Homily for the Feast of St. Barnabas: “The Generous Saint”

June 13, 2021

St. Barnabas Episcopal Church in Denton, Texas

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today is the Feast of St. Barnabas, the day in which we as a congregation remember and celebrate our parish’s patron saint, from whom our church gets its name.

Barnabas is not the most well-known saint or biblical figure a church can be named after. He is not as prominent as Mary or Peter, John or Luke. And maybe this is a blessing. In thinking about Barnabas we cannot simply rely on larger-than-life caricatures or dubious legends. Separating fact from speculation in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary, for example, has proven a perennial challenge for the Church. Because Barnabas is more obscure than say, Peter or Mary, because he has less “baggage,” so to speak, and his life is not overlaid with so many connotations and traditions, we are able to see him more clearly. To get a sense of who he was as an historical figure.

There are several references to Barnabas scattered throughout the Acts of the Apostles and in some of Paul’s letters, and if one were to arrange them chronologically, a portrait emerges. Today I’d like to give you a biography of our patron, then explore what his life and witness mean for us today.

Barnabas was born Joseph. He was a Jew and a Levite from Cyprus. At some point, he heard the Gospel and believed in the Messiah Jesus, becoming a prominent disciple in Jerusalem. He is first mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles as a disciple who sold some land that he owned and gave the proceeds to the community. For this act of kindness, the apostles gave Joseph a new name: Barnabas, which means “son of encouragement.” Already we see that one of his characteristic qualities is generosity. Acts 11:24 describes Barnabas as “a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith.”

After Paul’s conversion experience on the road to Damascus, Paul returned to Jerusalem. But the apostles and disciples there were suspicious, not convinced that the former persecutor of the Church had become a believer. It was Barnabas who introduced Paul to the apostles and vouched for the sincerity of Paul’s conversion.

The next chapter is Barnabas’ life centers on Antioch, in modern-day Turkey. Jewish believers there began preaching the Gospel, not only to fellow Jews, but to Gentile pagans as well. These Gentile believers joined the community of Jewish Christians there.

The leadership at Jerusalem was concerned about this development, so they sent Barnabas to investigate. As we read in our readings from Acts: “When Barnabas came and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord with steadfast devotion.” Rather than being suspicious, Barnabas rejoiced to see Gentiles faithful to the Lord. Barnabas was tasked with seeing the newly diversified church at Antioch. He found the work so extensive that he realized he needed a helper, so he went to Tarsus to get Paul. Paul and Barnabas labored in Antioch for a whole year, making many converts.

From this point on, Barnabas becomes known as a steadfast companion of Paul on his missionary journeys. Barnabas was among Paul’s best friends and colleagues in the ministry. And it is in this capacity as a missionary and companion of Paul that Barnabas is called an “apostle” in Acts 14:14.
Paul mentions in his first letter to the Corinthians that he and Barnabas funded their missions by working side jobs and implied that both of them chose not to marry so they could devote their time and energy to the Gospel.

Barnabas and Paul became well-known for their commitment to including Gentiles in the life of the church. Still, Barnabas was not spotless in upholding this commitment. Paul mentions in his letter to the Galatians, “When Kephas [Peter] came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face because he clearly was wrong. For, until some people came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles; but when they came, he began to draw back and separated himself, because he was afraid of the circumcised. And the rest of the Jews also acted hypocritically along with him, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy.”

The last reference to Barnabas we get in Acts is in chapter 15:
“Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the believers in all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark, with them, but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, but Paul chose Silas and left… he went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches” (Acts 15:36-41).

Barnabas continued his ministry in Cyprus to the end of his life. His death is not recorded in the Bible, but Tradition holds that he was martyred at Cyprus, by being tortured then stoned to death. Today, he is venerated as an apostle, a martyr, and the founder of the Church of Cyprus.

So that’s the biography. What does it mean for us today? Sure, that is interesting historical data, but what does it mean for us as Christians today, and especially as members of St. Barnabas Church?

I would like to speak about only one major insight we can glean from the life of our patron saint. And that is generosity.

Barnabas was a man who gave generously of his time, energy, and resources. He lived out the word of the Lord in our Gospel reading: “Freely you received, freely you shall give.” From the first mention of him in Acts, Barnabas is someone lauded for his liberality in giving. It’s no wonder that he and Paul were entrusted with the collection for the poor in Jerusalem.

Yet it was not only a matter of financial generosity. He settled into a community, whether Antioch or Cyprus, and got to work. Like Paul, he could say, “I am willing to spend and be spent for you.” He gave much of his time and energy to the hard work of building up a community, of encouraging its members—a ministry in which there are no shortcuts or easy fixes.

Finally, Barnabas consistently demonstrated a generosity of spirit. He was generous in his willingness to see the good in others. He vouched for Paul, even when he had been a persecutor. He rejoiced to see the conversion of the Gentiles in Antioch, despite their idolatrous past. He wanted to give John Mark a second chance, even though he had deserted them when things got rough in Pamphylia.

Barnabas was someone who wanted to see the good in others, who was willing to believe that people could change, even if they had failed spectacularly in the past. The opposite of generosity is being stingy—which is much easier for us to do. We can be stingy with our money, with our time, with our willingness to put up with others or to demonstrate charity. Or we can be generous.

When we look at St. Barnabas, we see a life touched by grace—a life lived for Jesus. On the one hand, a life of faith, hard work, and generosity. A life which the Holy Spirit set apart for itself and used mightily. On the other hand, a life that was imperfect, not exempt from sharp disagreements, occasionally carried away by the bad influence of others. A life that was incomplete in itself, but part of something much grander and lovelier.

We remember and celebrate the saints, not because they are so good in themselves, but because they reflect the goodness of Jesus. It is Jesus who is the exemplar of generosity—who multiplied the loaves and fishes so abundantly that there were twelve wicker baskets full of leftovers. The one who gave the most generous gift the world has ever known—his body and blood, his very life, for the life of the world.

May we, like Barnabas, live generously, and give thanks for the blessed generosity of his savior and ours. Amen.