Lectio 1
Lecture 1
Collecti in ecclesiis
Collections in the churches
16:1 De collectis autem, quae fiunt in sanctos, sicut ordinavi ecclesiis Galatiae, ita et vos facite. [n. 1024]
16:1 Now concerning the collections that are made for the saints: as I have given order to the churches of Galatia, so do you also. [n. 1024]
16:2 Per unam sabbati unusquisque vestrum apud se seponat, recondens quod ei bene placuerit: ut non, cum venero, tunc collectae fiant.
16:2 On the first day of the week, let every one of you put apart with himself, laying up what shall well please him: that when I come, the collections be not then to be made.
16:3 Cum autem praesens fuero, quos probaveritis per epistolas, hos mittam perferre gratiam vestram in Jerusalem. [n. 1028]
16:3 And when I shall be with you, whomsoever you shall approve by letters, them will I send to carry your grace to Jerusalem. [n. 1028]
16:4 Quod si dignum fuerit ut et ego eam, mecum ibunt.
16:4 And if it be meet that I also go, they shall go with me.
16:5 Veniam autem ad vos, cum Macedoniam pertransiero: nam Macedoniam pertransibo. [n. 1029]
16:5 Now I will come to you, when I shall have passed through Macedonia. For I shall pass through Macedonia. [n. 1029]
16:6 Apud vos autem forsitan manebo, vel etiam hiemabo: ut vos me deducatis quocumque iero. [n. 1031]
16:6 And with you perhaps I shall abide, or even spend the winter: that you may bring me on my way wherever I shall go. [n. 1031]
16:7 Nolo enim vos modo in transitu videre, spero enim me aliquantulum temporis manere apud vos, si Dominus permiserit. [n. 1032]
16:7 For I will not see you now by the way: for I trust that I shall abide with you some time, if the Lord permit. [n. 1032]
16:8 Permanebo autem Ephesi usque ad Pentecosten. [n. 1033]
16:8 But I will tarry at Ephesus, until Pentecost. [n. 1033]
16:9 Ostium enim mihi apertum est magnum, et evidens: et adversarii multi.
16:9 For a great and evident door is opened unto me: and many adversaries.
1024. Supra per totam seriem epistolae proposuit Apostolus Corinthiis quamdam doctrinam generalem, in hoc ultimo capite proponit eis quaedam specialia et familiaria.
1024. Above, through the entire succession of the letter, the Apostle proposed to the Corinthians a general teaching; in this final chapter, he proposes to them a special and particular teaching.
Et circa hoc duo facit.
And concerning this he does two things.
Primo monet eos quid ipsi debeant aliis facere;
First, he instructs them about what they ought to do for others;
secundo ostendit quid alii faciant ipsis, ibi salutat vos ecclesia, et cetera.
second, he shows what others would do for them, at the churches of Asia greet you (1 Cor 16:19).
Circa primum duo facit.
Concerning the first, he does two things.
Primo instruit eos de his quae debent facere ad absentes;
First, he instructs them about what they should do in his absence;
secundo vero de his quae debent facere ad praesentes, ibi vigilate et state in fide, et cetera.
second, about what they should do in the present, at watch: stand fast in the faith (1 Cor 16:13).
Circa primum tria facit.
Concerning the first, he does three things.
Primo instruit eos de his quae pertinent ad absentes pauperes sanctos, qui sunt in Ierusalem;
First, he instructs them about what in his absence pertains to the poor saints who are in Jerusalem;
secundo de his quae pertinent ad Apostolum, ibi veniam ad vos, etc.;
second, about those things that pertain to the Apostle, at now I will come to you;
tertio de his quae pertinent ad discipulos, ibi si autem venerit, et cetera.
third, about those things that pertain to the disciples, at now if Timothy comes (1 Cor 16:10).
Circa ea quae debent fieri sanctis, qui erant in Ierusalem, de tribus instruit eos Apostolus.
The Apostle instructs them about three things concerning what ought to happen for the saints who are in Jerusalem.
Primo qualiter eleemosyna sanctis facienda sit colligenda;
First, how the alms to be prepared for the saints are to be collected;
secundo qualiter sit conservanda, ibi unusquisque autem vestrum, etc.;
second, how the alms are to be kept, at let every one of you put apart with himself;
tertio qualiter sit in Ierusalem transmittenda, ibi cum autem praesens fuero, et cetera.
third, how they are to be sent to Jerusalem, at and when I shall be with you.
