The hidden demon of denominationalism

[DENOMINATIONS] We all understand that the existence of our denominations has a history. There were reasons for the divisions that created some. There were failures within church movements which precipitated ‘break aways’. These new movements were maybe necessary in view of the apostacy and failure of existing church structures in their time. We all get it.

[DENOMINATIONS – NOT ENTIRELY GOD’S INTENT] Concurrently, we likely all perceive that denominations were never God’s intent. They were, however, possibly inevitable due to the weakness of our humanity. Movements would become corrupted. Power structures would be established. Breakaways, to follow God’s Word in a truer way would result. In the Bible we see this where early Christians were already becoming divided, some following Paul – while others Apollos.

 

[FROM GOD’S WORD]

Consider this passage from 1 Corinthians 3:2 -9

I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task.  I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

It would be fair to summarise that our human distinctions, divisions and denominations don’t really matter. God doesn’t see them. He instead sees only his people – which is all of us together, and he sees all of those who are not yet his people!

[IS DENOMINATION WRONG?] However, does that mean ‘denomination’ is wrong? Not at all. At the most basic level each denomination brings (i) accountability, (ii) training and (iii) support to its own sprawling network of church leaders. While this is highly efficient, there is nothing inherently wrong with bringing accountability, training and support to Christian leaders! These things are in fact good! If this is their purpose, there is nothing inherently wrong with a denomination.

[DEFINING DENOMINATION VS DENOMINATIONALISM] To bring a vocabulary to the conversation – there is therefore nothing wrong with denomination; the problem is with denominationalism. The ‘ism’ is the issue. Denominationalism is where person’s allegiance is more to their own denomination than to the wider Church of which they are a part in their city or town. It is about misalignment priorities, and a deficient vision results. Specifically, while denominations can bring (i) accountability, (ii) training and (iii) support, they can never lead in (iv) mission. This is because mission, by its very definition, is geographically identified.  It isn’t the Presbyterian churches prerogative to reach Tauranga for Jesus. This is instead the prerogative of all the churches together in Tauranga. Mission is geographically defined. A functionally united Church is needed for its mission!

Unfortunately there is much of denominationalism – with church leaders giving a greater allegiance to their organisations than to the unity and mission of God’s Church where they are placed. There is a balance here to be rediscovered by some.

[HOW UNITY BECOMES FUNCTIONAL / USEFUL] To further our vocabulary, local churches in a place therefore unite to achieve together what they could not achieve apart. They can achieve much apart and this is fine. Independence isn’t wrong. However, teamwork is also sometimes needed. The importance of church unity rests in the fact that there are things that we cannot achieve apart – and also things we will not achieve unless united.

This is where we come to consideration of what might be the ‘demon of denominationalism’ – beyond which we come to our topic, which is the ‘hidden demon of denominationalism’.

[THE DEMON OF DENOMINATIONALISM] The negative of denomination is often discussed. I have no axe to grind here and no point to make. It is pride; it is the self-seeking attitude; it is the building of my church and my thing – in contrast to perceiving all that God’s Church is and our place within it.

I have no ‘axe to grind’ because I also think many church leaders are victims of the systems we have created. Not all can see beyond where they are at – to innovate or think beyond. They also live under expectations, and within defined constraints – so they aren’t really free.

For this reason, I don’t perceive church leaders who are committed to their own church or denomination as prideful – to make the point. They are victims of circumstance – while also possibly deceived in this area of their understanding. Their stated theology of Church hasn’t yet worked its way through to their every day thinking and practice.

So, you can  define what you think the primary ‘demon’ of denominationalism however you like. I don’t mind.

To now come to my point: I think the HIDDEN demon of denominationalism, by contrast, really matters.

[THE HIDDEN DEMON OF DENOMINATIONALISM] What is the hidden detriment of denominationalism? Beyond pride and the self-seeking attitude, it is small mindedness!

This is a weakness that is almost never discussed within denominations. Small-mindedness results from giving allegiance to a denomination – and this remains true even when we think we are thinking big and have a very big church.

This has huge implications which are of notable detriment to God’s Church and its mission.

 

A story to illustrate 

For a story – as shared more eloquently in chapter 14 of ‘In One Spirit’ (a book about Church unity, free online at https://alltogether.co.nz/ebooks), I’ve worked in outreach ministry for all but 9 of the 30+ years I’ve been in full-time Christian service. I’ve only taken a full salary for 9 of these years – which are those other 9 years spent as a pastor. For the first 7 years of ministry I earned less than the unemployment benefit – while there were 16 full time equivalent salaries across the local churches in a rural town I served. Our outreach work, representing the churches to the community, had connection to the council and Mayor, some Iwi, social workers, all school Principals (only 8 schools), access to all schools, and relationship with many teachers – primary, intermediate and high school – and of course connection of some kind to all the local churches and youth groups. It was during this time that I began to sense something was wrong. I began to suspect that many of the church leaders couldn’t actually ‘see’ the community. The reach of their outreach was very limited – and they didn’t seem overly bothered. Their community ministries didn’t actually reach very far into the community – and it was as if they didn’t perceive it. There was concurrently no priority given to wider mission or relationships which could open wider doors. It was as if there was no burning vision for the mission Jesus had given them, compelling a wider vision or effort. They were ‘local church pastors’.

This resulted in no perception of our systemic (repeating) failures as God’s Church in that community. We were failing to reach out to the majority of the populace by any means at all. There was no vision or sight of this ‘lost multitude’ in front of us sufficient to move us from our slumber – maybe then realising we might need to review the situation we were in, that we might then consider the mission Jesus had given us.

