In A.D. 49, an event took place that forced many Christians in Rome to leave the city. The Roman emperor Claudius issued a decree kicking out the city’s entire Jewish population, which included Jewish Christians. Before this decree, the church in Rome had both Jewish and Gentile members. But while the decree was in effect, the Roman church became completely Gentile. This state of affairs didn’t last long, though. Claudius died five years later, his decree lapsed, and Jews started…