From Acts Chapters 4 and 5:
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.
A man named Ananias, however, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property. He retained for himself, with his wife’s knowledge, some of the purchase price, took the remainder, and put it at the feet of the apostles.
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart so that you lied to the holy Spirit and retained part of the price of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain yours? And when it was sold, was it not still under your control? Why did you contrive this deed? You have lied not to human beings, but to God.”
When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last, and great fear came upon all who heard of it. The young men came and wrapped him up, then carried him out and buried him.
This can be a troubling passage for Christians. Communists, on the other hand, love this bit of scripture. They see it as proof that God told Christians that they should hand over all of their wealth to the Communist Party's local officials.
A key point that escapes the Communists is that the early converts exercised free-will to join the growing church. It was not coerced.
The period of time when "The (entire) community of believers was of one heart and mind, and no one claimed that any of his possessions was his own..." was seemingly of short duration. There are still Christian communities where individuals take vows-of-poverty and own little more than their undershorts.
It is fair to wonder if the early church didn't have issues with the holder-of-the-treasure being tempted (like Judas of Iscariot).
Most modern commenters on this passage are likely to focus on the individual. Ananias was of divided heart when he (supposedly) committed himself to the new church. He hedged his bets. It cost him.
The take-home is not that we feel coerced into giving all of our property away to fallible humans but that we be fully committed and that we be prepared, even to the point of poverty and death, to live our faith.
The tough thing is knowing that we are that committed and are not delusional like Ananias (and his wife) were.
When I was a camp counselor, the first infraction of the week was punished pretty severely. The cabin took note. The rules would be obeyed. I lightened up a lot after that and we all had fun the rest of the week.
ReplyDeleteI wonder sometimes if that is what this is about. Harsh punishment as an example. The fact that God revealed it to Peter shows it's importance. Why not say "I gave a portion"? Be honest. His wife took the same trip he did. She was complicit.
As far as the commies (hork-spit), add to this passage Paul's admonition in 2 Corinthians 9:6-7.
They weren't punished for having their own property; they were punished for lying to God and trying to both have their own money and be viewed well by the congregation for giving all.
ReplyDeleteJonathan
They recognized that they own nothing, it all belongs to God. God gave it to them, and they gave it back. They probably did not give everything, or they would be the people that had nothing, and then they would get it back after they gave it, because they then needed it.
ReplyDeleteOf course, in the jubilee year, they got the property back because God did not want them to lose their property/inheritance.
sam
It is a strange psycho-social phenomenon, this idea of all property in common and distributed according to need. The Scripture does not say how long the policy lasted among the community of believers. If the similar experience of the Mayflower Compact gives a hint, it must not have been very long. The Pilgrims tried the same organization in their first year in America, and nearly all perished because of it. Once they switched back to a system of private property and keeping one's earnings, they created the greatest society in history.
ReplyDelete