‘Local church pastor’ served individual churches connected to denominations. IN their words and preaching they were there to ‘reach the lost’. However in their actions, they weren’t.

The same is true of many churches and their leaders.

The hidden demon of denominationalism, then, is the small-mindedness that results from this way of thinking. Even a big church can still be small minded – doing bigger things than most others – while this is nothing in contrast to what God’s Church could achieve, if united in service to its mission! 

I recall a council meeting around a social problem. I asked if anyone present had maybe talked to a pastor about the matter. None knew the name of a pastor. I became aware of the extent of the disconnect.

Then they thought about outreach – but it wasn’t about the community hearing of Jesus. It was about reaching just some people through just their own church’s programmes, who they might also hope would come to their own church afterward if they responded also. Both the vehicle and goal of their work related to their own church – instead of relating the public, and to God’s people.  

As a result, there was almost no vision for outreach to the community as a whole.

There was no taking of responsibility for the mission Jesus gave his people in and to the community. The lens of ‘denomination’ and ‘church’ (congregation) obscured any possibility of considering how we might best serve the mission given us as God’s Church (united).

We had become trapped in our small mindedness!

The vast majority in the community were essentially damned and would stay so – because we had no vision or will to lift a finger to change that. Our thinking excluded this possibility.

No one was therefore taking responsibility – which is a fundamental of mission and Christian service. The  ‘ism’ of denominationalism had blinded us.

We therefore had no ideas about how to achieve the wider mission – and if someone else were foolish enough to suggest one, we didn’t think it possible.

 

Toward an application

>> The point made here is profoundly important. <<

There is today, across God’s Church, a limited ability to perceive the significance or potential of a range of ideas that are otherwise before us, because of an inability to perceive their significance, merits or possibility.

A simple solution to an identifiable problem facing the Church as a whole could be shared – and our eyes might glaze over. We can’t see what is being suggested because our ‘frame of reference’ is unknowingly still the ‘ism’ of denominationalism.

I have heard comments like the following dozens of times, if not hundreds in our work.

• ‘That’s not my responsibility.’
• ‘That’s not how we work.’
• ‘We have our own things.’
• ‘We do our own things.’
• ‘It’s not what we are there for.’
• ‘This effort isn’t needed here.’
• ‘I’m already doing my bit.’
• ‘We’re too busy.’

Sometimes these reasons given are valid. It is never ours to judge. But are they always?

 

I cannot escape the possibility that our hearts and rationality might have become somewhat disconnected our actual  possibilities due to a way of thinking that locks us into a type of small mindedness. We look and think through the lens of one church and one denomination, rather than as God’s people call, empowered and able to reach the city.

Simple things then become complicated.

The scope of resources we think with becomes small – in contrast to the reality.

This starting point ‘crimps’ our vision. We cease to dream of  wider possibilities. They are too far beyond us.

When someone else proposes their Kingdom dream, we glaze over.

This small mindedness is a costly deception.

[ABOUT CHURCH MEMBERS]  Of course, these limited way of seeing and thinking are not only among church leaders. This same ‘demon of denominationalism’ causes some church members to want their own safe little church. They want their pastor serving their pastoral needs – not going out into the city to build relationships, opening God-intended doors. They complain if they aren’t visited by the pastor. The pastor is therefore shackled to his or her church.

As a result, when a solution is proposed to a systemic challenge our churches face in society, few can sometimes perceive the possibility. Eyes glaze over. There is little to no actual excitement. There is nothing compelling within us sufficient to cause to to see – to arise – to perceive – to rejoice.

The scope of our faith and action is constrained.

The plausibility of the wider mission is so weakly believed in that we cannot see or discern the merits of an efforts that could meet the need.

Neither seeing nor perceiving, we don’t therefore expect. We therefore dont attempt. We also don’t support others who might attempt – because we can’t see.

So, what is the solution?

Firstly, we must talk about this. This is the true path. This might be the only path.

Certainly the Holy Spirit can help us in this. However, I’ve seen more than a few things in our work over the years. Mindsets are hard to break. Process is needed.

Put differently – the demon of denominationalism is a demon of darkness, like all others. If we bring these things to the light by discussing them, the darkness will be expelled!

As our thinking then changes, our vision and believing will change. Small mindedness will be replaced with a new capacity for dreams and hopes.

We will begin to see our church members differently also – perceiving more of what they might be capable of in service to God in the city. Our leadership practices might change – while our DNA within them certainly will. Our faith and vision will be increased. We will speak differently and carry ourselves differently because we no longer serve a local church or denomination; we instead serve all of God’s Church and its  mission in our city! It’s not therefore just my church with 200 (or however many) members in a city; it’s the 25,000 of us in the churches o four city – and we have enormous capacity together to change a few things!

Because we now think of greater things, we attempt greater things.

We cast greater vision.

We then also release other people to attempt greater things – where we previously couldn’t see their potential.

As they take initiative, God’s people begin to become more united in their various spheres of involvement, interest and influence.

What we are doing in this is unlocking the actual resources of the body of Christ. The entire body of Christ is at our disposal – to partner with – and it has more resources than any one church or pastor could dream of! Our members therefore begin a new practice:  They unity with others in their own arenas, to pray together about what they might do. God then inspires them – and they then attempt things that we would never have imagined!

In summary

As we are changed the city is changed. This is what I believe God wants to do in his Church.

So – to be clear, our denominations are fine if we understand their place.

However, they cannot lead us in the greatest areas of our vision and work – because that is about mission. For that, we need the to understand that our team is the entire scope of the body of Christ that we live amongst – because God’s actual Church is a Church without walls!