Can the Christian Church, the bride of Christ, be re-unified?
I doubt it, at least not the entire Church.
Why? I believe that Christianity today can be divided into three groups: Liberals, orthodox, and evangelicals.
I am willing to bet that within the next 50 years, liberal Christians will abandon the term “Christian” as a non-inclusive, divisive term and will consider anyone who continues to use it as bigoted. “Jesus is the only way” will be considered a bigoted mentality. “All faiths/beliefs lead to God (whatever HER name is!).”
That will leave orthodox Christians (Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, confessional/conservative Lutherans, Anglo-Catholics, Coptics, etc.) and evangelicals. Could these two groups re-unite.
Hell would probably freeze over before such an event would occur!
Evangelicals, with their relatively new doctrines of symbolic baptism and symbolic communion, and their rock-concert style worship services would have a hard time returning to liturgical, orthodox doctrine and worship. I don’t think they would even consider the idea.
Among the orthodox Christians, the easiest merger would be the RCC and the EOC. But if they wanted to include conservative/confessional Lutherans, the doctrine of Justification would have to be agreed upon. I think it could be handled this way: The RCC and the EOC would accept that Justification is by grace alone, through faith alone, and Lutherans would accept that good works are a must (for Sanctification).
The other big issue would be the role of Mary, the Mother of God. I think Lutherans could agree to allow for the veneration of Mary (asking her, in prayers, to go to her Son with our requests) but the Lutherans would insist that Mary could never become the Co-redeemer as some in the RCC would like to make her.
If orthodox Christians reach agreement that Justification is by grace alone, through faith alone, several other contentious differences can be resolved:
There is no need for a Purgatory: Christ has paid the punishment for ALL sins.
Lutherans could accept Seven Sacraments, with the condition that all agree that God only gives justifying grace in the sacrament of Baptism; He gives sanctifying grace in the other six.
Form of government? Revert back to the form of government in the early church. Church Councils would have the final word, based on the Final Authority, the bible, relating to doctrinal issues, as they did at the Council of Jerusalem in the days of the Apostles.
And the Pope? Make him the First among Equals, similar to the Archbishop of Canterbury for the Anglicans. He would be the spokesman for the Church but not an all-powerful ruler. infallible, etc. Re-establish the Patriarch system, with Patriarchs in each of the Christian regions of the world.
Anyone else have ideas on Church unity?
Can the world-wide Christian Church be re-unified?
Discussion in 'Other Christian Denominations' started by Wittenberger, Aug 2, 2012.
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Thinkingstuff Active Member
An FYI just like the Catholic Church established an Anglican Ordinariate for Anglicans wanting to unite with the Catholic Church such work is being done for the Lutherans.
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The "church" that will be unified in a physical sense is the Apostate Church in last Days, the One that will have Antichrist as Its "messiah!" -
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Thinkingstuff Active Member
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Thinkingstuff Active Member
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I'm not advocating full capitulation to Rome. Rome will have to do an equal amount of compromising to get us to full unity. But it is a good and noble goal.
See my suggestions above. -
Did the RCC rescind the Unam Sanctum? I ask because it is in that document that the demand that salvation only comes through submission to the pope. The only way that I, and many others, would join such a church is if they repent of that and their many other heresies.
That said, I think the question of the OP is a false question. The true Church is made up of every follower of Christ and is not impacted by denominational titles. Our unity is in Him, united in the Spirit and yet so many people seek a false spirit of unity at the cost of truth. -
http://www.staugustineshouse.org/
Small excerpt from the latest 'Newsletter': "Fr. Richard along with Fr. Del Baier and Fr. William
Kirsh-Carr drove to Chicago the end of September to
attend the three day general retreat of the Society of
the Holy Trinity. The retreat this year focused on the
history of ecumenical relations between the Lutheran
and Roman Catholic Churches." -
I don't claim to be a prophet or have the gift of prophecy, but I am going to issue here a prophetic word of warning to all genuine, spiritually reborn followers of Jesus: The "unity" that is being proposed here has nothing -- and I emphasize absolutely nothing -- to do with the unity and oneness for which Jesus prayed. What is being proposed here -- and I believe in good faith and with good intentions -- is nothing more than a superchurch, an artificial, outward unity that is as dangerous as anything which has ever existed in the history of Christendom.
The only true unity and the only one in which freedom can be assured is a spiritual unity of believers and followers of Jesus -- that is the only kind of unity needed.
When the talk and vision is for a uniting of denominations into one monolithic superchurch, run the other way as fast as you can; this is the groundwork being laid for the apostate counterfeit "church" from hell. And I am not a fundamentalist or dispensationalist, and yet I can say this. The pattern is there in the past, and some would like to see this re-established, except this time it would be a thousand times worse. Remember the saying: "Absolute power corrupts absolutely". Man, even supposedly regenerate man, cannot be trusted with this kind of power. The horrific example is there in the past; those who forget the past are doomed to repeat it, as the saying goes.
When Jesus prayed that we would all be one, He wasn't talking about a superchurch. But it should be no surprise that many today still commit the error of Jesus's day -- the desire to set up an outward kingdom, a monolithic superchurch.
God give us the wisdom and strength to resist such with all our might. -
Thinkingstuff Active Member
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As I stated in the OP, if I were to support a reunification between Lutherans and Roman Catholics, there would have to be mutual compromises, one of those being a more democratic form of church government. Church Councils and a council of Patriarchs would make decisions, not one man in Rome. I'm ok with the Pope being the spokesman for the Church, the First among Equals, but not his current, all-powerful role.
Church unity is a long, long way off, unfortunately, if at all.
The fundamentalists and dispensationalists have no need to get themselves too worked up yet. Church division, splintering of denominations, Christian bickering, will continue for the forseeable future.
Just as a point of interest, the book of Galatians refers to the Church as our mother. The Mother Church is a scriptural term. -
Bro. James Well-Known MemberSite Supporter
Ecumenism? Yes. Defiled Bride? No.
II Cor. 6:14-18, "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? For ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them and walk in them; and I will be their God and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing: and I will receive you."
We will give an account of the above.
The true people of God have come out, have been out, and continue to stay out of those who have apostasized. There are no ecumenical movements for the people of God.
Jesus said He would never leave nor forsake His Bride. He has kept His promise. He is faithful, even when we are not.
Even so, come Lord Jesus.
Bro. James -
Thinkingstuff Active Member
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The Church is the Body of Christ, composed of all believers from all ages; it cannot be equated with any outward institution.
I have no doubt that what you are proposing would turn out to be the greatest apostate persecutor of all time. -
they will demand ALL to come under their banner and change their views, and become }proyselized" Cathiolics! -
Many in the Reformed camp would argue that they don't believe in a 'symbolic baptism or communion' at least in the Zwinglian sense, and many in the same camp would also bristle at rock-concert style worship services. However, it does seem to be the trend among Neo-Evangelicals to do the whole seeker-friendly service thing, complete with smoke, rock music, power point presentations, theatre style seats, and Starbucks coffee.
There are however Evangelicals who do consider Church history and the early patristic consensus important in establishing doctrine (Thomas Oden and D H Williams come to mind)--they just need to be more consistent in their application of this principle. :smilewinkgrin:
I DO think it's important for all sides to agree that the MERITORIOUS GROUND of our justication is Christ's work alone and that we receive this by faith apart from the deeds of the law.
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