RESOURCING THE CHURCH FOR ECUMENICAL MINISTRy A ...

a pluralistic context, Christians who seek to express
the universality of God’s love may try to do so by
suppressing those parts of the gospel that make
Christ and Christianity unique. However, Everett
Ferguson emphasizes the need for a spoken word
conveying the core Christian narrative at a moment
like this, “Even with the elaborate efforts to get Peter
and Cornelius together, it was necessary that words
be spoken ‘by which you will be saved’ (11:4). Peter’s
sermon told the story of Jesus from the baptism
which John preached until his resurrection
appearances (10:36-42).” This story pinpoints the
centrality of our core narrative proclamation in the
midst of a boundary crossing experience. It is the
core narrative that must come to the surface in those
significant moments of cross-boundary contact
because to share those narratives is to share what
most animates our existence and therefore is to truly
share.
Imagine how disappointed you’d feel if
you asked a Muslim about their practice
of praying five times a day and they said,
“Oh, it’s no big deal really, it’s just
something we do.”
As an aside to where this speaks to me in the present
context, I recently had a conversation with another
Dad. We both have teenage daughters. We were
searching for what to tell our teenagers about how
they engage a pluralistic, interreligious culture.
Their definition of hospitable seems to be that they
shuttle off the distinctive content of the Christian
faith when confronted with difference. Boundary
crossing moments are for them times to downplay
what makes Christianity unique. Clearly, they—like
their parents—have seen evangelism-as-bluntforce-trauma
where would-be evangelists cross
boundaries into other people’s holy ground wearing
combat boots—it might be better to say they have
seen evangelism that transgresses boundaries rather
than crosses boundaries. Wanting to avoid such
cultural insensitivity, our kids seem to proclaim a
vacuum—I recognize that they are often mimicking
the behavior of us their parents.
The example of Peter and the early church seems to
be that when there is someone on the other side of a
boundary willing to invite you in and demonstrates
hospitality, you should be prepared to give an answer
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for why you have hope in Jesus Christ. My friend
and I determined that if the opportunity to address
the subject developed again, we would present it this
way. Imagine how disappointed you’d feel if you
asked a Muslim about their practice of praying five
times a day and they said, “Oh, it’s no big deal really,
it’s just something we do.” OR if you were to
encounter an Orthodox Jew and asked about the
significance of keeping Kosher only to hear them
say, “Oh, well, it’s nothing really. We just do it
because we want to.” You’d feel almost cheated in a
way. How would you feel if you were ready to listen
and understand another person’s faith story and
they soft pedaled their faith? I suspect the same
thing happens when you are silent about the content
of Christian faith in the presence of hospitable
others willing to listen to you. Crossing boundaries
should cause us to re-examine our Christian faith
and practice, but it should never be the excuse for
us to suppress the content of our faith.
Additionally, this study primarily identifies with
Peter as the agent of the church. However, within a
discussion of the ecumenical ministry of the
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) it may be
equally instructive to identify with Cornelius. We
are in a position of receiving those who wish to cross
boundaries for the sake of the church’s unity who
nonetheless find aspects of our faith and practice
unacceptable. The story of Cornelius’ conversion
suggests that such boundary crossing moments are
frequently contingent on the hospitality of those on
the other side of the boundary. That said, the task
of twenty-first-century ecumenism for the
Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) might not
simply be one of navigating the boundary crossings
but also providing welcome to those who cross
boundaries to reach us.
Conversion of the Church
In baptizing Cornelius, Peter was crossing a
boundary that the church had never witnessed Jesus
cross. This was indeed a new thing. This story takes
place in Caesarea (note the name CAESARea).
Cornelius—gentile, God-fearing, and good—was
instructed in a dream to invite Peter to come and
proclaim the gospel among the Gentiles in
Caesarea. Acts 10:28 points to the radical nature of
the boundary crossing. Balch writes, “We do not
usually realize how radical it is when the ‘believers
in Joppa’ (Acts 10:28) hear Peter characterize
Cornelius as an allophyle and then baptize him.”
Mangum • Boundary Crossing, Conversion and Resurrection