Diaspora Couple Priscilla and
President of Evangelical Missiological Society www.emsweb.org)
Published in Global Missiology, Diaspora Study, April 2009, www.globalmissiology.net
(Originally
published in Chinese, Great Commission
Bi-monthly, vol. 79, April 2009)
Introduction
Christian family can be a cradle for Christian missions where the couple is united in the spirit of missions, children are raised and nurtured within an ethos of missions then the entire family can be mobilized for Christian missions. The diaspora couple Priscilla and Aquila of Acts 18 is a model family in action for missions.
In this study, the
family of Priscilla and
Paul G. Hiebert pointed out that the case-study form is an important missiological research method. He said:
How does a church learn to become a hermeneutical community, and how can we help people learn to apply biblical principles to their own lives? One means is the case-study method, by which a real-life problem is presented to a class or group for discussion (Hiebert 1987, 18).
The
term ¡§diaspora¡¨ is etymologically derived from the Greek word diaspora or diaspeirein (dispersion) and historically has been used to refer to
the scattering and dispersion of Jews in the OT & Christians in the NT. Priscilla and
¡§And found a certain Jew named
¡§And he came to
¡§Greet Priscilla and
In this study, ¡§diaspora missiology¡¨ is understood to be ¡§the systematic
and academic study of the phenomenon of diaspora in the fulfillment of God¡¦s
mission.¡¨ The purpose of this study
is to describe the diaspora couple Priscilla and
Hosting
Paul the missionary for 18 months in
Priscilla and
Aquila took up residence in the city of Corinth after being forced to leave
Rome due to the government decision of Claudius on the
basis them being Jews (Acts 18:1-2). They were forced to leave their place of
origin (
During the second missionary journey, the Apostle Paul came
to
.
Accompanied
Paul the Missionary to
Later
Priscilla and
Again opened their home to privately coach Apollos
the evangelist in Ephesus
In
Risking their lives for Paul, the Apostle to the gentiles
In
a string of personal greetings (approximately 30) in Romans 16, the apostle
Paul made reference to Priscilla and
Starting a house church in
In addition to
their labor with apostle Paul in the founding of the churches in
Conclusion
In this case study of ¡§diaspora missiology,¡¨ Priscilla and
¡P
Ready to be mobile for the sake of the Gospel
while on the move: Pontus
à
Rome à
Corinth à
Ephesus à
Rome.
¡P
Being adaptable to circumstances and willing to
play multiple roles for the Gospel:
-
in
-
in
-
in
¡P
With a spirit of unity, the husband-wife team
opened their home to host Paul the missionary in
¡P
The two served consistently together for a long
period of time and in multiple occasions engaging in church planting effort:
¡P
They served faithfully and sacrificially with
the apostle Paul; even in challenging and life-threatening circumstances.
¡P
They earned the commendations of the apostle
Paul in the following manner:
- ¡§my helpers in Christ Jesus.¡¨ (Ro 16: 3)
- ¡§Who have for my life laid down their own necks¡K¡¨ (Ro 16: 4)
- ¡§¡Kunto whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles.¡¨) (Ro 16:4)
List of Reference
Creswell, J.W. 1994. Research
designs: Qualitative and Quantitative approaches.
Hiebert, Paul G. and Frances F. 1987. Case Studies in Missions.
Posted in ¡§Featured Article¡¨ of www.globalmissiology.org July 2007
Wan, Enoch, ¡§
mission,¡¨ Missiology,
Vol. XXXI, No 1, January 2005: 3-43