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Theo Lecture

The early Church in Jerusalem lived as a close-knit community called a "Samahan". They devoted themselves to prayer, breaking bread together daily, and learning from the Apostles' teachings. All shared what they had equally, so no one was in need. This Samahan aimed to follow Jesus' way and saw itself as one body with one faith. A danger to their unity was power and authoritarianism, which Jesus rejected. Over time, distinctions developed between clergy and laity due to Christianity becoming the official Roman religion, monasticism, and social/educational differences after invasions.

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Llanne Rose Cadiang
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69 views2 pages

Theo Lecture

The early Church in Jerusalem lived as a close-knit community called a "Samahan". They devoted themselves to prayer, breaking bread together daily, and learning from the Apostles' teachings. All shared what they had equally, so no one was in need. This Samahan aimed to follow Jesus' way and saw itself as one body with one faith. A danger to their unity was power and authoritarianism, which Jesus rejected. Over time, distinctions developed between clergy and laity due to Christianity becoming the official Roman religion, monasticism, and social/educational differences after invasions.

Uploaded by

Llanne Rose Cadiang
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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What was the dynamic of the life of the early Church in Jerusalem?

How did they live out their


lives as followers of Jesus? We have to consider that the disciples of Jesus were not yet called
Christians then, rather, they were just known as disciples or followers of the way. (Acts 11: 26).
Let us examine Acts 2:42-47 and discover answers as to how the disciples of Jesus lived their
lives after his ascension.

 Devotion to prayer – (Acts 2: 42b) The disciples were seen always gathering together for
prayer at the temple area.
 Daily breaking of the bread – (Acts 2: 46) The disciples gathered every day in their
homes to have fellowship culminating in the breaking of the bread.
 Devoted themselves to the teaching of the Apostles – (Acts 2: 42a) The disciples gathered
in the temple area to listen to the teachings of the Apostles and for instruction in the faith
because many of them were new converts to the faith after the Pentecost.
 Divided their belongings equally – (Acts 2: 45) The disciples would sell all their
belongings and gave them to the Apostles and the Apostles in turn divided the proceeds
equally among themselves. Thus, in the early Church no one was in need.

Let us dig a little bit deeper. There is a word in Filipino referring to community and it is
called Samahan. (De Mesa and Cacho. Becoming Church Becoming Sacrament. 2017.) The
early Church was a Samahan  of believers who were one in faith and lived as one community.
(Eph. 4: 5) They were a community of believers not just a gathering of bodies whose aim was
follow the way of Jesus (That’s why they were called followers of the way) Jn. 14: 6. This
solidarity was further emphasized by St. Paul in comparing the Church to the body. (1 Cor. 12:
12-27) According to De Mesa and Cacho. 2017., “The Church then is a genuine Samahan  where
there is sharing, partnership and communion.” It is therefore a community of persons having one
faith and one baptism. What poses  a danger to this Samahan? Power and authoritarianism. Jesus
clearly rebuked the disciples who are arguing who among them is the greatest and gave an
answer that was clearly an anti-thesis to the belief of the disciples that in a community leaders
must dominate over others rather than use leadership as a tool for service.

How did the clergy –laity status of the Church develop? Why is there a clergy and laity in the
Church? Let us review the historical basis for the development of a clergy and a laity in the
Church. This will just be a summary since they events are much more complicated. We will look
at three distinctions as mentioned by De Mesa and Cacho. 2017 (Becoming Church Being
Sacrament)

 Theological – The first was connected with the cessation of the Christian persecution thus
causing Christian to ascend as the official religion of the Roman empire and the rise of
the ascetical movement led by St. Benedict. Together, these two led to the distinction of
clergy and laity within the Church community.
 The second came about because of the privileges given to the clergy by the empire. It
reinforced the theological difference socially.
 The third occurred during the “Barbarian invasion” of Europe which knowledge-wise
produced an educated clergy and an ignorant laity. To the theological and social
distinction, it added an educational element. 

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