Please read the passage before reading the comments.
The man asked for alms. Many people had given him money when he asked for alms. Peter said that he had no money. In the ancient language of Greek, the work for alms is also the word for mercy.
The man was really asking for mercy. For most people, that would be alms, or money. Peter, however, and John had no money. Jesus had sent them out without money to spread God’s mercy to others.
Peter told the man to look at John and him. They had no money-alms, but they did have God’s mercy-alms. Peter took the man by the hand and raised him up and the man experienced God’s mercy-alms. He began to jump up and down like a child who has learned how to walk and balance herself on one foot.
Let me interrupt here. Balancing on one foot is a test given to a child to see if she or he is ready for kindergarten. Those who pass that test are ready for kindergarten. You may also know that the prophet Isaiah speaks of the lame leaping like a deer in chapter 35:5-6. You got my reference to something you knew about school and now you can get the allusion to Isaiah: how clever was Isaiah?.
The people saw all this and they were amazed. They could join the dots and see the continuity with Isaiah and Peter. In Luke’s gospel, Luke tells how the risen Christ appeared to the disciples on the road to Emmaus and how he explained to them the scriptures about himself. Consider this passage to be based on what Jesus taught the disciples on that ancient road to Emmaus.
The Church is continuing the work of God’s mercy at the Beautiful Gate. We are challenged to see that mercy continuing in our own day. “Alms for the poor!” “Mercy for all God’s people.
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