October 15 Meeting: Poverty and the Poor in the New Testament

At our October 15 meeting, we concluded our series of readings on "Poverty and the Poor" by looking at the following passage from Acts 4:32-37:

³² Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. ³³With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. ³⁴There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. ³⁵They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. ³⁶There was a Levite, a native of Cyprus, Joseph, to whom the apostles gave the name Barnabas (which means ‘son of encouragement’). ³⁷He sold a field that belonged to him, then brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

Again, those who were there, please make use of the comments feature to convey some of what arose from our discussion of the text.

October 1 Meeting: Poverty and the Poor in the Qur'an

During this meeting, we discussed Sura 2:271-273:

2.271
If ye publish your almsgiving, it is well, but if ye hide it and give it to the poor, it will be better for you, and will atone for some of your ill-deeds. Allah is Informed of what ye do.

2.272
To make them walk in the right way is not incumbent on you, but Allah guides aright whom He pleases; and whatever good thing you spend, it is to your own good; and you do not spend but to seek Allah's pleasure; and whatever good things you spend shall be paid back to you in full, and you shall not be wronged.

2.273
(Alms are) for the poor who are confined in the way of Allah-- they cannot go about in the land; the ignorant man thinks them to be rich on account of (their) abstaining (from begging); you can recognise them by their mark; they do not beg from men importunately; and whatever good thing you spend, surely Allah knows it.

Among the questions raised by the group were:

--What does "some" signify in "some of your ill-deeds"?

--What is the significance of the verb "make" in "To make them walk in the right way"?

--Does "...shall be paid back to you in full" refer to monetary repayment?

--What is the significance of the man being described as "ignorant"?

--What is the meaning of "their mark" by which the poor who do not beg can be recognized?


If you attended this meeting, please take the time to use the Comments function to share some of the ideas that we came up with (in connection with the questions cited here, or in connection with other questions).