Sixth Sunday in Easter (Year C). In Acts 15 we have a quite extraordinary moment in church history. At issue is how a Jewish community, gathered in worship at a Jewish synagogue around a Jewish Messiah, in the midst of a Jewish nation, keeping Jewish festivals and rituals – how does it welcome non Jews into this worship? What do these Gentiles have to do? Do men have to have that ‘little operation’ to be a part of this community? As they gather in Jerusalem for the Council, we read the decree that the disciples issue, which declares that “it seems good to the Holy Spirit and ourselves not to lay any unnecessary burdens on you” – which is an amazing thing in itself.
What might the teaching of this Council of Jerusalem (AD 50) mean for us today?
Recorded at Sacred Heart, 9.30am (9’38”)