Herein is Love Part 1

Herein is Love.

by Reuel L. Howe.

FOREWORD

This book was born out of a living encounter with the members of the Christian Education Conference to which I lectured at the American Baptist a.s.sembly at Green Lake, Wis., in August of 1958. As I stepped to the speaker's rostrum to begin my first lecture to that group, and my first to so large a group of Baptist lay people, I wondered whether I as an Episcopalian and they as Baptists had images of each other that would help or hinder our communication. I shared with them my question and learned later they had been asking themselves the same question. I explained that I had prepared myself to speak to them in the hope that through me some of the truth of G.o.d would be heard by them, and I explained also that their lives were to be their preparation for hearing what I had to say; that is, that I hoped they would work as hard to hear me as I would work to make myself understood. They responded in good spirit, so that the Spirit of G.o.d spoke through and to all of us.

I describe this occasion because it produced the experience and context out of which the present book appeared. _Herein Is Love_ is, I believe, an outward and visible sign of the fellows.h.i.+p of the Holy Spirit experienced on that occasion; and I offer it as a means of opening to others the possibility of partic.i.p.ating in this fellows.h.i.+p of the Holy Spirit.

The theme of the book grows out of that experience: As the love of G.o.d required incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth in order that it might be received by us, so the Word of G.o.d's love in our day calls for persons in whom it may be embodied. The church, as the embodiment of divine love in human relations.h.i.+ps, has tremendous responsibilities and opportunities in our modern culture. The old and familiar biblical symbols and stories do not always communicate their meanings to men today, and we must find a language that does. The language of the lived life of both man and G.o.d is the one that we shall use here in an attempt to open to us the meaning of the life of man and of G.o.d.

Reuel L. Howe.

January 10, 1961.

I

SOME FRIGHTENED FRIENDS

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear."--_1 John 4:18_

"It seems to me that the church has lost its influence. n.o.body pays much attention to it any more, except some of its own members; and they don't seem to be interested in anything except their own activities. The time was when the word of the minister carried weight. Some may not have agreed, but when the church spoke they paid attention. It's not true now, though."

Mr. Clarke eyed the others in the group as if he were testing their reactions to the statements he had just made. The church had always given him a sense of security, and now he was both worried that it seemed to have lost its power, and resentful that people no longer listened to its teaching.

He was one of a group of leaders of a local congregation who, at the request of their minister, were meeting to re-examine the purpose of the church. Not all of the group had arrived as yet, and the minister of the congregation, Mr. Gates, had been detained in his office by an emergency call upon his pastoral care.

Within the minute after Mr. Clarke finished, Mr. Wise spoke up. He was a thoughtful and compa.s.sionate member of the congregation who often raised the kind of questions that carried the discussion to deeper levels. When his questions were ignored, as they often were, he would smile good-naturedly and continue both as a contributor and as a question raiser. Turning to Mr. Clarke, he said: "I think I know how you feel.

The statements of our ordained spiritual leaders are important, but do you think we should equate their words with--"

As usual, Mr. Wise's comment was interrupted, and this time by Mr.

Churchill who, with evident irritation, protested against any concern over what others thought about the church. He said: "The church has got to be the church, and the world is different from it. I don't like this 'return to religion' business. Christianity and the church aren't supposed to be popular movements. If people want to join the church, that's fine; but if they don't, that's their lookout. Let's be the church and leave the world to itself."

"But why was Christ born _into the world_--" began Mr. Wise.

"I don't agree," exclaimed Mrs. Strait, responding to Mr. Churchill's comment and not hearing Mr. Wise. "I think we should be concerned about the world; concerned enough, at least, to set a good example, so that people will know what they're supposed to live up to and to do. After all, Jesus told us how we should live, and He did so in such simple words that even children can understand them. All we have to do--and it's written there for us to read--is to keep the commandments, imitate Jesus, and live a good life for ourselves and others."

"Yes, but if it's that simple, why don't church people live better--"

"Not at all! _Not at all!_" p.r.o.nounced the stately Mr. Knowles with some disdain. "I don't agree with any of you. Our difficulties today result from the ignorance of our people, and the answer to the problem is education. We need to teach, and teach again. Church people must know their faith and know why they believe in it. When I was a child I was drilled thoroughly in the knowledge of the Bible, and I once won a prize for knowing more Bible verses than any other child. We need more adult education, and our children must be filled with the truth so they can recite it forwards and backwards. In my estimation, there is too much emphasis now on persons and not enough on the content of the faith."

