Essay 58
(1-31-05)
CONGREGATIONS UNITE — A NEW
BEGINNING?
Last October Ouida and I drove to Beaumont, Texas to be with two
congregations that are in process of merging. One was the Cornerstone
Church of Christ and the other was the Parkside Christian Church. We met
in the facility of the latter. They had been in conversation for some
months. Since both congregations were of the Restoration Movement, they
thought my input would provide some historical perspective for what they
were up to.
We had a great weekend together, including a Saturday seminar on "Our
Heritage and Destiny." I pointed out that our distinct heritage in the
Restoration tradition is to "unite the Christians in all the sects," as
our pioneers put it. Our several mottoes, such as; "In essentials, unity;
in opinions, liberty; in all things, love," were unity mottoes. Our
founding documents, such as Thomas Campbell's Declaration and Address,
were unity documents. And the biblical principles they forged on the
rugged American frontier, such as believers accepting each other on the
same basis that Christ accepted them, were unity principles.
Moreover, I observed, our heritage dates back to 1832 when two separate
unity movements - one led by Barton Stone and the other by Alexander
Campbell - became one unity movement. Our pioneers practiced what they
preached! Even though there were substantive differences between them,
they united on the basics - the essentials - and allowed for liberty in
areas of opinion and methods.
It was unity in diversity - and they learned first hand that is the only
kind of unity there is. They practiced what Alexander Campbell had been
teaching: "We do not ask that they give up their opinions, for they can
hold their opinions as private property; we only ask that they not impose
their opinions upon others as tests of fellowship." That principle
captures the essence of our heritage.
As for our destiny, it is related to our heritage. Our immediate goal in
the Stone-Campbell tradition is for each congregation to be united among
itself - and with all sister churches -- by the same spiritual ties that
may one day unite us to all Christians. But in the meantime we will assume
our part of the responsibility that rests upon the church universal. This
includes not only preaching the gospel, but the alleviation of human
suffering in all its forms, whether tyranny, injustice, gross inequality,
hunger, racism. In short, as the body of Christ on earth we are to do what
Christ did in the body when he was on earth. This means the church is
Christ's ongoing incarnation.
And then in a future beyond our present vision, but not beyond the reach
of our faith and hope, we lose our distinct identity as Christian
Churches/Churches of Christ and become united with the body of Christ at
large. In a vision of such a destiny we are true to our heritage in that
the Stone/Campbell merger was inspired by the mandate of The Last Will and
Testament of the Springfield Presbytery: "Let this body die, be dissolved,
and sink into union with the body of Christ at large."
I placed before the seminar a question out of our heritage that should
continue to challenge us: Are we willing for Christian Churches and
Churches of Christ - as we have come to know them - to dissolve and merge
into union with the church universal? If we are less than forthright about
our own dissolution in favor of the larger unity, we are not yet free of
sectarianism. It becomes a matter of whether we desire the unity our Lord
prayed for more than we love our own party.
On Saturday evening we had dinner fellowship with the leaders of both
congregations where we discussed some of the practical issues of
congregations uniting. We agreed that it is love that binds us as one in
Christ, not unanimity of doctrine or opinion. We also agreed that unity of
any kind - whether a marriage or a friendship or a church union
-necessarily involves a certain amount of tension. There will be problems.
This is because there will always be differences in any relationship. We
can no more see everything alike than we can look alike.
This is why Paul in Eph. 4:2-3 called for "lowliness and gentleness, with
longsuffering, bearing with one another in love" when he talked of
"endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace." Unity
is not realized through agreement on "the issues" - and each party has its
own list! -- but through forbearing love. If unity were a matter of
conformity of viewpoint there would be nothing to forbear!
I urged the leaders to beware of a fatal fallacy as they moved toward
unity - called the "either/or fallacy" in logic. Sects are founded on it -
It can be only one way! - when it might be, not either/or but both/and. A
church doesn't have to be either scapula or instrumental in its singing.
It might be both. They decided to sing half the songs acappella and half
with instrumentation.
That was the way our pioneers handled "the instrument" issue when it began
to appear in the congregations during the 1850s. We had churches that used
the instrument and those that did not. No big deal and no divisions. It
was that way for decades until "Editor Bishops" came along who insisted it
can be only one way.
On the Lord's Day I addressed the uniting congregations in one assembly on
the church as a community of hope. When a church has that hope that never
disappoints (Rom. 5:5) and that endures forever (1 Cor. 13:13) it will be
a united church. That is why Paul included the "one hope" as one of the
seven principles of unity in Eph. 4. Hope transcends factionalism and
sectarianism.
Well, all this said, the two churches did not need me all that much to
effect their merger, but my efforts may have lent both biblical and
historical support. The good news is that they are now on the verge of the
merger, and the Church of Christ will soon move into the facility of the
Christian Church, and they will then have what one of the leaders calls
"something new."
The local paper, The Beaumont Enterprise, picked up on this unusual story
and gave it front page coverage in its "Faith and Values" section. It
captioned the story "Reunited," drawing upon the historical fact that the
two churches were part of a movement that was once united. The story
credited Steve Molnar, a local business man and a lay minister among
Churches of Christ, as the catalyst behind the effort. He encouraged the
two ministers - Jerry Fenter of the Church of Christ and Winston Hancock
of the Christian Church - to begin the conversations that led to the
merger.
I titled my rendition of the story as "A New Beginning?" because it could
be reflective of a spirit of unity that is sweeping across the landscape
of these two churches in a dramatic way. Recent developments involving
Christian Churches and Churches of Christ indicate that what is happening
in Beaumont may be but a taste of things to come.
I list a few significant developments that I happen to know about: (1) the
upcoming Stone-Campbell Encyclopedia, a publication of monumental
significance, is the work of scholars from these two churches, along with
Disciples of Christ; (2) the ongoing Restoration Forum, now into its third
decade, is a unity effort between these churches, as is the more recent
Stone-Campbell Dialogue, and both include Disciples of Christ; (3) a
recent gathering in Texas, called Impact 2004, of 300 leaders from these
two churches explored ways to work together; (4) the North American
Christian Convention in 2006, a ministry of Christian Churches, will
include leaders from Churches of Christ, and together they will look for
ways to undo what happened in 1906, the date usually given for the
separation of Churches of Christ.
Add to this what is happening in the trenches. Rick Atchley, minister to
one of the largest Churches of Christ, has stated publicly that he will
dedicate the rest of his life to restoring fellowship between the two
churches. Rick refers to his sisters and brothers in Christian Churches as
family he did not for most of his life realize that he had! And he speaks
for many others who are sick and tired of the divisions that have
sidetracked a glorious unity movement.
Perhaps I should add that the Christian Standard, leading journal of
Christian Churches and the oldest ongoing journal in the Restoration
tradition (1866) in its current issue features an interview with Leroy
Garrett. Captioned "Encouraging Unity," the interview, which took place at
the Madison Christian Church in Groveport, Ohio last year, surveys some of
the unity efforts I have been part of through the decades.
The journal's cover artistically features "UNITY: Past, Present, and
Future," and asks, "Can Three Streams (of the Restoration Movement) Become
One?" And there is an essay by Lynn Anderson of Churches of Christ on "Two
Hundred Years and Counting" in which he reviews the history of the
Movement and its divisions, and concludes with these words that reflect
the spirit and tone of Thomas Campbell's Declaration and Address.
"Let us be done with hostility. It is high time for each of us to leave
behind our self-perceptions of superiority and whatever deep wounds we may
have received from the past. Let us stand together eagerly at the place of
level ground - at the foot of the cross."
It's in the air. Don't you feel it?
Personal
Those interested in all the essays of this series, 58 so
far, will find them at
www.leroygarrett.org. We will add names to our subscription list upon
request. Cecil Hook has invited me to join him at his booth (B6) at the
ACU Lectures, Feb. 20-23. The purpose is to make our books available, but
we will be more interested in seeing those who come by. Maybe you can be
among the number.
[TOP].