By this the World will Know Them: Low Sunday
Act. 4:32-35
St. Jn. 20:19-31
The lessons for Low Sunday contain several fundamentally important texts for the faith and practice of the Catholic Church, which has made it difficult for me to choose what to focus on this week. But when we began this project of reflections, we decided that we would try, as much as possible, to relate the lessons to the mission of our Fellowship. And that guideline lead me to two portions of the Lessons.
Our holy father Benedict depends on this week's lesson from the Acts of the Apostles for his prohibition on private property among the Benedictines. In fact, he spends two chapters on Acts 4:32-35, emphasizing the importance of sharing possessions according to need and holding all things in common, lest greed take hold, and through greed, pride. But he concludes with an important note, "Above all, let not the evil of murmuring appear for any reason whatsoever in the least word or sign."
The conclusion refers back to the instruction of St Paul in II Corinthians 9, to give gladly. This point has an important relationship to the beginning of the lesson from Acts, "They were of one heart and mind." Their holding all things in common flowed out of and back into their unity of heart and mind.
What the apostles knew, and what St. Benedict knew, is that our possessions often divide us; holding onto them can cause us to hold one another at a distance, and having more, or even having less, than our neighbor can cause us to look on him with disdain. So while it is not important for every Christian to do like monastics and literally follow the example of the apostles, it is vital that we take this lesson from them: hold your possessions lightly, and hold them for the good of the whole Church: "That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." (St. John 17:21, AV)
Which brings us to "As the Father has sent me, so I send you," (St. John 20:21) in this week's Gospel. Our holding possessions loosely, giving cheerfully, and humbling ourselves for the sake of unity, all serve this apostolic purpose which Christ assigns. Christ, having risen, instructs the Apostles to go out as he did, to bring Christ's peace to the world as Christ brought the Father's peace, to bear witness to the redemption from sin and the trampling down of death.
We must hold two things in balance here, first that relinquishing our hold on possessions is part of the reform of our souls, to free us from our sins of greed and covetousness and pride. And second, that it is meant to be a witness to the generosity of our Father, who gave up the dearest thing possible, his only begotten son that we might live through him (I John 4:9). Indeed, St. John also tells us in his letter that we should hold loosely the most fundamental of all our possessions as a sign of our love, "because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." (I John 3:16-17) And we are instructed to love one another because it is by this sign that the world will know that we are Christ's. (St. John 13:35)
St. Jn. 20:19-31
The lessons for Low Sunday contain several fundamentally important texts for the faith and practice of the Catholic Church, which has made it difficult for me to choose what to focus on this week. But when we began this project of reflections, we decided that we would try, as much as possible, to relate the lessons to the mission of our Fellowship. And that guideline lead me to two portions of the Lessons.
 |
| Caravaggio's The Incredulity of St Thomas from this week's Gospel |
Our holy father Benedict depends on this week's lesson from the Acts of the Apostles for his prohibition on private property among the Benedictines. In fact, he spends two chapters on Acts 4:32-35, emphasizing the importance of sharing possessions according to need and holding all things in common, lest greed take hold, and through greed, pride. But he concludes with an important note, "Above all, let not the evil of murmuring appear for any reason whatsoever in the least word or sign."
The conclusion refers back to the instruction of St Paul in II Corinthians 9, to give gladly. This point has an important relationship to the beginning of the lesson from Acts, "They were of one heart and mind." Their holding all things in common flowed out of and back into their unity of heart and mind.
What the apostles knew, and what St. Benedict knew, is that our possessions often divide us; holding onto them can cause us to hold one another at a distance, and having more, or even having less, than our neighbor can cause us to look on him with disdain. So while it is not important for every Christian to do like monastics and literally follow the example of the apostles, it is vital that we take this lesson from them: hold your possessions lightly, and hold them for the good of the whole Church: "That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." (St. John 17:21, AV)
Which brings us to "As the Father has sent me, so I send you," (St. John 20:21) in this week's Gospel. Our holding possessions loosely, giving cheerfully, and humbling ourselves for the sake of unity, all serve this apostolic purpose which Christ assigns. Christ, having risen, instructs the Apostles to go out as he did, to bring Christ's peace to the world as Christ brought the Father's peace, to bear witness to the redemption from sin and the trampling down of death.
 |
| Statue of our holy father Benedict at Norcia note how his left hand holds the Rule and points to the globe. |
We must hold two things in balance here, first that relinquishing our hold on possessions is part of the reform of our souls, to free us from our sins of greed and covetousness and pride. And second, that it is meant to be a witness to the generosity of our Father, who gave up the dearest thing possible, his only begotten son that we might live through him (I John 4:9). Indeed, St. John also tells us in his letter that we should hold loosely the most fundamental of all our possessions as a sign of our love, "because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren." (I John 3:16-17) And we are instructed to love one another because it is by this sign that the world will know that we are Christ's. (St. John 13:35)
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