Pope: Church of Acts a paradigm
for every Christian community
At the weekly General Audience, Pope Francis continues his
catechesis on the Acts of the Apostles, focusing on "the life of the
primitive community between love of God and love of our brothers and
sisters".
By Christopher Wells
In his catechesis at the General Audience on Wednesday, Pope
Francis said that St Luke shows us the Church in Jerusalem “as the paradigm of
every Christian community”. His reflection was based on a passage from the book
of Acts: “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship,
to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (2:42).
In the Acts of the Apostles, we see the early Christians
listening to the apostolic preaching, practicing “a high quality of
interpersonal relationships through communion of spiritual and material goods”,
remembering the Lord in the celebration of the Eucharist, and dialoguing with
God in prayer.
The communitarian dimension of the Christian community
stands in marked contrast to the individualism of the world, the Pope said.
Through the grace of Baptism, Christians were able to share what they had – not
only the word of God, but also material goods – with their brothers and sisters
in need. It is precisely because of “the way of communion” and concern for
the needy that the Christian community “can live an authentic liturgical life,”
the Pope explained.
Finally, the Pope said, the story of the early Church
reminds us “that the Lord guarantees the growth of the community.” Remaining
united to God and to one another is an “attractive force that fascinates and
conquers many”.
Pope Francis concluded his catechesis with the prayer that
the Holy Spirit might “make our communities places in which to welcome and
practice new life, the works of solidarity and communion, places in which the
liturgies might be encounters with God, that become communion with our brothers
and sisters, places that are always gates open to the heavenly Jerusalem.”
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