Utopia. So...how has that worked out for you?

In Deuteronomy 15:4-8, 11 it says:

Nevertheless, there shall not be among you a poor person, because Yahweh will certainly bless you in the land that Yahweh your God is giving to you as an inheritance, to take possession of it. If only you listen well to the voice of Yahweh your God by observing diligently all of these commandments that I am commanding you today. When Yahweh your God has blessed you, just as he promised to you, then you will lend to many nations, but you will not borrow from them, and you will rule over many nations, but they will not rule over you. If there is a poor person among you from among one of your brothers in one of your towns that Yahweh your God is giving to you, you shall not harden your heart, and you shall not shut your hand toward your brother who is poor. But you shall certainly open your hand for him, and you shall willingly lend to him enough to meet his need, whatever it is. ...For the poor will not cease to be among you in the land; therefore I am commanding you, saying, ‘You shall willingly open your hand to your brother, to your needy and to your poor that are in your land.’

We all think we know what's best

Almost all people have their own idea of how to make a better nation and a better world, but most people don't understand that only God has a blueprint that works...after all, he is the architect, builder and sustainer.

If God is denied, the only way to bring peace, harmony and prosperity to the world is denied. If you look at world history you will see that all man-made attempts at utopia end in disaster (tyranny, dictatorships, mob-rule, etc.). Yet even when you look through the Scriptures you will see chaos resulting when God's people reject him. When they do, their society falls apart as well. A whole book is dedicated to showing this...Judges ("Every man did what was right in their own eyes.").

The reality

Utopias do not and cannot exist without God as the absolute ruler and all people in perfect obedience to him and love to him. The only utopia that can exist is a world filled with people who have been redeemed by the blood of the lamb, and completely cleansed and purged from their sin...in a word the new heavens and earth. This is one reason why Deuteronomy says that there will always be poor among you. However, on this earth the best approximation of this is masses of people converted to Christ who live the law of God out in their lives and pray and live Jesus' prayer: your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. The result would be generous hearts to the needy and compassion for those who are suffering.

How has that worked for you?

Note from Deuteronomy how God ties the lack of poverty and the hope of blessing with his people obeying his laws. This just goes to show that there is only One who knows how to eliminate poverty, and that is God, but not many really want to hear or do what he has to say. Why? Because as people we think that our finite minds (either individually or collectively) are wise enough to come up with the answer. Umm...yeah, I think that this sort of thing has been attempted by every generation since the fall of Adam. As some are prone to say, "How has that worked out for you?"


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Church Calendar?

Church Calendar?

The question of the “church calendar’s” use in the liturgy of a church in our current cultural context is a very relevant topic. It is relevant because there has recently been a push from the millennials for a deeper connection with their historical roots.^[i] If this is a concern for the next generation of the church, what will the church do to address this?

            Ignoring this trend without engaging the topic of church liturgy does not seem wise. This paper will limit its scope to a particular aspect of liturgy^[ii], the church calendar. The author holds a priori to the conviction of the Regulative Principle of worship that Scripture gives direction on both the form and content of worship. This form and content are summarized in reading, praying, singing, preaching and seeing the Bible. But where does “church calendar” fit into this? And what is it?

            “Church calendar” is also referred to as the “Christian Year.”^[iii] It is essentially the marking of days and seasons within the calendar year according to events within the Christian redemption story. The major times in the calendar are: the Lord’s Day and the Sabbath; Fast Days; the Easter cycle; Pentecost; the Sunday after Pentecost, Corpus Christi, Lent, Christmas/Epiphany, and Advent.^[iv] Humans are creatures bound by time. Therefore, time cannot be ignored it is part of culture, and in culture religious experience is developed through festival and ceremony. Even in the Old Testament (OT) period stories were celebrated which shaped not only their faith but their life as well.^[v]

            A tension exists, however, because when reading the apostle Paul, it may appear that these celebrations as part of the “church calendar” are forbidden. He says, “You observe days and months and seasons and years! I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.”^[vi] Also, “Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.”^[vii]

            Several questions are then appropriate to ask. “May we celebrate the calendar?” If no, why not? If yes, “Must we celebrate the calendar?” If it is not mandatory, “Should we celebrate the calendar?” Finally, what will happen to the next generation of the church if we do not celebrate the calendar?

