wfn.org | WCC FEATURE: Why does "ecclesiology" matter? What is it all

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World Council of Churches - Feature
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For immediate release - 02/11/2005

THE CHURCHES AND THE CHURCH: WHY ECCLESIOLOGY MATTERS

by Thomas F. Best (*)

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As alien as the word might seem at first sight for the average person,
"ecclesiology" is actually at the heart of the life of every Christian
community. The answers that "ecclesiological" questions obtain in the
churches influence the daily life of the faithful and set the course of
the search for Christian unity.

George and Ann, young parents, ask themselves: "Should we bring our
new-born baby girl to be baptized? Or should we wait, and let her decide
for herself whether she wants to belong to the church?"

Ruth goes with her friend Sarah to Irene's church. Ruth is unable to
receive the Lord's Supper because her church and Irene's church are not in
communion. "I'm confused," she says. "If we share a common baptism into
Christ, why can't we take communion together?"

Perhaps without realizing it, these Christians are asking ecclesiological
questions - questions about what the church is, and what it is for in this
world.

Ecclesiology is, simply put, how a church understands itself, how it
organizes its own life, and how each church relates to other churches and
to the world. Ecclesiology is also about the limits of the church: what
are the beliefs, or behaviours, which put a person outside the church?

The ecumenical movement rests on ecclesiological convictions: one is that
the churches' unity in Christ is greater than all the differences in
belief, and all the tragedies of history, which divide them. Another is
that Christ wills that this unity must be both visible and effective (John
17:20-21).

Thus whenever there are divisions between the churches - when they cannot
worship or take communion together, or recognize each other's ministries,
when their common witness and service in the world is impaired - it is
ecclesiological questions which must be asked, and ecclesiological answers
which must be given.

> A bit of history

It is hardly surprising, then, that the ecumenical movement has wrestled
with issues of ecclesiology from its very beginning.

As the churches sought a basis for their common confession, witness and
service, they first practised a "comparative ecclesiology". The convictions of each church were laid out, and similarities and differences noted as a
basis for mutual understanding.

This was the basis for the famous "Toronto Statement" of 1950, which
stressed the role of the World Council of Churches as a place where
differing - even sharply differing - ecclesiologies could meet for
dialogue and cooperative mission and service.

Eventually there was a seismic shift to a method of "convergence". The
ecclesiological comparisons were set in the perspective not just of the
present and past, but also of the future: the discussions now aimed at
ensuring that the churches, as they moved into the future, would be
drawing closer together rather than moving further apart.

For this, a new depth of dialogue was required. It was no longer enough to
note ecclesiological differences - whether infant or "adult" baptism is
practised, whether women can be ordained to the ministry of word and
sacrament. It became necessary to identify the moment when difference
becomes division, to name the causes of division, and to work together to
overcome them.

> On the threshold of a radical shift

We forget how radical a development the modern ecumenical movement is:
churches which for 150, or 500, or 1000 years have lived and worshipped
apart are now, increasingly and irreversibly, doing those things together.

This has affected how many churches understand themselves: as truly a part
of the body of Christ, completely church in themselves but incomplete
without the other churches. Thus the common experience of the churches has
become part of the "raw material" for ecclesiology.

This has consequences! We may now be on the threshold of another shift,
the most dramatic of all: to an ecclesiology - a basic understanding of
the church and its mission - developed by the churches together rather
than separately.

Such an ecclesiology would start from, rather than end at, the fact that
the churches are one in Christ. It would draw deeply on the experience of
each church, but also on the ecumenical experience of the churches in
confessing, witnessing, serving, and (where possible!) worshipping
together rather than separately.

And it would challenge each church to ask: does our own self-understanding
serve the unity of the church? How much of our own ecclesiology was
developed to justify, and maintain, our separation from other churches?
How do we make the unity that we have, more visible and effective?

The World Council of Churches' (WCC) 9th Assembly in Porto Alegre next
February will wrestle with a statement on ecclesiology. Produced by the
WCC's Faith and Order Commission, this tries to state, in a concise yet
substantial way, what the churches can say together about the church.

The statement is offered for adoption by the Assembly, not as the "final"
or definitive statement on the church but as a basis for reflection on
what bonds the churches together - and on what threatens to divide them.

It is no accident that it is called "An invitation to the churches", for
it calls them to a renewed and deeper dialogue. It calls them to be the
one church, to make visible in the Spirit the unity given them by God in
Christ. And yes, it challenges them to address their divisions openly, to
name them and to work to overcome them.

> Doing the right thing

Some years ago, I heard a story that makes it plain why ecclesiology - how
each church understands itself and its relation to other churches - is
crucial for Christians, for the churches, and for the ecumenical movement.

It was about an elderly parishioner in Ghana, whose village was fed by the
priest of a neighbouring village during a famine. When the famine was
over, she went to the neighbouring village to thank the people there for
what they had done.

But when she attended the priest's church to greet and thank him personally, she was unable to take communion because their respective churches did
not agree on some points. So the woman went to her bishop and asked the
following question:

"How can we share the material food which keeps us from starving, and not
share the spiritual food which Christ himself offers us? I think when
Christ comes again, he will feed us himself - and then he will do what is
right!"

"Ecclesiology" is about the churches doing "what is right". It is about
the churches being "what is right", being the one church, confessing,
worshipping, witnessing and serving together with one heart.

[1,099 words]

Rev. Dr Thomas F. Best, a pastor of the Christian Church (Disciples of
Christ) from US, is the director of the WCC Faith and Order Commission.

[Sidebar text]

9th WCC Assembly: Praying for a transformed world

The 9th assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) will be held in
Porto Alegre, Brazil, from 14-23 February 2006. Its theme is a prayer:
"God, in your grace, transform the world".

The first WCC assembly of the 21st century, it will gather up to 3,000
church leaders and ecumenical representatives from nearly every Christian
tradition around the world. As such, it will be one of the broadest global
gatherings of its kind.

WCC assemblies are often turning points in the life of the World Council,
and this one is expected to leave its mark on ecumenical history.
Deliberations will focus on issues such as the future of the ecumenical
movement, the churches' commitment to economic justice as well as their
witness to overcoming violence, and the challenges faced in the midst of
religious plurality.

In Porto Alegre, members of the ecumenical family will be able to gather
around the assembly at a Mutirão, a Portuguese word that means coming
together for a common purpose. Made up of workshops, exhibitions and
cultural celebrations, this part of the assembly programme will offer
opportunities for members of the wider ecumenical movement to gather,
reflect and celebrate together.

This is the first WCC assembly to be held in Latin America, and it is
being hosted by the National Council of Christian Churches in Brazil
(CONIC) on behalf of churches throughout the region. Pre-assembly events
for youth and for women will be held from 11-13 February.

Assembly website: www.wcc-assembly.info

[246 words]

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The World Council of Churches is a fellowship of churches, now 347, in
more than 120 countries in all continents from virtually all Christian
traditions. The Roman Catholic Church is not a member church but works
cooperatively with the WCC. The highest governing body is the assembly,
which meets approximately every seven years. The WCC was formally
inaugurated in 1948 in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Its staff is headed by
general secretary Samuel Kobia from the Methodist church in Kenya.