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Ask someone what it means to be a
member of a Congregational church and
you discover there are a lot of different
answers. The church of my childhood was
a Congregational Church. I have been an
ordained Congregational minister for 25
years. One of the biggest challenges for
the average Congregational church today
is defining what it means to be a Congregational
church!
How do we define what it means to be
a Congregational church? One way to
discover a definition of a Congregational
church is to look at some of the writings of
Congregationalists—in particular to look
at a few of the Congregational manuals
that were written to explain the principles
of Congregationalism. The first manual
I ever owned I purchased at a yard sale.
Since then I have made a habit of collecting
these interesting books written
by such people as: John Mitchell, George
Punchard, John Le Bosquet, and Thomas
C. Upham.
These manuals provided a concise,
Biblical, and visionary definition of a
Congregational church. These definitions
were the ones commonly accepted
during a time of remarkable growth
in the Congregational churches. The
influence of these definitions is still
experienced today.
George Punchard writes a definition
that embraces the foundational, distinctive
principles of Congregationalism:
“Congregationalism is that system
of church government, in which the
Scriptures are recognized as the only infallible
guide respecting church order and
discipline;—and which maintains, that,
according to the Scriptures, a church is a
company, or congregation, of professed
Christians, who, having voluntarily covenanted
and associated together to worship
God and to celebrate religious ordinances,
are authorized to elect necessary officers, to
discipline offending members, and to act,
authoritatively and conclusively, upon all
appropriate business, independently of the
control of any person or persons whatsoever”
(Punchard, 1844, p. 29).
This visionary definition of a Congregational
church is simple and yet comprehensive
in its wording. It contains the
main principles of Congregationalism.
1) scripture is the infallible guide of
church order and discipline. Historically,
the churches of the Congregational way
have acknowledged Scripture to be God’s
Word. It was a desire to be like the church
in the New Testament that shaped the
Congregational churches.
One of the interesting things about
Congregational churches is their understanding
that we are always learning what
Scripture has to say. Each generation has
to learn from the previous generation and
apply what the Scripture says to their
generation. I appreciate the following
statement by Art Rouner:
The Bible “is the book which our fathers
intended to be the guide of our Way. Because
only here can we meet our Christ;
only here can we meet Him in all His fullness
and know in our hearts the Truth that
‘Jesus is Lord!’” (Rouner, 1960, p. 103).
2) a church is a voluntary association.
This principle of Congregationalism has
been widely adopted by churches in
America. In America the government does
not support a particular denomination.
Religion is a matter of individual choice.
Individuals have the freedom to join a
local church. They also have the freedom
to not join a local church. They can even
make the decision to leave one church and
join a church down the street
Continued g
sourCes
Mitchell, J. A Guide To The Principles And Practice of the Congregational Churches of New England: With a Brief
History of the Denomination. Northampton: J. H. Butler, 1838.
Punchard, George. A View Of Congregationalism, Its Principles and Doctrines, The Testimony of Ecclesiastical
History in Its Favor, Its Practice and Its Advantages. Andover: Allen, Morrill and Wardwell, 1844.
Rouner, Arthur A. The Congregational Way of Life. Hammond Publishing Company, 1960.
The idea of the
church being a
voluntary association
is not about
consumer choice.
It is really about
building loving
relationships.
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