In today’s first reading, the four activities of the earliest
church are introduced to us as priorities of the church:
devotion to the teachings of the apostles, communal
fellowship, the Eucharist and prayer. The early members
of the church saw themselves as devoted stewards of
these activities. These were not options. They were the
fruits of a genuine conversion to a life in Christ. Sharing
in the Eucharist was the most intimate expression of
fellowship, while the most common expression of
fellowship in the New Testament was that of sharing
financial resources – giving. It was not a perfect
community, but one that gave evidence of God’s active
presence in its midst. This early community offers us an
excellent example of how to better exercise stewardship
in our own parish families.