Who is the church to whom I am in
submission?
I’m thinking about ecclesiology. How much should a person—or a denomination—submit to the will of the entire church of Christ? In general I take seriously the notion that the Holy Spirit speaks through his people—that’s a strong ecclesiology. I think it is dangerous for an individual to decide what God wants in defiance of the rest of Christ’s church. That goes for politics or any other issue. So when I find myself in discontinuity with the general flow of Christians I feel “checked” and want to reconsider my views. But my strong ecclesiology makes me ask several questions I have not yet worked through completely:
1. What is “the church?” If I commit to submit to the general sense of God’s will as understood by the church—which church is it that I should submit to? My local church? My denomination? All “holiness denominations” (or whatever grouping fits you—Reformed, Anabaptist etc.) Or does “the church” include all Christian denominations—including all protestants, Catholics and the Orthodox folk too? How about regional matters—if I am to get the “sense of the body (of Christ) in these things does it include only Christians in my own country or do I give a “vote” to the majority of Christians in the “third world” too? And beyond this—what weight do I give to the Christians who have died in the last 2000 years—church “tradition?” It is easy for me to say I must let “the church” correct my sense of God’s will but defining “the church.” is a far harder matter. I need to think on these things.
2.
Can the majority of “the church” be wrong? If I am successful in defining whom I mean
by “the church” (to which I ought to submit) another question rises: can the
majority—even 90% of the church be wrong?
What about the era when most of the church tacitly approved
slavery—would I submit to “the church’s” view in 1843—including much the
Methodist church and most of its leaders?
Or would I rebel and reject slavery as morally repugnant even though
accepted by “the church.” The vast
majority of “the church” past and present disapproves of ordaining women—does
my strong ecclesiology obligate me to submit to this “majority rule” on
discerning Gods’ will for the church?
When should an individual submit to the “sense of the body” and when
should she resist what “the church” senses is right or wrong? If you are a thoroughgoing Baptist you
probably don’t have this problem—you feel free to declare yourself free of “the
church’s” sense. But I am a
Wesleyan—and the Methodist family comes form the Anglican tradition…we never
had a “reformation” in the same sense that Presbyterians had. Thus we are a bit more catholic-ish than
Baptists. Our ecclesiology demands we
consider “the church” including “tradition” when determining God’s will. So that puts a walloping crimp in my life
when I find myself out of step with the majority. What does a person do when
they believe the general consensus (at least in one’s own country) of
Christians are wrong? Do we submit to
the over all sense of the body, or fight to persuade the majority of their
error? How do we know which is right—is
it merely the side that wins eventually?
The abolitionists that founded my own denomination were a minority yet
fought against slave-holding and finally won. The winners write the history and now we all condemn slave-holding
as sin. How can a person (like me) with
a strong ecclesiology ever fight against the majority—and when should they
submit? I need a model that reflects an
answer to these questions.