The Apostolic Collection
by Fr. Roger J. Landry - August 25, 2006
In the early days of the Church, there was great solidarity and mutual loving sacrifice. Christians looked upon themselves as they really were — brothers and sisters — and whenever any of them were in material need, their spiritual siblings would do all they could to come to the rescue.
The Acts of the Apostles describes how the disciples would sell their property and lay the proceeds at the feet of the apostles to help out those in most need (Acts 4:34-35).
The Church in Antioch, knowing that the Christians in Jerusalem were suffering, determined to take up a collection, with all giving as generously as each could. They entrusted the proceeds to Paul and Barnabas who brought the relief to the holy city. It is no wonder why it was in Antioch that the disciples were first called Christians (Acts 11:27-30).
Later, as Paul traveled preaching the Gospel, he would regularly ask the Christians in the various Churches to help out the beleaguered members of their Christian family in Jerusalem. He was very practical: "On the first day of every week [that is, Sunday], each of you is to put aside and save whatever extra you earn… And when I arrive, I will send any whom you approve with letters to take your gift to Jerusalem" (1Cor 16:1-4).
To the Catholics in Rome, he praised the Churches in Macedonia and Achaia for they were "pleased to share their resources with the poor among the saints in Jerusalem" (Rom 15:25).
He continued to acclaim the charity of the churches of Macedonia in his second letter to the Corinthians, which is the most extensive treatment of Christian charity and generosity in Sacred Scripture (see chapters 8 and 9). The Macedonians, despite a "severe ordeal of affliction" and "extreme poverty," he said, allowed the wealth of their generosity to overflow: "For they voluntarily gave according to their means, and even beyond their means, begging us earnestly for the privilege of sharing in this ministry to the saints." He described the reason for their liberality, which he confessed exceeded all expectations: "They gave themselves first to the Lord and then, by the will of God, to us." Their beneficence was a response to the "generous act of our Lord Jesus Christ, who, though he was rich, for your sakes became poor, so that by his poverty, you might become rich." Paul called his readers to the same Christ-like generosity, so that through their impoverishing themselves out of love for others, they might become spiritually wealthy. He exalted the example of Christ and the Macedonians before the relatively affluent Corinthians as a means to "test the genuineness of your love against the earnestness of others."
While he clearly stated that their contributions should be a "voluntary gift" and "not an extortion," he reminded them that God is always watching and will never be outdone in generosity: "The point is this: the one who sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and the one who sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work. … You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us. … Through the testing of this ministry you glorify God by your obedience to the confession of the gospel of Christ and by the generosity of your sharing with them and with all others, while they long for you and pray for you because of the surpassing grace of God that he has given you. Thanks be to God for his indescribable gift!"
Just as with the ancient Church in Jerusalem, which needed aid more than once, so today the Churches of Biloxi and New Orleans need the help of their Christian brothers and sisters again. The successors of St. Paul throughout the country are asking the spiritual heirs of the disciples of Antioch, Macedonia, Achaia and Corinth, to set aside and save on the upcoming first day of the week whatever extra we earn to help out our brothers and sisters in need.
One year after Hurricane Katrina, as several articles in this edition describe, the devastation remains immense. Since insurance policies cover only damage done by wind and not by water, only half of the $70 million of losses in Biloxi are covered by insurance as is only 105 of the $225 million of losses in New Orleans. 428 of 433 church buildings in Biloxi were destroyed or terribly damaged. God-forbid something like Katrina ever hit Massachusetts coast and devastate the Cape and the Islands, attack head-on the area from New Bedford to Buzzards Bay, provoke massive flooding along the shores of Dartmouth and Westport and all the way up the Taunton River. But if it did happen, and we had lost our homes, our churches and so much more, we would hope in those circumstances that God would inspire Christians in other areas to respond with Christ-like generosity to help us get back on our feet.
Last year God did move the Catholics of the Diocese of Fall River to contribute an incredible one million dollars to help those in the Gulf Coast rebuild. Doubtless St. Paul praised us in heaven as much as he lauded the Churches of his own day. This Sunday is a chance to show ourselves true Christians and worthy of that praise and title once again. This Sunday is an opportunity for us, in giving of our means and "even beyond our means," to transfer some of our surplus into an eternal IRA, storing up for ourselves treasure in heaven. May the Lord, who impoverished himself to enrich us, inspire us to love others with this same standard of generosity.
Father Roger J. Landry is pastor of St. Anthony of Padua in New Bedford, MA and Executive Editor of The Anchor, the weekly newspaper of the Diocese of Fall River.
