They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one's need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. (Acts 2:42-47)
The community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they had everything in common. With great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great favor was accorded them all. There was no needy person among them, for those who owned property or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, and put them at the feet of the apostles, and they were distributed to each according to need. (Acts 4:32-34)
Fine in Chapter 2, and Chapter 4, but in Chapter 5 we find some real: Some (specifically Ananias and Saphirra) believers did not buy into this communist plot. There was a little tarnish on the new sheen of the nascent Church.
And then, the story in today’s reading from Chapter 6. Greek widows were being neglected by the Jewish Church. Nothing like a little institutionalized racism to necessitate the foundation of a whole new bureaucracy to take care of the needs of a few widows. When we scratch the surface we find that the picture was not nearly so rosy as St. Luke paints it. Was Luke lying? Was a he intentionally trying to give a rosier picture than is true?
I don’t think so. I think what we are encountering in the story of the early Church is something with which we are all familiar. It is reality of the dual nature of the Church – it is a divine institution and it is a human institution. Instituted by the Christ, the Church is an ideal. (Jesus is the perfect idealist) There are principles of perfection that we all strive for: being one mind and one heart (“Let this mind be in you that is also in Christ Jesus,” St. Paul would tell the Philippians.), having all things in common: all having what they need, no one hoarding more than they need, devoting ourselves to the Eucharist and other prayers, staying close to the Scriptures and preaching the Word, thousands being attracted to this way of life because we do it so well. The Church in Acts was confronted with phenomenal challenges: some theological and philosophical (Who is this Jesus guy?) , some practical (How do we follow Jesus’ teachings?), some internal (authority, ministry), some external (opposition and persecution). In the midst of all this, they strived to live the ideals about which Luke writes.
But from the beginning, the Church is limited by the reality of sin. Yes, the power of the Spirit and the promised and abiding presence of the Resurrected Christ would keep the gates of hell from prevailing against the Church, but we would always, in every age and era of the Church have to deal with the reality that the primary tools and instruments that Jesus and the Spirit would use for their work are sinful human beings. The good news is that despite our sinfulness, the ideals remain and the work of God continues.
It amazes me sometimes, given the scandal and the limitations of the Church that anyone joins us. This year especially as I baptized four adult converts and received six others into the Church, I ask why, given the bad press we have both deserved and received, people would make this choice. But the Acts of the Apostles gives us the answer: the affect of sin in the life of Church is nothing new. The Church is made up of sinners who, though baptized and forgiven, still sin. But we are sinners driven by the ideals of the Resurrected One. And even through the tarnish of sin, the glory of that resurrection continues to shine in us.
The Gospel reading from John 6 also gives us another image to reflect on when the Church is rocked by storms. A boat has often been used as a symbol for the Church (the Church is the “barque of Peter”). There are numerous stories in the Gospels of Jesus encountering his disciples in a boat during choppy waters. Sometimes he is in the boat ( Matthew 8, Mark 4, Luke 8), others he shows up walking on the choppy waters ( Matthew 14, Mark 6, John 6 ). These are particularly apt images for what we see of the Church in the Acts of the Apostles, and for a Church rocked by the storm of scandal such as we see today. Whether of internal or external origin, there is no period in the Churches history completely free of storm. But at all time, we remember that a) Jesus is in this boat with us (“I am with you always,” Matt 28) and b) he is not only the master of the boat, he is the master of the storm (“Who is this man that even the wind and sea obey him?” Mark 4:40). Beginning in its earliest days until today, the ship of the Church has encountered many storms. We sail into our peril if we think that somehow the boat and mission are ours. But when we trust that we sere the master of the boat and the master of sea, he will calm the storm and help us arrive safely at the “shore to which we are headed.”
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