What kind of community would you create? And what community is the church called to be? Here’s today’s reflection from Mass.
BIBLE READINGS: The readings for Tuesday of the Second Week of Easter can be found here
The council estate of Penrhys in the Rhondda was built in the late 1960s to a utopian ideal. Spacious homes with stunning views, its architecture even inspired by Italian villas. It even had its own distinct heating system which served each of the 954 houses, the cost of heating included in the rent. But it proved very expensive following the oil crisis of 1973 which increased the cost of energy and also the rent. The estate became uneconomic for those residents reliant on state benefits. And many who were employed left the estate to have more control of heating costs. It became a prime example of what happens when planners get things wrong. How would you design a community from scratch?
In the Acts of the Apostles, we are given a glimpse into the community life of the church which was growing day by day. Something new was happening and being established under the leadership of the Apsotles. Today’s reading may offer some kind of utopian ideal, when everyone held everything in common and no one was left in need. They shared what they had with one another, and we hear of the inspiring story of Joseph who sells a field and give the proceeds to the apostles. “No one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own,” goes the story.
Perhaps this kind of ideal Christian community is only modelled today in Monastic communities, and yet the values which underpin them remain the same for us. We are called to be generous with our time and talents, to give realistically and sacrificially, and to care for those in need. We can perhaps take the words of JFK and turn them to our own situation. “Ask not what the church can do for you, but what you can do for the church.”
Mass today is at S Mary’s at 630pm
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