The early Christian mission itself was not merely a key aspect of praxis; it had a high symbolic value, since it only made sense on the premise that Jesus was enthroned as the true Lord of the world, claiming allegiance from all. As such, mission to the whole world seems to have taken the place held, within the Jewish symbolic universe, by the Land. The church itself, in its various local and trans-local manifestations, became not just a convenient collocation of the like-minded, but a powerful symbol.
