22 The Rise

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Summary:  How does the Church rise to reach people with the good news of reconciliation with God at the cross? 
   One way is to consider how the faithful followers of Jesus Christ, the Church, grew from a few dispised and frightened individuals, to a growing counter-cultural movement, and the official religion of the Roman Empire in just a few centuries. 
   How do Churches that are now re-opening during what we hope are the final days of the Coronavirus pandemic, and what we pray are the the early days of renewed national soul-searching regarding race relations and the injustices experienced by the African-American community in particular, rise to adapt and minister? 
   One way is to consider what the inclusive community of the early Church did as a church known to be a servant Church before it was known as an institutional Church. 

   Referenced Bible text: Acts 9:36-42, 43
   Referenced book: The Rise of Christianity, Rodney Stark, © 1996 Princeton University Press, and Harper/Collins; on Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/dp/0060677015?psc=1&pf_rd_p=d8ce9248-9f14-4bd5-8d02-a98af28945ae&pf_rd_r=ECCPYWXCJVCZ0DY9FS8P&pd_rd_wg=k0jvZ&pd_rd_i=0060677015&pd_rd_w=rLQl2&pd_rd_r=92749791-11d9-4f0a-9343-b5631c304fbf&ref_=pd_luc_rh_crh_rh_sbs_sem_01_01_t_img_lh