1025. Circa primum sciendum est, quod, sicut legitur Act. IV, 34 s., mos erat in primitiva Ecclesia, ut conversi ad fidem venderent possessiones et omnia quae habebant, et pretium ponerent ad pedes apostolorum, et de eis unicuique (prout erat opus) provideretur, ut sic nullus haberet proprium, sed essent illis omnia communia. Et, sicut dicitur in collationibus patrum, omnis religio ab illa sancta societate sumpsit exordium.
1025. Concerning the first, it should be understood that, as it is written in Acts, it was the custom in the early Church that those converted to the faith would sell their possessions and all they have, and would place the value at the feet of the apostles, and from these each one (according as there was need) would be provided for, so that no one would have property, but that all things would be in common for them (Acts 4:34ff). But it happens that due to a great, rising famine, the poor saints in Jerusalem were laboring under a great want.
Contigit autem ut fame pervalida exorta, pauperes sancti, qui erant in Ierusalem, inopia maxima laborarent. Unde factum est, ut apostoli ordinarent ad ipsorum subventionem, quod per alias ecclesias Christi collectae fierent, et haec commissio facta est Paulo et Barnabae, Gal. II, 9: dederunt mihi et Barnabae, et cetera. Et quia Apostolus super hoc sollicitus erat, monebat illos, quos converterat, ut eis subvenirent, quia, sicut ipse ad Romanos dicit, iustum est, ut a quibus spiritualia receperant, temporalia ministrent. Et hoc est quod dicit de collectis autem quae fiunt per Ecclesias in sanctos, id est in usum sanctorum, et non quorumlibet. Eccle. XII, v. 5: da iusto, et ne recipias peccatorem. Non quod peccatoribus non sit aliquid dandum, sed quia magis debet quis dare eleemosynam iusto indigenti quam peccatori.
Hence it happened that the Apostles ordained for the rendering of assistance to them, that there be a collection by other Christian churches, and this commission was made to Paul and Barnabas: they gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship . . . only they would have us remember the poor (Gal 2:9–10). And because the Apostle was solicitous about this, he instructed those who converted, that they should render assistance to them, because just as he said to the Romans, it is right that whoever receives spiritual goods should supply temporal ones. And this is what he says: now concerning the collections by the churches for the saints, i.e., for the use of the saints, and not for whatever use: do good to the humble, but do not give to the ungodly (Sir 12:5). Not that there is not something that is to be given to sinners, but because with more reason ought one to give alms to the indigent just man than to the sinner.
Sicut ordinavi in ecclesia Galatiae, ita et vos facite, id est colligite, per unam, scilicet diem, sabbati, id est, septimanae. Et hoc ideo ordinatum est, ut paulatim qualibet hebdomada aliquid parvum solverent, ne si simul totum solvissent, gravarentur. Et licet eis paululum videretur, et quasi insensibile, paulatim dare, tamen, completo anno, eleemosynae in simul collectae, magnae erant.
As I have given order to the churches of Galatia, so do you also, i.e., to collect, on the first day of the week, i.e., the seventh day. And this was ordained, so that little by little a small amount might be set aside in any given week, and they might not, if all at once it were set aside, be burdened. And although it might seem very little to them, as if imperceptible to give little by little, yet over an entire year the alms were greater than in one single collection.
1026. Vel per unam sabbati intelligitur prima dies post sabbatum, scilicet Dies Dominicus.
1026. Or by on the first day of the week, is understood the first day after the sabbath, namely, the Lord’s Day.
Et hoc ideo illo die fieri voluit Apostolus, quia iam inoleverat consuetudo, ut populus in Dominicis Diebus ad ecclesiam conveniret. Lev. XXIII, 35: dies primus celeberrimus erit atque sanctissimus, et cetera. Et post: est enim coetus atque collectae, et cetera. De huiusmodi eleemosyna dicitur Dan. IV, 24: peccata tua eleemosynis redime; et Eccli. XXIX, v. 15: eleemosyna viri quasi sacculus, et cetera.
And this is what the Apostle wanted to happen on that day, because the custom was already in force, that the people would gather in the church on the Lord’s Days: on the first day shall be a holy convocation . . . it is a solemn assembly; you shall do not laborious work (Lev 23:35–36). And in this way are alms described: break off your sins by practicing almsgiving, and your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed (Dan 4:24); and the alms of a man is as a seal with him (Sir 29:15).