            The first question, “May we celebrate the calendar?” After the apostolic time, this question does not appear until the Reformation and later. However, some argue^[viii] it was addressed and forbidden in apostolic times. Others within the Reformation did not question the use of the “church calendar”. Luther’s writings and Article XV.1 of the Augsburg Confession support this. Article XV of the Augsburg Confession says, “those usages are to be observed which may be observed without sin and which contribute to peace and good order in the church, among them being certain holy days, festivals, and the like.” Also, chapter 24 of the Second Helvetic Confession confirms the same^[ix]. Thus, there is support within the Reformed tradition for the “church calendar.” Many reformers de-emphasized the church calendar but did not necessarily eliminate it. Their concern was that it did not bind men's consciences as if it was an ordinance of God.

            James Bannerman (1807-1868) argued from the Regulative Principle that the church should not establish ecclesiastical holidays^[x]. He gives four arguments. First, Scripture forbids the church to appoint them. Second, Christ’s authority forbids the church to appoint them. Third, it is inconsistent with the liberty and edification of God’s people for the church to appoint them. Fourth, it is inconsistent with the spiritual nature of the church’s authority to appoint them.^[xi]

            Bannerman’s arguments are strong and forceful but seem to hinge on three things. First, the church may not prescribe anything outside Sunday worship other than days of public prayer or repentance. Second, Paul argues against it in Galatians and  Colossians. Third, the church may not bind Christians to attend them.

            The first proves too much. It argues that when the church provides a place for the body of Christ to meet corporately on any day other than Sunday^[xii], that it is overruling Christ’s authority. Scripture does not seem to support this view. The church is commanded to teach all that Christ commands (Matt. 28:20), all of the Scriptures (2 Tim. 3:16-17). The Scriptures teach the redemptive-historical significance of Christ’s life and death as well (Luke 24:27). These redemptive-historical events happened in time (Matt. 26:2; John 2:13) and history.^[xiii] Times and seasons allow for people that are bound to them to remember and celebrate what God has done. Also, this view assumes that the corporate church has little or nothing to offer for the discipleship of a Christian's life outside of Sunday. It could lead to Sunday morning Christians at worst, or at best to informal gatherings, and celebrations that were more ecclesiastical in nature.^[xiv]

            The second may perhaps be applying Paul’s polemic to the wrong thing. Paul is objecting not necessarily to celebrating the resurrection and ascension of Christ, but to the superstitious legalism that turns God’s people away from Christ. It would be hard to think of Paul telling young believers to not celebrate Christ’s work in a particular season of the year. Christ fulfills all the festivals of the OT (Col. 2:16) but does this necessarily imply that Christians shouldn’t celebrate the fulfillment in that season? Also, Romans 14:5 seems to apply to an individual, could this principle not also apply to the corporate body of Christ?^[xv]

            The third is significant and needs addressed at length. Much of the Reformation was spurred on by the idea that the church should not bind the consciences of God’s people regarding his worship. God alone prescribes how his people worship him. This thought should be the governing principle of all of church worship. However, does the establishment of an ecclesiastical holiday necessarily bind the conscience of God’s children? The answer could be both yes and no, depending upon several things.

            The Augsburg Confession goes on in XV.2 to admonish churches in regards to consciences that they, “are not to be burdened, as though such observance was necessary to salvation.” Thus, it can be seen that holy days and festivals could be instituted and executed in such as way that God’s people feel guilt, shame or pains of conscience for not attending them. For example, a believer may not be able to attend a Maundy Thursday service that the church offers for various reasons. It is clear from Scripture that the only explicit command from God is to attend corporate worship on the Lord’s Day. Thus, if someone has small children, has to work, or is just too busy to attend an ecclesiastical celebration, they are not sinning if they don’t. However, if the celebration is recommended or encouraged in the wrong way, it could then become sin for this believer because they wouldn’t be acting in faith. Therefore, the claim that ecclesiastical celebrations can violate Christian liberty is a very real concern.

