![]() But as a structure we have also struggled to understand and emulate the organic and spiritual beliefs, development, and practices of the early church.Īlong with the descriptions in Acts, the letters of St. Not surprisingly, parish staffs often organized themselves into professional structures imitating other leadership models found in successful organizations or businesses and influenced by our own culture and environment. We experienced the same demands evident in the early church as it grew, with the Apostles reserving their time and energy for prayer and preaching by naming others for the ministries of caring for the widows and orphans, managing finances and feeding the poor. As these areas were defined, we began to develop job titles and descriptions, responsibilities and organizational charts, especially as parishes grew and multiple ministries required larger staffs of 10, 15 or 20 persons. What I remember about those years was the constant sorting out of roles and functions as we tried to deal with whatever needs we were identifying in the community. ![]() In the 1970s, when I was first hired as a staff member in a city parish, there were fewer priests staffing parishes, while a growing number of people, mostly women religious and lay persons, began to serve on parish staffs. But it was the priests, often a pastor and several assistants, who were primarily responsible for the pastoral, liturgical and sacramental welfare of the parish. Parishioners were involved in organizations - scouts, sodalities, societies, service groups, sports programs, and committees that planned festivals and fund raisers. When I was growing up in the 1950s and 60s in a large suburban parish, the ordained guided most of the core activities and programs offered by the parish. The critical question for us is how do today's pastors and parish staffs and the committees and teams that work with them bring this same encounter with the risen Christ and the promised Spirit into the practical realm of running a parish, developing programs, planning events and being a pastoral presence to the community? Their encounter with the risen Christ and his instructions to them inspired remarkable stories, and each successive generation has extended the life of the church. After a series of appearances to instruct and encourage them, Jesus promises that his own Spirit will enter their hearts and empower them to go out to the whole world making other disciples. He appears inside the locked room, stands before his astonished disciples and calms their terror with the offer of peace. Even Jesus himself, now risen from the dead, is apparently not admitted through the door. We imagine peering out a peephole to see who is knocking at the door, or we ask for a secret password. We can hear the bolts and double locks sliding into place. The Lectionary readings tell the dramatic story of our church - how the early disciples locked themselves in an upper room out of fear of arrest and persecution. But like the children's finger game, the disciples would have known those marvelous, wonderful, wiggling appendages with a life of their own, as the community of people they were called to serve. The first Apostles, accustomed to meeting underground or in homes, might not recognize the steeples and doors of today's church structures. Acts provides the earliest description of a community of believers, a prototype of today's parish community. Here are accounts of disciples living out the incredible and disturbing experience of Pentecost. What amazing stories we find in the Acts of the Apostles. ![]() The numbers of men and women who came to believe in the Lord increased steadily. The believers were united in heart and soul. They called a full meeting of disciples and asked the assembly for approval. They shared their food generously and gladly. They shared according to what each one needed. They lived together and owned everything in common. They urged repentance and the forgiveness of sins. Boldly they proclaimed the mighty acts of God.
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