1027. Quia vero non solum debet apponi modus in colligendo, sed etiam in conservando, ideo consequenter instruit qualiter collectae conserventur, cum dicit unusquisque autem vestrum, et cetera. In quo ostenditur maxima industria Apostoli, ne aliqui crederent quod Apostolus faceret collectas istas magis causa quaestus proprii, quam propter necessitatem sanctorum. Ideo suspicionem hanc vitans, et quantum ad se et quantum ad suos ministros, noluit dictam pecuniam a se, seu a suis ministris custodiri, sed ordinavit quod quilibet illud quod sibi placebat elargiri, reportaret domi et conservaret seorsum, faciens sic per totum annum. Et huius ratio erat, quia Apostolus nolebat, quod quando veniret Corinthum, vacarent collectis, sed doctrinae et rebus spiritualibus. Et ideo dicit ut non cum venero, et cetera. Act. VI, 2: non est aequum nos relinquere, et cetera.
1027. Because not only the manner of collecting ought to be applied, but also of setting aside, he then instructs them how the collections should be set aside, when he says, let every one of you put apart with himself. In this is shown the greatest skill of the Apostle, so that no one should believe that the Apostle would make these collections more for the sake of his own profit, than for the sake of the needs of the saints. Therefore, evading this suspicion, both as to himself and his ministers, he was unwilling that the money spoken of be kept by himself or by his ministers, but he established that whoever was ready to distribute that money take it home and keep it himself, doing this for the whole year. And it was for this reason, because the Apostle was unwilling, when he should come to Corinth, that they attend to the collections, but rather to teaching and to spiritual things. Thus he says when I come, the collections be not then to be made: it is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables (Acts 6:2).
Notandum est ergo quod quilibet debet cavere sibi, ne videatur aliquid spirituale facere propter quaestum, et inde est quod Dominus, Matth. X, 9 voluit praedicatores nihil habere. Romanis etiam mos erat, ut nullus assumeretur ad senatus officium, nisi prius probatus fuisset in officio quaestoris, quia virtutis est magnae res temporales custodire.
Therefore it should be noted that everyone should take care, lest he seem to do something spiritual for the sake of profit, and that is precisely what the Lord wished preachers to have nothing to do with (Matt 10:9). It was also the custom among the Romans, that no one would be installed in the office of senator unless first he had been proved in the office of treasurer, for it takes greater virtue to keep temporal things.
1028. Qualiter autem debeant mitti in Ierusalem, subdit, dicens cum autem praesens fuero, etc., quasi dicat: nec in hoc volo aliquos specialiter onerare, cum praesens fuero, scilicet ad portandum pecuniam, sed mittam illos quos probaveritis, id est approbaveritis mittendos, mittam, inquam, per epistolas, id est cum epistolis missis a vobis et a nobis, laudatoriis et commendatoriis, scilicet in quibus contineatur quantitas pecuniae, commendatum studium nostrum et caritas.
1028. He adds how the alms should be sent to Jerusalem, saying, when I shall be with you. As if to say: I do not wish in this to burden any especially, namely for bearing the money, whomsoever you shall approve by letter, them will I send, i.e., the ones you will approve for sending, will I send, I say, by letter, i.e., with letters sent from you and from us, with praises and commendations, namely, in which will be contained a sum of money, our zeal and love commended.
Mittam, inquam, perferre gratiam vestram, id est quod gratis dabitis sanctis pauperibus, in Ierusalem. II Cor. VIII, 1: notam facimus vobis gratiam Dei, et cetera. In Ierusalem, id est sanctis qui sunt in Ierusalem.
Will I send, I say, to carry your grace, i.e., what you will give generously to the poor saints to Jerusalem: we want you to know, brethren, about the grace of God which has been shown in the churches of Macedonia (2 Cor 8:1). To Jerusalem, i.e., to the saints who are in Jerusalem.
Et non solum mittam illos quos probaveritis, sed si dignum fuerit, etc., id est si magna quantitas fuerit, mecum ibunt, in quo inducit eos ad bene et liberaliter solvendum. Rom. XV, 25: nunc igitur proficiscar Ierusalem ministrare sanctis, et cetera.
And not only will I send those whom you accredit, but if it be meet that I also go, i.e., if there will be a great quantity, they shall go with me, by which he leads them to contribute well and liberally: at present, however, I am going to Jerusalem with aid for the saints (Rom 15:25).