1) a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place, an assembly
a) an assembly of the people convened at the public place of the council for the purpose of deliberating
b) the assembly of the Israelites
c) any gathering or throng of men assembled by chance, tumultuously
d) in a Christian sense
1) an assembly of Christians gathered for worship in a religious meeting
2) a company of Christian, or of those who, hoping for eternal salvation through Jesus Christ, observe their own religious rites, hold their own religious meetings, and manage their own affairs, according to regulations prescribed for the body for order's sake
3) those who anywhere, in a city, village, constitute such a company and are united into one body
4) the whole body of Christians scattered throughout the earth
5) the assembly of faithful Christians already dead and received into heaven
OldSkool, dictionary / concordance definitions are a great thought - with such broad definitions it keeps things on at least a broadly accepted terminology level.
Here's dictionary.com's full definition:
church   
–noun
1. a building for public Christian worship.
2. public worship of god or a religious service in such a building: to attend church regularly.
3. ( sometimes initial capital letter ) the whole body of Christian believers; Christendom.
4. ( sometimes initial capital letter ) any division of this body professing the same creed and acknowledging the same ecclesiastical authority; a Christian denomination: the Methodist Church.
5. that part of the whole Christian body, or of a particular denomination, belonging to the same city, country, nation, etc.
6. a body of Christians worshipping in a particular building or constituting one congregation: She is a member of this church.
7. ecclesiastical organization, power, and affairs, as distinguished from the state: separation of church and state; The missionary went wherever the church sent him.
8. the clergy and religious officials of a Christian denomination.
9. the Christian faith: a return of intellectuals to the church.
10. ( initial capital letter ) the Christian Church before the Reformation.
11. ( initial capital letter ) the Roman Catholic Church.
12. the clerical profession or calling: After much study and contemplation, he was prepared to enter the church.
13. a place of public worship of a non-Christian religion.
14. any non-Christian religious society, organization, or congregation: the Jewish church.
–verb (used with object)
15. to conduct or bring to church, esp. for special services.
16. South Midland and Southern U.S. to subject to church discipline.
17. to perform a church service of thanksgiving for (a woman after childbirth).
Huge scope present in the definition. I'm not personally acquainted with any of the verb uses, but they are interesting.
How did we get from the idea of ecclesia to be gleaned from its uses in history and the Bible to what it means to "go to church" today?
It isn't simple or easy to tease apart the strands. Right now, I'm reading Augustine's The City of God. I've got A.D. 381 by Charles Freeman and The Eusebians by David Gwynn in the queue.
Hebrews 10:24&25 say, "And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more as ye see the day approaching."
But what does "the assembling of ourselves together" mean? Does it meaning fighting desperately to stay awake while some speaker drones on endlessly, like an in-residence Corps lecture? Does it mean a whole bunch of people reading mindlessly repetitious lyrics off a projection screen, set to a mindlessly repetitious tune?
I think not. There were no mass-marketing super-churches in the first century. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with a mass-marketing super-church. I go to one myself from time-to-time, because I like some of the small group activities associated with it. In my opinion, the "assembling of ourselves together" in the first century was more like what we might call a small pot-luck dinner. The value of assembling ourselves together comes from the personal interactions, not from being a fungible, card-carrying member of one particular subgroup of the body of Christ.
VP better honest to goodness be feeling those flames right about now. I mean it. When we are so far removed from a church.....that we have to go to the DICTIONARY to find out what the word means....as Christians. That man is going to pay.
I, for one, will not let him steal anything else from me.....and that includes being a part of a group of Christians who meet together to worship, sing, pray and learn. I won't let his perversion of something good rob me of that belonging to the body at large and my smaller assembly in being with the body of my church.
Doesn't matter,.... you provided them, in that sense they're yours.
You see, that's just how cults get started. A little plagiarism, a little taking credit where it's not due - it just goes downhill from there. Next thing you know there's fake degrees and circus tents.
My church is a big fancy building with golden candlesticks and stained-glass windows that always smells like incense. Usually it's empty or half-filled (except on Christmas and Easter, during which you can't get a seat if you don't get there 20 minutes early).
You see, that's just how cults get started. A little plagiarism, a little taking credit where it's not due - it just goes downhill from there. Next thing you know there's fake degrees and circus tents.
