Much of the focus of Pentecost is on the gifts of the Holy Spirit, including the signs, wonders, and languages being heard and spoken. Melissa Florer-Bixler reminds us this Sunday that the Apostles selling their possessions and giving the money to those in need was also a significant part of the signs and wonders seen that day. The example set was the idea of mutual care within the community. The state and those in power will never provide sufficient aid to the poor because they do not share our value of all of God’s children, especially the poor and downtrodden. They will always favor the privileged few. Contrary to the capitalistic value of personal wealth accumulation, this passage in Acts informs us that we are called to be stewards of wealth, not owners, and to distribute it to others to meet their needs. Melissa’s sermon examines how Anabaptist and Native practices and beliefs were, although faithful to the Apostle’s actions on Pentecost, considered threatening or treasonous by agents of the church and state in history and what that means for our present context.
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