Lesson 3: The birth of the Church and the Period of the Apostles

Introduction:

Every story has its beginning. Everyone has its own share of history, for they had been a part of it. Our
situation today with the pandemic that affected not only the health of the people but the emotional and
psychological state of being. It has affected even our relationships with each other. At some point it has
challenged us personally and as a community. This made us reflect on life in its entirety. At some point also,
we pondered and asked ourselves as a community, how can we combat all these seemingly trials in our
lives? This led us to look back in the past particularly in the life of the Church. As a Church we are grateful
for the courage and steadfastness our church Fathers had done and shown amidst all the trials they
experience as they witness to the Gospels. We then look at them as our models and so its befitting to go
back into their story which is the content of this module. To aid us in our discussion, let us have first this
brainstorming activity.

The birth of the Church and the Period of the Apostles

a. The Early Christian Community

b. Factors for the spread Christianity
After the resurrection, The 12 apostles were no longer hiding in fear, they speak with conviction to
tell their faith in the risen Christ. In Mk. 16:15-18, Mt. 28:16-20. the Apostles were commissioned
by Jesus saying: “Go into the whole world and preach the Gospel to the whole creation. He who
believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned. And these
signs will accompany those who believe: they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
they will pick up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay
their hands on the sick and they will recover.”

After Jesus’ ascension, the disciples went and preached everywhere. The missionary spirit was lit
up and the heart of every apostle was consumed by His calling. They were led to proclaim the
Good News about Jesus and in bringing new converts to the faith.

This proclamation goes on while they are waiting for the coming of the Holy Spirit as promised by
Jesus before his ascension. The fulfillment of this promise came on the day of Pentecost.
“When the day of Pentecost came, all the believers were gathered together in one place, Suddenly,
there was a noise from the sky which sounded like a strong wind blowing, and it filled the whole
house where they were sitting. Then they saw what looked like tongues of fire which spread out
and touched each person there. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to talk in other
languages, as the Spirit enabled them to speak.” (Acts 2:1-4)

Under the leadership of Peter and the other 11 apostles, they preached Jesus proclaiming their
conviction that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah. The Speech of Peter on the day of Pentecost
echoes this conviction (Acts 2:22-24,32-33,36)

The people who heard Peter were moved and convinced and converted. (Acts 2:37-47)
“When the people heard Peter, they were deeply troubled and said to Peter and the rest of the
apostles: What shall we do brothers?” Peter said to them, “ Each one of you must turn away from
your sins and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins will be forgiven; and you will
receive God’s gift, the Holy Spirit. For God’s promise was made to you and your children and to all
who are far away. – all whom the Lord our God calls to Himself. So those who received his word
were baptized and there were added that day about three thousands souls.
They were faithful to the teachings of the apostles, the common life of sharing, the breaking of the
bread and the prayers. Many miracles and wonders were being done through the apostles and
everyone was filled with awe. All the believers continued together in close fellowship and shared
their belongings with one another. They would sell their property and possessions, and distribute
the money among all, according to what each one needed. Day after day, they met as a group in
the temple and they had their meals together in their homes eating with glad and humble hearts,
praising God and enjoying the good will of the people. And everyday, the Lord added to their group
those who were being saved.”

The way of life lived by the first Christian community as mentioned in the book of Acts reveal the
different dimensions of the Church and her mission.

Because of their way of life, problems soon arose between the early Christian community and the
Jewish priests and elders. They tried to stop the preaching , but they were not successful. The
movement continued to spread the Good News to other areas.

A further problem was met. Not only did the group come in conflict with authorities but with the
Gentiles. When the community spread the Good News outside of Jerusalem, They attracted the
attention of the people who were not Jews – the Gentiles – who became interested in joining the
group. Now, there were traditional Jews who regarded themselves apart from the others, who
asks “What should be done now?” “Should non-Jews be allowed to join?” ”Should they be Jews
first?”

One characteristic of the new community was communal life and sharing. As they attracted more
members to their community, they grew in number. The Hellenistic Jews murmured against the
Hebrews because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution of goods (Acts 6:1).
Because of this, deacons (7) were appointed to help in the community.

There was the time that the life giving conviction of the early Christians that Jesus is the God-sent
Messiah faced its life changing adversary – the test of persecution and death. The Jewish
Authorities initiated a religious persecution of the Christian who were considered as “deifying” a
condemned and crucified criminal, Jesus.

Stephen – one of the appointed deacons. His preaching in Jerusalem attracted the attention of
Jewish authorities who arrested him.

The stoning of Stephen did not discouraged the believers. The message continued to spread and
the persecution also did not stop. The preaching of the Good News continued and had reached
Antioch. They gave the Good News to the Jews and the Gentiles. A great number believed and
were converted in Antioch. It was in this city that the believers were first called Christians.

From Saul to Paul

The book of Acts (Acts9:1-2) tells us that Saul consented and carried out the persecutions against
Christians. He had permission from the High Priest authorizing him to arrest Christians.
Acts 9:3-9 tells us of the conversion story of Paul. From then on, he became a preacher of the
Good News. All people in Damascus were amazed for he was known to be the persecutor of
Christians. Threats from the Jews was experienced by Paul, So he went to Jerusalem and was
accepted by the apostles as member of the Jerusalem church. He brought many gentiles converts
to the Christian faith and later was called the apostle to the Gentile.

Reflect on this:
1. Why did the Jews rejected the preaching of Paul?
2. Why was the preaching of Paul attractive to the Gentiles?

Paul travelled and established Christian communities in the places that he visited. He wrote letters
to these communities, encouraging them, challenging them,and answering their questions. He was
known by the letters or epistles he wrote to the various churches he visited and founded during
his active missionary life. These letters were born from a necessity arising from a point of
question: Should the Gentiles be admitted to the Christian Church? Should they undergo
circumcision?