All hail Gen-2..Our new WOGFODAT.. Oh wait.. She plagiarized from chockfull. All hail chuckfull our new MOGFODAT.. Oh wait.. He plagiarized the dictionary.. All hail the dictionary our new W(ord)OGFODAT....
You see, that's just how cults get started. A little plagiarism, a little taking credit where it's not due - it just goes downhill from there. Next thing you know there's fake degrees and circus tents.
I do hope you know I was teasing you from the onset there chockfull. I'm Terrible that way....... But yes,... that pattern is in full bloom in most of the Splinter Groups. But Master Splinter told the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles once: "You are wise to keep your secrets, but even wiser to follow my wisdom." Of course he was a Rat and lived in a sewer, and taught his disciples - Michaelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo to hold fellowships in a sewer pipe,..... Go figger/..........
I do hope you know I was teasing you from the onset there chockfull. I'm Terrible that way....... But yes,... that pattern is in full bloom in most of the Splinter Groups. But Master Splinter told the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles once: "You are wise to keep your secrets, but even wiser to follow my wisdom." Of course he was a Rat and lived in a sewer, and taught his disciples - Michaelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo to hold fellowships in a sewer pipe,..... Go figger/..........
I do hope you know I was teasing you from the onset there chockfull. I'm Terrible that way....... But yes,... that pattern is in full bloom in most of the Splinter Groups. But Master Splinter told the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles once: "You are wise to keep your secrets, but even wiser to follow my wisdom." Of course he was a Rat and lived in a sewer, and taught his disciples - Michaelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo to hold fellowships in a sewer pipe,..... Go figger/..........
It could be worse. Their spiritual authority figure could wear tights and a rainbow headband.
And make it required viewing during the time you are taking the DTA class....
I remember when they showed that in the Adv. Class alongside the film 'Staying Alive 2' and the dance clips. To show the 'genuine' and the 'counterfeit'.
Too bad I never got to run the Adv. Class. I would do EXACTLY the same thing, except that I would show Athletes alongside Richard Simmons workout videos.
I remember when they showed that in the Adv. Class alongside the film 'Staying Alive 2' and the dance clips. To show the 'genuine' and the 'counterfeit'.
Please tell they did not really do that, yet I know they did....
Too bad I never got to run the Adv. Class. I would do EXACTLY the same thing, except that I would show Athletes alongside Richard Simmons workout videos.
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OldSkool
Well, I go with Strongs definition.
http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G1577&t=KJV
The context must determine the exact usage.
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chockfull
OldSkool, dictionary / concordance definitions are a great thought - with such broad definitions it keeps things on at least a broadly accepted terminology level.
Here's dictionary.com's full definition:
church   
–noun
1. a building for public Christian worship.
2. public worship of god or a religious service in such a building: to attend church regularly.
3. ( sometimes initial capital letter ) the whole body of Christian believers; Christendom.
4. ( sometimes initial capital letter ) any division of this body professing the same creed and acknowledging the same ecclesiastical authority; a Christian denomination: the Methodist Church.
5. that part of the whole Christian body, or of a particular denomination, belonging to the same city, country, nation, etc.
6. a body of Christians worshipping in a particular building or constituting one congregation: She is a member of this church.
7. ecclesiastical organization, power, and affairs, as distinguished from the state: separation of church and state; The missionary went wherever the church sent him.
8. the clergy and religious officials of a Christian denomination.
9. the Christian faith: a return of intellectuals to the church.
10. ( initial capital letter ) the Christian Church before the Reformation.
11. ( initial capital letter ) the Roman Catholic Church.
12. the clerical profession or calling: After much study and contemplation, he was prepared to enter the church.
13. a place of public worship of a non-Christian religion.
14. any non-Christian religious society, organization, or congregation: the Jewish church.
–verb (used with object)
15. to conduct or bring to church, esp. for special services.
16. South Midland and Southern U.S. to subject to church discipline.
17. to perform a church service of thanksgiving for (a woman after childbirth).
Huge scope present in the definition. I'm not personally acquainted with any of the verb uses, but they are interesting.
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OldSkool
It is sure a broadly used word. It's neat seeing the lexicon and dictionary side by side like that.
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TrustAndObey
My definition is simple.. One word even..
PEOPLE..
Ok maybe two..
People Together...
Or three..
Likeminded People Together...
