Saying No to Good Things

5th Sunday of Easter - Acts 6:1-7 

As the number of disciples continued to grow,

the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews

because their widows

were being neglected in the daily distribution.

So the Twelve called together the community of the disciples and said,

"It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to serve at table.

Brothers, select from among you seven reputable men,

filled with the Spirit and wisdom,

whom we shall appoint to this task,

whereas we shall devote ourselves to prayer

and to the ministry of the word."

The proposal was acceptable to the whole community,

so they chose Stephen, a man filled with faith and the Holy Spirit,

also Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas,

and Nicholas of Antioch, a convert to Judaism.

They presented these men to the apostles

who prayed and laid hands on them.

The word of God continued to spread,

and the number of the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly;

even a large group of priests were becoming obedient to the faith.

This week, the Spirit speaks to us about our priorities through the experience of the Early Church. Far from the idyllic community that we might imagine, the earliest followers of Jesus struggled at times with the real-world application of their new-found faith. They faced disagreement, uncertainty, and the need to remind themselves of their various roles within the Church to achieve the larger mission. 

The “daily distribution” for widows was the Church’s way of offering material support to one of the most vulnerable groups in the ancient world. St. Paul outlines some of the criteria used for enrolling widows in 1 Timothy 5:3-16 (we have always been a Church with policies, procedures, and registries). The Apostles recognized that, good as it was to feed hungry widows, to do so personally would distract from their mission. And so they instituted the diaconate and ordained the first seven permanent deacons. To this day, it is a deacon’s vocation to attend to the temporal affairs of the Church and to be devoted to service. 

Not every good is mine to do. Important as some good things are, I cannot say yes to every good thing without having to say no to my vocation, the primary good thing that Lord has given me to do. The Apostles understood this. As good as it is to feed hungry widows in an equitable manner, it is a far cry from “go…make disciples…baptize…teach” (Matthew 28:19-20). To say yes to “serve at table” is to say no to preaching the Word of God. They did not neglect the widows; they just made sure it was someone else’s good to do. 

You and I have many good options at our disposal. Some of us burn ourselves out doing good. We volunteer too often and attend every parish event. We sign our kids up for too many activities and end up sacrificing our time together as a family. We overbook our evenings and weekends. We drown in good things. This week, the Spirit challenges us to examine our priorities to see if we are making room for the unique good that is ours to do or if we are too busy doing other good things that we do not even know that our unique calling even is. Mission gives you permission to say no. 

This reading begins and ends with growth: “As the number of disciples continued to grow” and “the number of disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly.” In between these statements, we see the Apostles understanding their mission well enough to say no to a very good thing. What good thing in your life might the Lord be asking you to prune away, to allow someone else to do, so that you can experience growth in holiness?