Paul was convinced that the Good News of Jesus was intended for all. So, in his preaching, he does
not require circumcision as an entry requirement, only faith.

Paul’s letters redefined the primacy of faith in Jesus over the mere obedience of the law (e.g. on
the circumcision of Gentiles).

The Church in Jerusalem is preaching that Jesus’ message is for the Jews alone and therefore
Gentiles had to undergo circumcision before their admission to the Christian Church.

This controversy lead them to the Council of Jerusalem (Council of the Apostles) (Acts 15:1-19)
where Peter, Paul, James and the other apostles were present. There was a heated argument
among the believers. Then Peter gave his speech James spoke to them. It was declared at the
council that the community of Jesus Christ unites the Jews and Gentiles who have been called to it
. It is home to all nations and languages, a fellowship in the Lord, embracing the manifold variety
of peoples, languages, cultures, ways of thinking and modes of faith. (Acts 15:19-22)

Summary/Conclusion
1300. Pentecost. In St. Luke’s Acts, the Church is inaugurated with the spectacular outpouring of
the Holy Spirit. “All were filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:4). This corresponds to Jesus’
inaugurating his public ministry with his opening discourse in Luke’s Gospel, “the Spirit of the Lord
is upon me” (Lk 4:18; cf. 30). At Pentecost the large crowd were much confused upon hearing the
eleven “express themselves in foreign tongues and make bold proclamation as the Spirit prompted
them” (Acts 2:4). The people asked: “What are we to do?” Peter answered “You must reform and
be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ, that your sins may be forgiven; then you
will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38).
1301. Thus it was the Holy Spirit, sent by the Father and the Risen Christ, that gave birth to the
first Christian community, the apostolic Church. St. Paul describes the people of this New
Covenant as “a letter of Christ, . . . written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on
tablets of stone but on the tablets of human hearts” (2 Cor 3:3). This Spirit is the “Gift of God” who
is Love (cf. 1 Jn 4:8,16), the first gift which contains all the others, and which “has been poured out
into our hearts” (Rom 5:5; cf. CCC 733).

Until today the Holy Spirit continues to exercise three functions: to give life to, to unify, and to
move the whole body (cf. LG 7).
1. The Spirit Gives Life
1302. The Spirit’s role in vivifying the Church is graphically sketched in Vatican II: When in the
womb of the baptismal font the Spirit begets to a new life those who believe in Christ, he gathers
them into the one People of God which is a ‘chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a
purchased people’ (1 Pt 2:9; AG 15). Even the Church’s practical pastoral decisions were made
under such influence of the Spirit that the apostles could write: “It is the decision of the Holy
Spirit, and ours too, not to lay on you any burden beyond what is necessary” (Acts 15:28).
2. The Spirit Unifies
1303. Then the Spirit unifies the Church by uniting its members with Christ and with one
another.The Spirit:
• prepares us to accept Christ, and draws us to him;
• manifests the Risen Christ to us interiorly, opening our minds and hearts to Christ’s words and
deeds, especially his Passion, Death and Resurrection;
• makes Christ present especially in the Sacraments, reconciling and putting us in communion
with God;
• so we can bear much fruit (cf. Jn 15:5,8,16; cf. CCC 737).

We experience the Spirit in the preaching of the Gospel, celebrating the sacraments, and the
deepening of our faith through the new life of grace, calling us to share in building up the People
of God (cf. PCP II 428). “Throughout the ages, the Holy Spirit makes the entire Church one in
communion and ministry; and provides her with different hierarchical and charismatic gifts, giving
life to the ecclesiastical structures, being as it were their soul” (AG 4).
1304. Both the life and unity of the Church are fostered by the Spirit’s “charisms.” St. Paul
described the charismatic gifts with which the Spirit endows individual members of the Church for
the good of the whole Body. To each person the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the
common good. To one the Spirit gives wisdom in discourse, to another the power to express
knowledge. Through the Spirit one receives faith; by the same Spirit another is given the gift of
healing . . . but it is one and the same Spirit who produces all these gifts, distributing them to each
as he wills (1 Cor 12:7-11). The teaching authority of the Bishops plays an indispensable role here
in judging the presence of genuine charisms of the Spirit and how they are to be used for the good
of the Christian community.
3. The Spirit Moves to Ministry
1305. Finally, the Spirit moves the Church toward its mission and ministry. PCP II insists that the
Holy Spirit:
• is the principal agent of evangelization;
• continues and brings the work of Christ to perfection;
• precedes, accompanies, and fructifies the work of the Church;
• impels each individual to proclaim the Gospel, and
• causes the word of salvation to be accepted and understood in the depths of consciences;
• shows His presence, power, and activity not only in the Church, but in the signs of the times
that mark the contemporary world (cf. PCP II 212-15). Vatican II declares that the Spirit inspires “in
the hearts of the faithful that same spirit of mission which impelled Christ himself” (AG 4). Thus
the Church is kept focused on its primary mission of preaching the word of God, “making her own
the words of the apostle Paul, ‘I am ruined if I do not preach it’ ” (1 Cor 9:16; cf. LG 17).
The Spirit also moves the Church to renewal and purification. “Guided by the Holy Spirit, the
Church ceaselessly exhorts her children to purification and renewal so that the sign of Christ may
shine more brightly over the face of the Church” (GS 43).
SO, no matter how difficult it had been in the life of the Church during the early times, they were
able to overcome those and stood firm in their faith in the Risen Jesus and proclaimed this Good
News guided and strengthened by the same spirit