            This same issue can apply to weekly prayer meetings, “life groups,” and any other manner of meetings. So should they be banished? Not necessarily, because a church is in control of how they explain the life of the church outside of Sunday worship. A church could use wisdom and discretion in her membership class, her announcements, and in her general teaching. She could teach that these things are good and right to attend but are not “necessary to salvation.” A church must govern the way she teaches her people at all times, and must teach the doctrines of God and not the commandments of men. Preaching, teaching and the whole life of the church should seek the freedom of Christ for the Christian and not their bondage. Therefore, with proper concern for the liberty of God's children, ecclesiastical celebrations can be done in such a way that the consciences of God’s people are not violated.

            There is another form of binding the conscience of God's people that can occur. The Regulative Principle can bind God’s ministers when well-meaning churchmen take a hard stance on ecclesiastical assemblies. For example, it could happen that a pastor and session would believe that they are not allowed to call an edifying ecclesiastical assembly because it happens to correspond to the church calendar. The OT church made holidays (Est. 9:18-32) and the NT church called gatherings on days other than the Lord’s Day when they felt it was best (Acts 1:14; 2:42-47; 5:42; 13:2; 20:7-38).^[xvi] Therefore, the answer to “May we celebrate the calendar?” is yes, with caution to avoid the liberty and hurting of a fellow believer’s conscience. A famous quote says, “in essentials, unity; in doubtful matters, liberty; in all things, charity.”

            The next question, “Must we celebrate the calendar?” has already been answered within the question of “May we celebrate the calendar?” The answer is no, it is not mandatory for a church to celebrate the church calendar, nor is it mandatory for a congregant to attend an ecclesiastical celebration. Might it be profitable to them? Perhaps, perhaps not.

            Next, the question is, “Should we celebrate the calendar?” Gregg Strawbridge says it well, “Calendar considerations are a matter (like others in Rom. 14) of culture, maturity and bearing with one another through differences.”^[xvii] I would hesitate to say that it should be mandated. This is something that the pastor and session of a church should determine. However, if churches acknowledge Independence Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Veteran’s Day, but are not celebrating the birth, resurrection, ascension of our Lord and Savior, and the great gift of the Holy Spirit, it seems that our churches may be in a not so healthy place.^[xviii]

            Finally, what will happen to the next generation of the church if we do not celebrate the calendar? If the next generation of the church is seeking ties to the historic roots of Christianity, they will more than likely go to churches that are. Millenials already are leaving our churches. It could also be that young believers are seeking something that is different and not syncretistic with secular culture. Kenneth Gangel and Jim Wilhoit write, “Observing the Year sets believers apart from secularists for whom the holy-day has become merely a holiday. By declaring that one’s annual life–cycle begins not on January 1, nor on the Labor Day weekend, but with the First Sunday in Advent, one may openly affirm why life is regulated by a different calendar from the common.”^[xix] The millennials as such may be looking for a sense of belonging, but they know they belong to Christ, so they are trying to find a place that will visibly demonstrate this. Therefore, our current cultural context, given the next generation of the church may need the church calendar. We should all study this issue, become convinced in our mind, and lead our churches with conviction, faith, charity, and wisdom. We should also ensure that God’s people know that salvation is not through the observance of days, but through Jesus Christ alone who we celebrate together with the saints of the past.

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^[i] See: “Discovering and Escaping Liturgy” at http://www.christianitytoday.com/le/2009/winter/discoveringescapingliturgy.html?paging=off, “The rise of neo liturgy” at http://blog.proclaimonline.com/2013/05/07/the-rise-of-neo-liturgy/, and “Why Millennials Long for Liturgy” at http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/why-millennials-long-for-liturgy/comment-page-2/, also, search for #liturgy on Twitter, among many other blogs.

^[ii] In "A Theology of Worship." In The Study of Liturgy, edited by Cheslyn Jones, Geoffrey Wainwright, Edward Yarnold SJ, and Paul Bradshaw, 28. New York: Oxford University Press, 1978, Liturgy is defined by J. D. Crichton as a “communal celebration by the Church, which is Christ’s body and in which he with the Holy Spirit is active, of the paschal mystery. Through this celebration, which is by nature sacramental, Christ, the high priest of the community, makes present and available to men and women of today the reality of his salvation.” He goes on to say that the purpose is “redeemed man and woman who is responding to God in worship and life, who is sanctified by the redeeming love of Christ, who gives glory to God.”

