MAY212020

Paul went to Corinth. There he met Aquila who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. They were tentmakers by trade. The New Testament is not a far off fantasy world but a place we recognize. Government officials jerking around the little guy. Working class stiffs finding a place to get a job. (Corinth was a port and also hosted the Isthmian Games in non-Olympic years — lots of need for tents.) Communities with division and disagreement rampant. The lesson: the gospel needs to be preached in the circumstances you are actually experiencing — even in the midst of a pandemic — not in some idealized time when all the pieces fall in place.