OPPORTUNITIES
IN FELLOWSHIP (Part 2)
Robert O. Fife
We
have said that it is the purpose of our fellowship which reveals what we
"endorse." We have also said that the "ground" of our
fellowship is found in our understanding of the Lordship of Jesus. In light
of these two principles, let us examine some of the options open to us.
1.
Cooperation
in Campus Ministries.
Scattered
over the nation are dozens of campus ministries sponsored by Churches of
Christ and Christian Churches. At some universities, such as Purdue, the
work sponsored by Christian Churches is highly respected. At others, such as
the University of Texas, the work of the Churches of Christ is well
established.
Facing
the secularism, Marxism, cultism, and even witchcraft on American campuses
are our differences of such significance that we ought not join hands? Or
must we duplicate campus work for fear that a seeking student might be
"misled" into one or other of our separate camps?
2.
Famine
Relief
When
the Churches of Christ raised money for Polish relief, would it have been
forbidden for Christian Churches to participate?
Are
Churches of Christ aware of the existence of the International Disaster
Emergency Service, Inc.? This institution is sponsored by Christian Churches
and their members. It has given hundreds of thousands of dollars in
emergency aid throughout the world. The policy of IDES is to work through
missionaries of the Restoration Movement who labor in such areas. Could
members of the Churches of Christ participate in such work?
3.
Christian
Higher Education.
It
is a commonplace that there has often been more fellowship among faculties
of our schools than is usual among leaders of the local churches. In a time
of shrinking dollars available for education, is it unthinkable that we
should begin to consider combining some of our educational efforts?
One
also thinks of the strategic work being done by such institutions as the
Institute for the Study of Christian Origins in Tubingen, West Germany.
Sponsored by the European Evangelistic Society, the Institute has engaged in
substantive research into Christian origins - a subject certainly important
to a people who would restore New Testament Christianity. The Institute has
won the respect of the Theological Faculty of the University. It also hosts
a gemeinde (congregation) which
exists as a free Church of Christ amidst a culture which for centuries has
only known State Church. Individual scholars of Churches of Christ in
America have studied in the Institute. Would the congregations from which
they come think it inappropriate to share in support of this strategic work?
4.
Congregational
Cooperation.
But
let us "bite the bullet" and speak of the local scene. A few years
ago in California, a Church of Christ obtained valuable property near the
University of California, Irvine. Christian Churches were also planning to
establish a congregation there. The Church of Christ initiated overtures
looking toward sharing facilities. This would have released the funds which
would have been necessary to purchase a second property for the Christian
Church. These funds could then have been used for missions, evangelism,
education, or charity. The plan was never consummated, which many of us
deeply regretted.
The
reverse of the plan in now underway in Lincoln, Nebraska, where a Church of
Christ may commence using the facilities of a Christian Church.
Some
years ago, Christian Churches of Greater Chicago established the Christian
Service Center in a near westside ghetto. My son, Wayne Earl, became the
Center's first Director, laboring there for seven years. Near the Center was
a storefront Church of Christ. In light of its presence, no effort was made
to establish a Christian Church at the Center. Rather, Wayne and his wife
Kathleen became members of the storefront congregation. When this
congregation lost its lease, the Christian Service Center made its
facilities available without charge. But this raises a question: