Digging Out the Embedded Church - The Maranatha Community

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from the Son‟) phrase in this Creed, 17 which states that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and from the Son. To the West filioque safeguarded the full Deity of the Son; to the East it did not safeguard the distinctiveness of the Father. Today exploration of the clause is bringing the two sides nearer together. In relation to Christian Unity in the 21 st Century, how should we regard these debates over doctrine in the early days of the Church? Have they any relevance to us today? THE RELEVANCE OF THESE ISSUES TO THE CHURCH TODAY The first thing to say is that any attempt to describe what God has done for man in the Incarnation is beyond the scope of language to deal with adequately; neither the Greek philosophical terms of the first four centuries, nor any language we may use in the 21 st Century, are adequate. The battles with heresies led to terms being used which became the standard terms of debate and were used in the formation of the great Creeds of the Church (what F D Maurice called the „compasses‟ of the Church). Whether terms like substantia, homoousios, phusis and so on can do justice to the good news of Jesus may be doubted, but their value lies in pointing, compass-like, to one or two basic truths without which there could be no good news. These truths are that God the Father, the Holy Spirit and Jesus share the Deity of One Godhead; and that Jesus, one of this Godhead, became really man and died for man‟s sins out of love for all humanity. That really is the core of the Gospel and there is large Scriptural support for it. Where a doctrinal position cannot subscribe to that, as in the case of Arianism or Macedonianism, unity is not possible. As for Nestorianism or Monophysitism, the Scriptures do not give us enough information to make definite statements about the relationship of man and God in the Person of Jesus. Nestorianism and Monophysitism both speculate on what is not revealed in Scripture, and Chalcedon, in not so speculating, was wise to state simply that Jesus was one Person in two natures and to leave it at that. Political and historical factors have taken oriental Orthodox churches into isolation from both mainstream Orthodoxy and from Western Catholicism and Protestantism, but in very recent years the Roman Catholic Church and the Coptic Orthodox and Syrian Orthodox churches have consulted each other with some measure of agreement on Christology. Out of the Early Church period comes an idea for a basis of unity which has appealed to ecumenists across the centuries. Time and time again the ideal of Vincent de Lérins kept being resurrected, always to find that its limitations made it impracticable. Vincent, who died some time before 450 AD, probably became a monk on the island of Lérins off the south coast of France, where a centre for Christian learning had been established. It is relevant to our present study to note that, to Vincent, a true tradition must be consistent with the teachings of Scripture, which for him were the final court of appeal. He accepted that there 17 See Ch 2. Page 23
was development in the interpretation of Scripture, but held that true development did not change the truth. He wrote: „The ancient doctrines of heavenly philosophy should, as time goes on, be carefully tended, smoothed, polished; it is not right for them to be changed, maimed, mutilated.‟ 18 There were marks by which a true development (tradition) could be determined. These marks were a catholicity consistent with what has been believed everywhere, at all times, and by all Christians: „quod ubique, quod semper, quod ab omnibus creditum est.‟ Since the 5 th Century, however, so many accretions to the faith have been made as to render his three-fold test invalid, and even in Vincent‟s day many who were truly Christian could not come to terms with the Chalcedonian definition. However, it must be remembered that Vincent warned that even his three-fold test for defining true doctrine is to be followed in relation to the Rule of Faith, not lesser details. 19 Today our approach to unity has to include the acceptance of a wide divergence of practices and views even among those whose commitment is to the Nicene Creed. However, allegiance today to the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed does come near to satisfying Vincent’s criteria, as all its clauses are ones which have been believed by the vast majority of Christians through all the ages of Christian history. Because the Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed is rooted in Scripture it is a very apt affirmation of faith for all Christians. Allegiance to it cuts across many denominational boundaries. Orthodox, Catholic, Reformed Protestant and Charismatic Evangelical can subscribe to it. The contentious filioque clause does create problems of unity with East and West but it is worth remembering that not all Orthodox theologians consider it to be heretical. Perhaps in ecumenical gatherings which include Eastern Orthodox believers, the filioque clause can be omitted as a gracious response to Orthodox convictions. Perhaps, also, non- Chalcedonian believers can be rehabilitated by the acceptance of this Creed. Holding to the Nicene Creed will have to allow for plenty of debate about its meaning and relevance to the 21 st Century world. In the Epilogue to his book The Person of Christ, Donald Macleod makes this point well. He writes: „Is the task of Christology completed? Is Chalcedon final? By no means! We cannot content ourselves with merely repeating the words and phrases of the past till the Day of the Parousia. These very words themselves require to be teased out, using, among other things, the insights of modern psychology and modern genetics. Besides, 18 Moxon, Reginald Stewart, B D, The Commonitorium of Vincent de Lérins, Cambridge University Press, 1915, p 92. 19 Moxon, Reginald Stewart, B D, The Commonitorium of Vincent de Lérins, Cambridge University Press, 1915, XXVIII, p 71. Page 24
Page 1 and 2: Digging Out the Embedded Church Dis
Page 3 and 4: The Maranatha Community comprises t
Page 5 and 6: Introduction CONTENTS Chapter 1 Chr
Page 7 and 8: ead, nicely browned on top. He plac
Page 9 and 10: HOW DO WE DIG OUT THE EMBEDDED CHUR
Page 11 and 12: That the Church should express this
Page 13 and 14: For Alfeyev, „Faith is a gift, th
Page 15 and 16: „heresies„ of the Early Church
Page 17 and 18: Traditionally, the Church has made
Page 19 and 20: CHAPTER 1 CHRISTIAN UNITY IN THE EA
Page 21 and 22: A certain Docetic teacher, often id
Page 23 and 24: Novatianism When the persecutions o
Page 25 and 26: The fortunes of the Arian party in
Page 27: An attempt was made in 482 AD (29 y
Page 31 and 32: CYPRIAN AND AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO The
Page 33 and 34: position would see baptism as not t
Page 35 and 36: The Eastern Church‟s relationship
Page 37 and 38: insisted from the second Lateran Co
Page 39 and 40: There is so much that Orthodoxy sha
Page 41 and 42: we do not talk to each other. Our t
Page 43 and 44: The question of heresy does not com
Page 45 and 46: They were missionary-minded and the
Page 47 and 48: Lollard ideas lingered in English r
Page 49 and 50: CHAPTER 4 THE SECOND GREAT SPLIT: W
Page 51 and 52: unity‟s sake in subsequent centur
Page 53 and 54: Erasmus wrote he asserts, through o
Page 55 and 56: attle-cry, is perhaps the most famo
Page 57 and 58: Regulations for the good ordering o
Page 59 and 60: Eucharist was not just a commemorat
Page 61 and 62: CHAPTER 5 QUOTATIONS ON THE THEME O
Page 63 and 64: How rare then it is to meet a man w
Page 65 and 66: are often much bigger divisions bet
Page 67 and 68: St Germanus of Constantinople - 8 t
Page 69 and 70: manner. He declared that men could
Page 71 and 72: S L Greenslade - 20 th Century: „
Page 73 and 74: CHAPTER 6 HOPES FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY
Page 75 and 76: imminent return of Christ (Komensky
Page 77 and 78: a concern that merchant adventurers
Page 79 and 80:
also anti-Socinian. Calixtus himsel
Page 81 and 82:
The Eastern Churches were not rent
Page 83 and 84:
everyone - from outward forms to in
Page 85 and 86:
Women were not usually members of t
Page 87 and 88:
work in America, shows him, though
Page 89 and 90:
The aim of the conference was to br
Page 91 and 92:
From 1768 Harris‟s home at Talgar
Page 93 and 94:
twice more to congregations of Whit
Page 95 and 96:
denominations was not their distinc
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It was from the overseas Protestant
Page 99 and 100:
THE OXFORD TRACTARIAN MOVEMENT Anot
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the Church of England‟s doctrinal
Page 103 and 104:
„We pray that… all who desire t
Page 105 and 106:
thereof, in prayer, in the remembra
Page 107 and 108:
honours the Lord and his Word; the
Page 109 and 110:
apostolic church enjoyed, and that
Page 111 and 112:
episcopate were too radical for mos
Page 113 and 114:
Denominations began to form their o
Page 115 and 116:
In this Shanghai Conference‟s Rep
Page 117 and 118:
With so much talk of unity and coop
Page 119 and 120:
„The liturgical movement in weste
Page 121 and 122:
• Sharing a corporate life of wit
Page 123 and 124:
• Our acknowledgement of the Apos
Page 125 and 126:
(h) The Evangelical Church in Germa
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It changed nothing in respect of do
Page 129 and 130:
Some Evangelical Protestants want t
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• It is in continuity with the
Page 133 and 134:
But things have changed. Richard Ma
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evangelism - (and) state what the r
Page 137 and 138:
Repentance and faith are at the hea
Page 139 and 140:
outcome of being justified. Agreeme
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Virgin‟s salutary influence on me
Page 143 and 144:
h) Confession The sacrament of pena
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demanding way would be sin. The que
Page 147 and 148:
If the opportunity for the Church t
Page 149 and 150:
Ministers, priests and laypeople in
Page 151 and 152:
West Kirby, near to my home, the Si
Page 153 and 154:
n) Shared Study Courses There is a
Page 155 and 156:
Even some Protestant churches today
Page 157 and 158:
Vincent de Lérins spoke of a „pr
Page 159 and 160:
It is not likely, in the foreseeabl
Page 161 and 162:
Christ and are trying their best to
Page 163 and 164:
upon the name of our Lord Jesus Chr
Page 165 and 166:
Perhaps this dying process is now b
Page 167 and 168:
economic factors giving rise to suc
Page 169 and 170:
deeper ecumenism, one that does not
Page 171 and 172:
APPENDIX 1 THE NICENO-CONSTANTINOPO
Page 173 and 174:
APPENDIX 2 FOUR BIBLICAL TEXTS ON T
Page 175 and 176:
The „apostles and elders‟ of th
Page 177 and 178:
„The purpose of the Reformation C
Page 179 and 180:
What all three traditions have in c
Page 181 and 182:
Cromwellian period, in a treatise o
Page 183 and 184:
BIBLIOGRAPHY OF BOOKS AND DOCUMENTS
Page 185 and 186:
Cullman, Oscar, The Earliest Christ
Page 187 and 188:
McCarthy, Tim, The Catholic Traditi
Page 189 and 190:
Letter concerning the civil princip
Page 191 and 192:
Coptic Orthodox Church, 10 Council
Page 193 and 194:
Parousia, 24, 68, 93 Paul VI, 10, 1
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