighbor (Christian or not).

I think our text from Acts challenges us at two levels: in our communal lives and in our larger commonwealth. By our communal lives, I mean the closest level of our belonging: your family for most of us, or our religious community for the monks amongst us. By larger commonwealth, I mean the various levels of political organizations leading up to the whole planet.

There is a lot we can undertake in our communal lives to be more interdependent of one another. For example, how many cars do we need to ensure proper transportation of the members of our community? What kind of transportation meets our needs and preserves the environment? What kinds of foods enhance our health and the health of the Earth?

Of course, you know we monks have foregone private property to put all resources in common. We also undertake to live simply so that all may live well. It is a model that has proven itself over the centuries. It is a model that lots of new communities of intention try to follow at different levels of intensity.

But even if we don’t become monks or quasi-monks in our families or immediate communities, we can all work towards greater reliance on one another at the level of our commonwealth. At the level of the commonwealth, my earlier examples translate into systemic examples. What transportation system is needed to ensure that all, even the poorest and disabled, get to go where they need to without undue stress? What kind of food system maximizes sustainability of our regions while furthering the health of our population?

At this level, any proposal that reduces inequality and enhances a fairer distribution of resources is worth our Christian support. At all levels of life and in all areas of our common living, we can look out for the greater common good. One doesn’t need to become a monk and forego private property entirely, although that is good for those who choose it.

Look at your life and see where you can further the wellbeing of your spouse, your brother or your municipality. Many small changes can show great love.

Let us be of “one heart and soul” in loving both our neighbour and ourself and recognizing that our neighbour is an essential part of who we are.
 Amen.