Then there's the four letter version, but I should not speak such things...
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chockfull
Of course there are other types of humorous definitions of people assembled together as well - like this quote below:
"I have come to the conclusion that one useless man is called a disgrace, that two are called a law firm - and that three or more become a Congress."
John Adams
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Gen-2
Here here! I have to agree. Without that,... all of chockfull's definitions collapse. It's the necessarry common denominator.
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chockfull
This is true. Except for them being my defintions. I cut and pasted them from dictionary.com. I do have mad <ctrl-v> <ctrl-c> skillz though.
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OldSkool
ROFL!!!
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Steve Lortz
How did we get from the idea of ecclesia to be gleaned from its uses in history and the Bible to what it means to "go to church" today?
It isn't simple or easy to tease apart the strands. Right now, I'm reading Augustine's The City of God. I've got A.D. 381 by Charles Freeman and The Eusebians by David Gwynn in the queue.
Hebrews 10:24&25 say, "And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more as ye see the day approaching."
But what does "the assembling of ourselves together" mean? Does it meaning fighting desperately to stay awake while some speaker drones on endlessly, like an in-residence Corps lecture? Does it mean a whole bunch of people reading mindlessly repetitious lyrics off a projection screen, set to a mindlessly repetitious tune?
I think not. There were no mass-marketing super-churches in the first century. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with a mass-marketing super-church. I go to one myself from time-to-time, because I like some of the small group activities associated with it. In my opinion, the "assembling of ourselves together" in the first century was more like what we might call a small pot-luck dinner. The value of assembling ourselves together comes from the personal interactions, not from being a fungible, card-carrying member of one particular subgroup of the body of Christ.
Love,
Steve
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geisha779
VP better honest to goodness be feeling those flames right about now. I mean it. When we are so far removed from a church.....that we have to go to the DICTIONARY to find out what the word means....as Christians. That man is going to pay.
I, for one, will not let him steal anything else from me.....and that includes being a part of a group of Christians who meet together to worship, sing, pray and learn. I won't let his perversion of something good rob me of that belonging to the body at large and my smaller assembly in being with the body of my church.
He took enough.
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Gen-2
Doesn't matter,.... you provided them, in that sense they're yours.
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chockfull
You see, that's just how cults get started. A little plagiarism, a little taking credit where it's not due - it just goes downhill from there. Next thing you know there's fake degrees and circus tents.
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soul searcher
My church is a big fancy building with golden candlesticks and stained-glass windows that always smells like incense. Usually it's empty or half-filled (except on Christmas and Easter, during which you can't get a seat if you don't get there 20 minutes early).
Sorry...that's my lame attempt at humor.
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TrustAndObey
All hail Gen-2..Our new WOGFODAT.. Oh wait.. She plagiarized from chockfull. All hail chuckfull our new MOGFODAT.. Oh wait.. He plagiarized the dictionary.. All hail the dictionary our new W(ord)OGFODAT....
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Gen-2
I do hope you know I was teasing you from the onset there chockfull. I'm Terrible that way....... But yes,... that pattern is in full bloom in most of the Splinter Groups. But Master Splinter told the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles once: "You are wise to keep your secrets, but even wiser to follow my wisdom." Of course he was a Rat and lived in a sewer, and taught his disciples - Michaelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo to hold fellowships in a sewer pipe,..... Go figger/..........
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Steve Lortz
Gen-2, you are a polymath of the highest order!
Love,
Steve
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chockfull
It could be worse. Their spiritual authority figure could wear tights and a rainbow headband.
Oh, wait a sec.....
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OldSkool
And make it required viewing during the time you are taking the DTA class....
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chockfull
I remember when they showed that in the Adv. Class alongside the film 'Staying Alive 2' and the dance clips. To show the 'genuine' and the 'counterfeit'.
Too bad I never got to run the Adv. Class. I would do EXACTLY the same thing, except that I would show Athletes alongside Richard Simmons workout videos.
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OldSkool
Please tell they did not really do that, yet I know they did....
Now that makes sense.
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waysider
And then there's Sunday School.
It convenes on an impromptu basis here on GSC threads.
I generally duck out the back door and head down to the creek to dangle my toes in the water.
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OldSkool
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waysider
Were you thinking about The Green River Laws, The Blue Laws, or just the part about dangling your toes in the creek?
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OldSkool
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