"But didn't Jesus say, 'For G.o.d so loved the world--'"

"It seems to me," interrupted Professor Manby, "that all of you are in too much of a hurry. Some scientists estimate that man has been eight million years coming to his present state of life. In contrast, civilized man is only four thousand years old. This being true, we should be more patient. Given time, man will solve his problems."

"But has man's character developed in pace with his knowl--"

At that moment the Reverend Mr. Gates, with several other members of the committee, came into the room, and after greeting everyone he said: "Now let's get down to business. As you know, I've called this meeting in order that we may consider the purpose of our church in this community.

I think we need a clearer understanding of why we are here. I wish we could be surer that we are serving G.o.d's purposes and not our own. I wish we all would a.s.sume as true that G.o.d's purposes for His church and for us are greater than anything we may think they are, and that we would hold our opinions and beliefs open to His correction and renewal."

"How can we be any clearer about the purpose of this church than to keep it open and its organizations going, so that people can come to it if they want to," exclaimed Mr. Churchill abruptly.

Mr. Wise now got to his feet, and with a twinkle in his eye began speaking: "You've all interrupted me several times, but now I'm going to speak my piece. I think Mr. Gates is right. We do need occasionally to rethink the reason for our existence as a church, lest it become a private club that caters to our own special needs. Our discussion so far tonight suggests that we want the church to be what we need it to be. We want G.o.d cut down to our own pattern and size. It may be that our church is too small for G.o.d, and that we'll turn out to be a religious, but G.o.dless, club."

"But how could that happen to us?" protested Mrs. Strait. "If we do what's right, G.o.d will love us and use us as His obedient servants."

"I wish Mr. Gates would set us straight on these matters. Were you going to say anything more, Pastor?" inquired Mr. Clarke.

"Yes, I'll have more to say," replied Mr. Gates slowly, "but this is not my problem only. That's why I called you together. We need to help each other think this question through. But to do that, we all shall need the spirit of Christ to help us. We need to look at the concepts and meanings that we bring out of our lives in the light of Christ's teachings and example. He brought the gift of G.o.d's love, but He brought also a judgment that was most disturbing to religious people. Instead of our judging what is good for Christ, I pray that He will judge us, and help us to be the instruments of His love."

"But you're our minister and teacher, so why don't you tell us what you think the job of the church is in this community? I'm sure we'd all support you in whatever you might suggest," urged Mr. Clarke.

"Mr. Clarke, I am not the church. I appreciate your confidence in me, but I am only one member of the church. The fact that I am ordained does not make me any more responsible for the church than you are, and I refuse to a.s.sume your responsibilities for you. Instead, I want to use my role as an ordained member of the church, and such training and experience as I have had, to help you find _your_ role, so that together we can carry on the functions of the church in ways that will serve G.o.d and His people."

When Mr. Gates finished speaking there was silence. The reactions of his hearers were varied, showing anxiety, irritation, confusion, and blankness. And no wonder! The spontaneous discussion that had gone on before Mr. Gates' arrival had revealed how little their understandings of the church had prepared them to hear the question he was raising. The viewpoints they had brought to the meeting now closed their minds to the meanings he was trying to open to them.

What, then, were those concepts and meanings that made it so difficult for them to hear and understand their minister? Each of them represented a point of view that is widely prevalent in the church today and which keeps the church from being fully relevant and effective.

_Clericalism_

When Mr. Clarke thought about the church, he did so in terms of the clergy and their work in the church. We might call him a "clericalizer"; that is, one who thinks that only the minister does the work of the church. This idea is the basis of clericalism, the disease which saps the strength of the church because one part of the body, the ordained minister, is made to do the work of the rest of the body, the unordained members. In the discussion Mr. Gates took exception to this idea, and rightly so, for it results in a clergy that is overworked and frustrated. Indeed, they find it impossible to do all that needs to be done. And yet the idea has a hidden appeal for many of them, for it feeds their professional pride and arrogance. But the damage done by this disease does not cease there. It also makes for church people who are lazy, who feel that the church belongs to the clergy, and who are not themselves instruments through which G.o.d works in the world. G.o.d is kept from doing what He would do for them, because He cannot do through the clergy what He would do through the whole of His church.

