How Early Church Community was Established
It is also true that community is formed and determined in social, historical, and cultural contexts. Christianity was born in Palestine in the first century under the reign of the Roman Empire. It was formed in a place and time when Greek, Roman, Jewish, and other diverse cultures collided.
Some communities form by establishing and maintaining a distinction separating them from certain cultures, while other communities form by integrating two or more different cultures. There were many societal and cultural boundaries and distinctions in first century Palestine. One common factor that was prominent in every culture represented in that time was the various “associations” that existed. These associations were communities formed either by philosophical, religious, or professional interests. Examples would be an actor’s guild, a carpenter’s union, or a group that studied Plato. All of the different associations had a common structure about them. Most all of them had regular meetings at a designated meeting place where they discussed their common interests. These meetings were typically small in number, ranging somewhere between fifteen to fifty people. They usually met either monthly or weekly. They almost always shared a meal together, pay homage to whatever deity their particular association was connected with, and spent time discussing relevant matters regarding their association after dining together.
The Gentile churches formed by Paul and others were usually house churches that followed the cultural norm of these associations. An outsider in that day would have naturally looked upon a Christian church as another association. The churches founded in Judea or other places that were comprised of predominately Jews would likely have looked like an association with a synagogue flavor to it. These characteristics helped define what community looked like in the first century church.
Some communities form by establishing and maintaining a distinction separating them from certain cultures, while other communities form by integrating two or more different cultures. There were many societal and cultural boundaries and distinctions in first century Palestine. One common factor that was prominent in every culture represented in that time was the various “associations” that existed. These associations were communities formed either by philosophical, religious, or professional interests. Examples would be an actor’s guild, a carpenter’s union, or a group that studied Plato. All of the different associations had a common structure about them. Most all of them had regular meetings at a designated meeting place where they discussed their common interests. These meetings were typically small in number, ranging somewhere between fifteen to fifty people. They usually met either monthly or weekly. They almost always shared a meal together, pay homage to whatever deity their particular association was connected with, and spent time discussing relevant matters regarding their association after dining together.
The Gentile churches formed by Paul and others were usually house churches that followed the cultural norm of these associations. An outsider in that day would have naturally looked upon a Christian church as another association. The churches founded in Judea or other places that were comprised of predominately Jews would likely have looked like an association with a synagogue flavor to it. These characteristics helped define what community looked like in the first century church.
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