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28a. session. The Acts of the Apostles

Author: P Antonio Rivero LC

II. DOCTRINAL OBJECTIVE: know the essentials of this book.

III. LIVING OBJECTIVE: Back to the fervor of the early Christian community.
112. 
     
IV. THESIS: The Acts of the Apostles is a continuation of the Gospel of Luke and narrating the birth of Christianity and the early church. Here we find the roots of a message and a way of life that has been decisive in the history of mankind. The Church presented in the Acts is the community of disciples, led by the Holy Spirit. Testify to the Lord from the experience of brotherhood.

V. EXPLANATION OF THE THESIS:
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     1. Author, date and recipient

The author is Lucas or one of his disciples. In his Gospel, Luke tells the time of Jesus and the Acts tells the time of the early Church.

The date is probably after the Gospel, written around the year 80. Therefore, the Acts of the Apostles was written around the year 1985-1990. The Message of Acts is addressed to the Church that have been off the first impetus and has begun to appear the negligence and apathy, a Church born of Paul's mission, called to carry the message of Jesus all Roman Empire.

2. Literary characteristics

a) He used
several sources: the Gospel of Mark, the famous "Q Source", "files" oral and written several communities, living memories of the apostles, memories personal information about Paul. Reworked this material and gave his writing a unified form.

b)
has been written

taste and reflects an ability comparable to that of other writings of the Hellenistic era.

c)

narrative accounts are
an intention issue, that is, cause in the reader's desire to live these same experiences.
d)
The speeches
inserted along the stories focus on the essential: the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as the source of salvation for all men.

e)
There are also summaries are brief summaries of community life that mark the transitions and give the reader pause for reflection to stop and understand the meaning of what is told in the book.

f)
Until the invention of printing, the book of Acts was passed, as the rest of the New Testament manuscripts.


3. Division and thematic content


a) Introduction

(1, 1-11), which links the gospel with the book of Acts of the Apostles. b) The Church of Jerusalem
(1, 12-8.3): the apostolic community and the community of Jerusalem.

c)
The expansion of the Church in Asia Minor

(8, 4-14.28) in Samaria, conversion of Paul, Peter in Caesarea, outside Palestine (Antioch), release of Peter, Paul's first missionary journey Cyprus and Asia Minor.

d)
Assembly in Jerusalem (15, 1-35). e) Expansion

the Greek world (15, 36-21, 14): Paul's second trip in Greece and third journeys of Paul in Asia Minor. f) From Jerusalem to Rome
(21, 15-28, 29): Paul in Jerusalem and Caesarea to Rome.
4. Theological and spiritual content
End of book: describe the life of the early church and how Christianity arose from within the Jewish and became a universal religion, not without difficulty, tears and controversy, especially when we got into a first community that the pagans, ie non-Jews, either Greek or Roman.
Key: Lucas chooses the historical material that interests you most for their theological purposes, that is, for its spiritual message. Content:

a)
The foundation of the Christian community is the

Kerygma, that is, the announcement of the Easter event, which is summarized as follows: Jesus suffered, died and rose again to save.

The person of Jesus is supported by the testimony of eyewitnesses. This was the plan of God, and it was announced by the prophets. Jesus
calls faith, acceptance of its message and change of heart. b)
The Holy Spirit, the protagonist: more than Peter and Paul, the Holy Spirit is the protagonist in all decisions of the Church. The Holy Spirit is the one who made the apostles to "witnesses" and intrepid missionaries of Jesus at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit is the force that launches the early Church. This Spirit is the Spirit of Jesus, which is perpetuated in the Church.
c) The Christian community: an ideal. What characteristics of this early Christian community? 107

Announce teaching of the apostles or kerygma, accompanied by miracles.

live in fraternal communion and charity.
feed on prayer and the breaking of bread and Eucharist.
distribute their goods to the needy.
d)
Features Church



missionary and universal Church, is projected under the impulse of the Spirit, out of Jerusalem and Palestine. It is a church on mission, so that every person has the opportunity to receive the gospel. Admission to the Christian community makes them free men of any religion or cult of other gods and even the whole religious institution. The conflicts that arose at the beginning with the opening of the community to all the men were solved through dialogue, prayer, fellowship and help of the Spirit.
ministerial Church:
each one is chosen according to God's call and personal qualities: deacons, missionaries, responsible community.

Apostolic Church:
any service or ministry has at its center and point of reference to the apostles. Therefore, the seven deacons are presented to the apostles, they lay their hands, the decisions of the Council of Jerusalem are endorsed and initialed by Peter and James, Paul goes to Jerusalem several times to confront their faith and preaching by Peter. The apostles are guarantors of truth and unity. With the growth of communities, the apostles chose some responsibilities as mission support in the community, monitor the transmission of the message, teach, make decisions at key moments, distribution functions in the community, providing the sacraments there were two : baptism and the breaking of bread.

tried and persecuted Church
: from Home is a persecuted Church, but is brave, confident in the strength of the Spirit. Persecuted by the Jews themselves observant of the Mosaic Law, because the apostles admitted to the pagans, exempting them from circumcision and the Mosaic law, was enough for only faith in Jesus Christ. And persecuted by the pagan Romans, who saw the standard of living of the first Christians a strong attack and call attention to the life of luxury, vanity and unbridled pleasures worn by pagans.
V. CONCLUSION:
The Acts of the Apostles presents the model of Christian life, ie how to live there find us twenty-first century Christians of all ages, united in the love of Christ, together with our pastors (Pope, bishops and priests) who obey and those who work side by side in the construction of the Church of Christ
1 and fed in the sacraments, especially the Eucharist. VI. PRAYER: Holy Spirit, as you drove, the first church, we ask you to guide our steps in this third millennium of Christianity, and put on our lips and in our hearts the message of Jesus, for transmission to same courage, clarity and enthusiasm of the early Christians. Amen. _________________________

So says the book of Acts of the Apostles: "They devoted the teaching of the apostles and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer" (2, 42).

Each with the role God wants lay people, bringing light and leaven of Christ to all human fields where their work and sanctification, the religious, witnessing their commitment to Christ and foreshadowing and from here goods from heaven and hierarchy, with its sacred service and ministry, sacraments and direction of souls.

QUESTIONNAIRE 1. A Christian of today can live with the same fervor and dedication to their Christian faith as did the early Christians? What are we missing?

2. What is the main character in the Acts of the Apostles?