The Secular is Sacred

I'm reading Rodney Stark's book on the rise of Christianity; he combines history and sociology to explain how it could have become so prominent in three centuries. As a sociologist, he writes about class and how the idea that Christianity spread almost entirely through the poorer classes and slaves is a myth. I tend to agree with him on this point (not all of his others).

In the ancient world, at least the pagan ancient world, work was denigrated. So happy am I to share a quote from the Reformation: 

"All Christians whatsoever really and truly belong to the religious class, and there is no difference among them except in so far as they do different work. … A shoemaker, a smith, a farmer, each has his manual occupation and work; and yet, at the same time, all are eligible to act as priests and bishops. Every one of them in his occupation or handicraft ought to be useful to his fellows, and serve them in such a way that the various trades are all directed to the best advantage of the community, and promote the well-being of body and soul, just as the organs of the body serve each other."
— Martin Luther, from An Appeal to the Ruling Class