^[iii] See"A Theology of Worship." In The Study of Liturgy, edited by Cheslyn Jones, Geoffrey Wainwright, Edward Yarnold SJ, and Paul Bradshaw, 455-472. and Kenneth O. Gangel and Jim Wilhoit, The Christian Educator’s Handbook on Spiritual Formation (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1994), 130-142.

^[iv] “The History of the Christian Year." In The Study of Liturgy, edited by Cheslyn Jones, Geoffrey Wainwright, Edward Yarnold SJ, and Paul Bradshaw, 455-472.

^[v] Ibid., 130.

^[vi] Gal. 4:10-11

^[vii] Col. 2:16-17

^[viii] See: James Bannerman, The Church of Christ: A Treatise on the Nature, Powers, Ordinances, Discipline, and Government of the Christian Church (vol. 1; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1868), 414–415. Many within the later Reformers argued this as well.

^[ix] It says, “if the churches do religiously celebrate the memory of the Lord’s Nativity, Circumcision, Passion, Resurrection, and of his Ascension into heaven, and the sending of the Holy Spirit upon his disciples, according to Christian liberty, we do very well approve of it.”

^[x] He does not, however, argue that individuals are forbidden from worshipping when and how they want and regarding one day over another. Bannerman, 409-410.

^[xi] James Bannerman, The Church of Christ: A Treatise on the Nature, Powers, Ordinances, Discipline, and Government of the Christian Church (vol. 1; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1868), 410-419.

The first argument, that Scripture forbids the church to appoint ecclesiastical holidays is based upon an argument from the fourth commandment, Galatians 4:10-11 and Colossians 2:16-17, 20-22. He argues that the fourth commandment sets aside one day in seven for worship and rest as God’s design. He points out that Gal. 4:10-11 proves that the Galatians were in bondage to a previous dispensation as he refers to their observance of days, months, and seasons. Holding to days and seasons, he argues, is the sign of a church in its infancy that is clinging to the “empty and outward appointments of a carnal and worn-out dispensation.” Also, from Col. 2:16-17, 20-22, he claims that Paul holds them as of no value and only outward ceremonies. These festivals are types and shadows of the blessings that Christ gives and have passed away.

The second argument holds that Christ’s authority forbids the church to appoint ecclesiastical holidays because we honor the one we obey. Bannerman claims that when people are asked to worship, the one who commands the worship is being honored, thus, only God should command us to worship. He goes on to say that we bow to who we follow in regards to ecclesiastical appointments. Ultimately, he argues that it dishonors Christ to add an ecclesiastical holiday because we are honoring the commands of men instead of Christ.

The third argument that it is inconsistent with the liberty and edification of God’s people for the church to appoint ecclesiastical holidays rests upon an argument from Christian liberty of conscience. He states that whatever a Christian does that is not in faith is sin (Rom. 14:23). Also, that every Christian must be persuaded in their mind before acting (Rom. 14:5). Thus, the Church by requiring a member to attend a man-legislated ecclesiastical holiday would impinge upon their conscience and could cause them to sin.

The fourth argument that it is inconsistent with the spiritual nature of the church’s authority to appoint ecclesiastical holidays stands upon the spiritual nature of the church under Christ based upon John 4:22-24. He argues that the special places and times under the Jewish dispensation are no longer needed in Christ because we worship now in spirit and truth, not in a place, or at particular times and seasons.

^[xii] It seems to be discourage even meeting as a corporate body to celebrate something for mutual edification and exhortation.

^[xiii] Doe, Stephen. "New Horizons." Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Accessed July 15, 2015.

^[xiv] It must be noted that there is no biblical command for the church to celebrate ecclesiastical assemblies. The only assembly that has the force of a command is Lord’s Day worship (Ps. 100:2; Heb. 10:23-25).

^[xv] Strawbridge, Gregg. "What Time Is It? A Defense of the Church Calendar." - All Saints Church. Accessed July 15, 2015.

^[xvi] Doe, Stephen. "New Horizons." Orthodox Presbyterian Church. Accessed July 15, 2015.

^[xvii] Strawbridge, Gregg. "What Time Is It? A Defense of the Church Calendar." - All Saints Church. Accessed July 15, 2015.

^[xviii] Kenneth O. Gangel and Jim Wilhoit, The Christian Educator’s Handbook on Spiritual Formation (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1994), 137.

^[xix] Ibid., 139.