When St. Paul recalled that at the Council of Jerusalem where the early Jesus movement decided to welcome Gentiles as well as Jews he was ordered to remember the poor, “the one thing I was anxious to do.” In several of his letters we find evidence of the efforts he made to take up a collection for the poor in Jerusalem. Paul became defensive at times reminding the communities that the collection was not for him (he insisted that he supported himself “with my own hands”) but for those in need. This was important to him because it demonstrated the oneness of the Church — that Jews and non-Jews were part of the same body and responsible for each other. Our charity demonstrates the same awareness.
JUNE192019
By Church Staff
