When I was growing up, my parents took my three brothers and I to Mass at St. Barnabas every single Sunday. We rose early and religiously attended the 7:00 a.m. service, front row. We sat in the same pew every single week unless we were needed as altar servers that weekend. For the vast majority of my life, I had no idea who Barnabas was nor why he was important. It wasn’t until I began to send my first son, Benedict, to school at that same parish that I began to read more about him.
I had overlooked Barnabas my entire life, which, I think, is pretty common. The faithful don’t pay much attention to him because we tend to focus on Peter or Paul or, really, any of the Twelve Apostles. But Barnabas was actually very close friends with St. Paul; in fact, he was the one who introduced Paul to Peter and the other apostles (Acts 9:27).
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In the Acts of the Apostles we learn a bit about who Barnabas was and what he was known for. His birth name was Joseph, but this was later changed to Barnabas, which means “son of encouragement” (Acts 4:36). The next line notes that Barnabas sold property that he owned, took the money, and placed it at the feet of the apostles as a way to care for the poor and the early Christian community.
These facts about my parish saint have revitalized my appreciation for the community that I grew up in, as well as my faith. I realized that one of the main blessings that my family and I receive by attending Mass is the gift of encouragement. No matter what challenges might be going on at home or at work, no matter what seemingly insurmountable odds might be impacting us, we leave Mass with the sense that God is with us and he will take care of us.
Barnabas must have been a person who had this encouraging effect on others — his name was changed to signify what he organically accomplished. Our parish ought to bring us consolation but also make us into people who seek to encourage others.
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Learning about the generosity of Barnabas has also pushed my wife and I to consider how we can give more to our parish and those in need. Barnabas was willing to sell his property — what sort of sacrifices could we be making? He gave a large portion of his wealth away to aid the poor — how could we be more intentional about giving to the less fortunate in our own community?
The Acts of the Apostles sums up the life of Barnabas simply: “he was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and faith” (Acts 11:24). Learning about Barnabas, and his example of encouragement and deliberate generosity, has pushed us to follow Jesus more dramatically, and this has led us to be more aware of how the Holy Spirit is moving in our own lives.
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The Catholic Church exists to make sinners into saints. For most of my young life, I thought that my flaws disqualified me from being fully accepted or loved by my parish and God. However, Barnabas reveals that Jesus gives us the Church in order to sanctify us and make us better than we ever thought we could be. Learning about this great saint has shown me that the pursuit of holiness requires trusting that God is always with me and that he will provide me with his Spirit.
At the end of the day, it was my son entering the school on the property of the parish of my youth that motivated me to learn about my parish saint. Doing so has brought me closer to God and brought our family closer together in the process. So, consider finding out the background of your own parish saint — doing so may have unexpected but beautiful results.
