Millennium Ministry

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MINISTRY

I n so fa r as religion consists in a relation of the1.General. :z:r: tF:t ~ ~ o ~ ~ ; ~ ~ ~$ g r ~ ~ t ! ~ ~

of superiority or subordination between certain humanpersons and others, anything that could be describedas legal formality is essentially foreign to its n ature.(u) The fact is certainly noteworthy that Sohrn (see

60) , whose lifework it been to study churchlaw in all its forms, has expressed it as his deliberatejudgnlent that strictly speakingno such thing ought everto have existed (pp. onevidence that a judgmentof this kind has never been wholly without its advocatesis to be found in the efforts towards reform which have

MINISTRY

vention-everything accomplished in such directions must be

r e g i ? f P e S u ~ ; l a ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ n e v e r t h e l e s ~carry within them-~~~~~~i~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ n o n . m e m b e readsonly too easily to an exaggerated consciousnessofselectness and

a depreciation of'outsiders' ( c p ~Cor. 512J). The practicallycompulsory attendance at the regular meetings, the uniformityof the proceedings there, the formal common prayer, may resultin a cooling of the emotions of the heart ; such a thing a5 attach-ment to the religious principles of the community, yet withoutfull formal =sent given and without prticipation in all cere-monies, is not regarded asadmissible; and yet it is easily possiblethat not only particular institutions but also (and above all) theformulated expressionsof the common faith may takesucha form

, as many a one may fiud himself unable to accept, whilst yet hi s

existing ecclesiastical constitutions-

as well as & theschisms and the sects which almost invariably have hadit as their professed object to effect a return to th eprimitive Christian siniplicity as conceived b y them.

(b)The same history shows at th e same time that anysuch object is impossible of permanent attainment. Onthis acconnt alone it would be of importance that weshould reach a clear idea of th e way in which rcclesi-astical forms of government first came into being. Wi ththis en d in view the student's first task mu st be to inquirewhat were the worthy and wholly creditable causes that

led to the formation of the first organised Christianfellowships.

Whatever the form of piety, the need of sharing it with othersis felt, and once the devout soul has found comrades it cannotbut seek to rejoice along with them in the grad possession theyhave found together. Once formed, this fellowship becomesapowerful support for each individual in the moments when hefinds himself wavering, whether through doubts in his own mindas to the truth of his conviction, or through unfavourable out-

ward circumstances, especiallya time ofpersecution. The mutuallove drawn forth in such a fellowship will also express itself invarious forms of material help as occasion arises. The fellow-ship, moreover, is able to restrain the individual-even againsthis own will-from actions which would mean the abandonnientof his higher ideals, and cast reproach on his past attainments.In so far as arrangements were necessary for these ends-regularmeetings, care for the right conductiiig of these, articulate ex-p!e.ision of the faith held in common, ministration to the neces-sities of those who might be in spiritual or bodily need, moneycollections, nay, even interference with the economicalor ethicalprivate affairs of those who might suffer without such inter-

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at (th'dughnow &haps in need ofreform), in a ninnner that maylead to grave injustices. Aboveall, there is apt t o develop itselfonly too readily, in the persons charged with the duty of rulingand judging, an unhealthy sense of superiority, an autocratic,ambitious, and even, where money is concerned, an avaricioustemper.

( d )All these phenomena, both on the one side andon th e other, in their noble and, to a n appalling extent,in their ignoble aspects, are already to be seen in theOld-Christian literature, canonical and extra-canonical.down to about 170 or 180 A.D.-that is, to the timewhich marks the close of the period now to be con-

sidered, as being the latest d ate within which th e N Tbooks could have arisen. In view of what thesewritings reveal, the following general observation admitsof being made : the more elaborate the forms and

institutions, the more conspicuously do their hurtfuleffects predominate. In the literature just mentionedwe can already observe the beginning ofevery one ofthose tendencies which afterwards wrought so per-niciously in the church. It will therefore perhaps notbe wholly superfluous to remember that our historicalinvestigation of these beginnings ought no t lo be carriedon with too great partiality for them. At any rate itwill be necessary at all times to bear in mind that ou r

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Millennium Ministry

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