Clericalism blocks the ministry of the church, because it tends to make lay members second-cla.s.s citizens who feel incompetent on matters of religion. When the ordained member makes religious interpretation and action his professional monopoly, the lay member responds by exhibiting increasing ignorance and incompetence. Sometimes it seems as if lay people show less intelligence in the church than in their world. It is as though the practice of religion had a stupefying effect on them, whereas in other areas of living they are intelligent, informed, and perceptive. This clericalizing of the church's ministry produces in lay members the sense that religion is separate from life. They are heard to say to their ministers, "You stick to religion and leave the affairs of the world to us." Religion thus becomes a Sunday business, and Sunday business is kept separate from weekday business.

Still another and related ill effect of clericalism is that it keeps laymen from discovering the religious significance of their work.

Parents, for example, are not only parents entrusted with the physical, psychological, and social care of their children, but also are the teachers, pastors, and priests of their children. A teacher may serve G.o.d in his teaching, a doctor in his practice of medicine, a businessman in the conduct of his business, a milkman in the delivery of milk, and the garbageman in the collection of garbage. It is the business of the church to help these members find their ministry, but clericalism never allows them to make the discovery.

Clericalism, like any other concept, is more than a set of ideas. Mr.

Clarke didn't just happen to hold that notion of the church. He held it because he needed it. His need grew out of his dependency, his timidity, and his fear of a.s.suming responsibility. He needed to exalt the clergy.

He wanted to be told what to believe and to do; and his "doctrine" of the ministry, namely, clericalism, justified him in his need. People who want to be told what to believe and to do inevitably will develop or drift toward a doctrine that is authenticated by their need.

Ministers also contribute to the prevalence of clericalism. All men have a very human and understandable need to be centrally important and indispensable, and ministers are tempted to exploit this need in the conduct of their work. It is only natural for them to think of the church as "my church," of the people as "my people," and of the ministry as "my ministry." These images cause them to function as if everything depended upon them, and as if they wanted everyone to depend upon them.

Indeed, they may even measure the success of their ministry by the number of people who depend upon them for guidance and support, rather than by the number who are achieving mature self-sufficiency. As a part of this same picture, some ministers are unable to accept suggestions, much less criticism. The clericalized image they hold of themselves is that of an "answer man"; that is, one who has all the answers to human problems, and always right answers.

Thus, clericalism is a condition contributed to by both the ordained and the lay members of the church, and it tragically diminishes the power of the church. It is a symptom of Mr. Clarke's fear and of our own. It shows that we are afraid to trust G.o.d and to let His Spirit work through the whole of His people.

_Churchism_

Mr. Churchill's ideas, on the other hand, represented a different concept, one which may be called churchism, or pietistic otherworldliness, a concept which encourages the church's retreat from the world. It creates an artificial distinction between the religious and the secular, the religious being thought of as wors.h.i.+p and all the other activities that go on in the church building, and the secular considered to be everything that goes on outside the building. In its local version churchism is parochialism, or total preoccupation with the church as an inst.i.tution at the level of the local community.

The tragedy of such parochialism is that the creative thought and energies of people are consumed in the mere maintenance of the church as an inst.i.tution, and in dead-end religious activity and wors.h.i.+p. Mr.

Churchill, and thousands of others who are like him, think of the church only as "gathered," as a congregation. They think that the church is most truly the church when its members are a.s.sembled in the church building and engaged in church work. They think of the church in terms of "going to church," of working for its organizations, of planning for its promotion, and of meeting the needs of the church as an ent.i.ty separate from the rest of life. What is even worse, these people think that only when they are doing this church work are they serving G.o.d.

Theologically, their concept means that Christ died for the church.

Instead, Christ died for the world! The purpose, then, of the church is not to meet its own needs but to serve G.o.d's purposes in the world. This forces upon us the position that not only should we think of the church in its _gathered_ sense, but also in its _dispersed_ sense. This means that church people should think of themselves as members of the church when they are out in the world, and that their work in the world is the means through which G.o.d may act through them in the accomplishment of His purposes. Therefore, in terms of the gathered church we can speak of "church work," but in terms of the dispersed church we must think of the "work of the church in the world," the work of the instrument of G.o.d's purposes there.