@FirstChurchofJerusalem
Today's Early Church Wisdom
“I shall not hesitate also to put into ordered form for you, along with the interpretations, everything I learned carefully in the past from the elders and noted down carefully, for the truth of which I vouch. For unlike most people, I took no pleasure in those who told many different stories, but only in those who taught the truth. Nor did I take pleasure in those who reported their memory of someone else’s commandments, but only in those who reported their memory of the commandments given by the Lord to the faith and proceeding from the Truth itself. And if by chance anyone who had been in attendance on the elders arrived, I made enquiries about the words of the elders—what Andrew or Peter had said, or Philip or Thomas or James or John or Matthew or any other of the Lord’s disciples, and whatever Aristion and John the Elder, the Lord’s disciples, were saying. For I did not think that information from the books would profit me as much as information from a living and surviving voice.
~ Papias of Hierapolis (c. 60–130 AD) From the Preface to his lost ‘Expositions of the Sayings of the Lord’
This week's Psalm is Psalm 31 'My Rock, My Shield, My Song'

Love At The Heart

More than a meal

The heart of the Christian revelation is the sacrifice of a loving Father for His children, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son that whoever believes
in Him should not perish but have everlasting life “ (John 3:16). On the last night of His earthly life, Yeshua gives His followers a simple meal that would form the core practice of His ekklesia (church). But this was so much more than just a meal. Here was a living memorial in which each disciple would uniquely connect with and be strengthened by the love that bought their freedom. So it was that the Agape (Love) meal became the central component of the first Christian gatherings. The dining arrangements were simple and communal, reflecting the humble and inclusive nature of the fellowship. Members would sit together on low couches or sometimes on the floor, around a common table or in a circle, sharing food and drink as a symbol of their communion with Christ and their love for one another. The Agape was a mystical communion with the simplest of physical emblems and requiring only the humblest of fare. Its emphasis was on loving fellowship with Jesus and one another, sharing, mutual support, celebration, and thanksgiving. Each person contributed what they could, both to the common meal and to the worship. This meal has Love at its heart.