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You are God’s own people

(1 Pt 2:9)

            The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 focused the attention of many Biblical scholars to the life of the community that lived in Qumran on the shores of the Dead Sea from 135 to 104 BC. The first seven scrolls were found when a Bedouin shepherd chased a goat up the hill into a cave containing half-buried jars and scroll fragments. Most of the scrolls were made of animal skins and were written on the smooth side with ink made from charcoal. In addition to Old Testament books in Hebrew, the scrolls provided information about the Qumran community, its organization and lifestyle, its covenant, its laws and regulations, its principles of religion and rules of conduct.

            The Qumran community belonged to a sect of Judaism known as the Essenes who considered themselves as the only faithful remnant of God. Their writing and lifestyles were profoundly apocalyptic and they looked forward to a high priestly Messiah. They hoped that God, in response to their suffering and way of life, would be provoked to act and would purify the priesthood and establish the true Temple where they could worship.

            The Qumran community became well known due to the extensive media coverage given to the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the numerous debates arising from the large number of scholarly studies of the scrolls.

            Like the Qumran community, Couples for Christ is also a community. Couples for Christ is not just a movement, a prayer group, or a service organization. Couples for Christ is a parish-based Christian community in the service of the Catholic Church.

            Couples for Christ is a community with a distinct culture. We have a culture of daily prayer and Bible reading, Lord’s Day celebration, honoring and sharing. We have our own songs and our own type of worship. We pray before meals, we bless our children, and we pray over the sick. We have a culture of headship and submission whereby the husband is the head of the family and priest of the domestic church and the wife is the helpmate and support.

            As a Christian community, we are God’s own people, brothers and sisters in the Lord with one heart and mind, one body in Christ. But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s own people, in order that you may proclaim the mighty acts of him who called you out of darkness into his marvelous light (1 Pt 2:9). As a community, as God’s own people, we have a mission to “proclaim the mighty acts of him who called us (you) out of darkness into his marvelous light.” In Couples for Christ, we are to be families in the Holy Spirit renewing the face of the earth.

            To live in a community empowered by the Holy Spirit, we must live a life of righteousness, honesty and holiness. We cannot be righteous, honest and holy if we see nothing but the fault of others and the imperfections of the community. We cannot partake of the fruit of the Spirit if we cannot find joy in the community, joy in the service, and joy in the relationships. We cannot be at peace if we are constantly dissatisfied, constantly irritated, constantly noticing the shortcomings of others in the community.

            As members of one community we are bound by a covenant to relate in love and loyalty to other families in Couples for Christ. We have to love each other and be loyal to the community. It would not be a manifestation of our love for others if we were always critical of their efforts to serve the Lord, always critical of their shortcomings. It would also be disloyal to talk about our problems and difficulties in the community to people outside of the community because this will block the evangelizing work of the Holy Spirit.

            But a community living in the power of the Holy Spirit will be constantly protected by the Spirit from all threats, be it from the inside or outside of the community. Attempts to disunite the community, to sow dissension, to mar the community’s image, and to deceive the community will be thwarted by the Holy Spirit. Luke relates this in Acts 4:36-5:11.

            In these verses, Luke provides contrasting positive (the case of Barnabas, v. 4:36-37) and negative examples (the case of Ananias and Sapphira, v. 5:1-11) of voluntary surrender of goods to the apostles. It was not obligatory among the members of the early Christian community to sell their possessions and to contribute the proceeds to the community. But here, Barnabas voluntarily sold his field and brought the money to the apostles. His surrendering his money to the apostles signified Barnabas’ submission to the apostles’ leadership.

            Acts 5:1-11 contrasts Ananias and Sapphira with Barnabas. Like him they sold property and ostensibly put the money at the apostles’ disposal for the community. Ananias and Sapphira did not have to imitate Barnabas’ complete submission to the apostles. But by their hypocritical deceit, they “lied not to human beings but to God.” Ananias and Sapphira were in fact challenging the presence of the Holy Spirit in the community’s midst. Their deaths indicated to Luke that, yes, the Holy Spirit was truly present in the community, and the Spirit upheld the authority of the elders of the community, the apostles.

            The story of Ananias and Sapphira tells us that if we are to belong to a community of children of God, if we are to be one body and one heart in Jesus Christ, and if we are to be one holy nation and God’s own people, our commitment must be total. We must respect and obey our leaders. We cannot hold back.

            Our basic commitment is a commitment of love and loyalty to the community, a commitment to mission. Our commitment is to God and to one another; to live a life where Jesus is Lord of our homes, a life of faithfulness to the Holy Spirit who is truly present in our community. Because the Holy Spirit is alive in the community, there is joy and peace among the members who are totally committed, totally loyal. Through the power of the Holy Spirit manifested in members who are fully committed to mission, more and more will be added to our community.

            Brothers and sisters, we should all be joyful because the Holy Spirit is there to protect us. Let us serve gladly; let us constantly praise and thank the Lord; let us find joy in our relationships; let us find peace and unity in the community of committed brothers and sisters – for God, Emmanuel, is truly with us.

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