Previously I mentioned a bit about the need for movements and institutions.
(It should be noted that while it is often the norm to see things on a continuum like this that there is a "left" and "right" correlation, it is not the case with this. You can imagine there are liberals who care about institutions and movements just as there are conservatives.)
Second - M/I tension results in dualism
The movement and institution live in a healthy tension with each other, but often are pitted against each other in popular church speak. One is described as free and another as cumbersome, however, this is rather simplistic and not healthy. Both are vital to the success of the Church and to think in terms of one 'against' the other is not helpful and leads us to dualism.
When we raise one aspect of Church (worship) over the other aspects of Church we can fall into idolatry. When we live with understanding of Church that it should be a movement OR an institution we can fall into dualism.
Third - Trinitarian thinking overcomes idolatry and dualism
When we are thinking in trinitarian terms we diminish the influence of both idolatry and dualism in our lives and Churches. If we want to build a Church that avoids the lure of idolatry and dualism then we need to consider another focus, or another point or another leg, to our above continuum of building a Church as a Movement and Institution.
The next post will attempt to offer a third aspect of Church which might be critical to help ward off idolatry and dualism.
Last post touched on using the idea of the Trinity to help mitigate idolatry in the way we "do" Church.
Today will be an attempt o connect these two thoughts.
First - Movements and Institutions in tension
If movements are needed in order to push us beyond the status-quo and institutions preserve the advances of the movements then could we put these two on a continuum? So it might look like this:
If movements are needed in order to push us beyond the status-quo and institutions preserve the advances of the movements then could we put these two on a continuum? So it might look like this:
Second - M/I tension results in dualism
The movement and institution live in a healthy tension with each other, but often are pitted against each other in popular church speak. One is described as free and another as cumbersome, however, this is rather simplistic and not healthy. Both are vital to the success of the Church and to think in terms of one 'against' the other is not helpful and leads us to dualism.
Dualism is that way of thinking that sees the world in black and white or sometimes thought of as either/or thinking. It is this thinking that Christianity seeks to break down (Richard Rohr writes about 'non-dualistic thinking' in Christianity).
When we raise one aspect of Church (worship) over the other aspects of Church we can fall into idolatry. When we live with understanding of Church that it should be a movement OR an institution we can fall into dualism.
Third - Trinitarian thinking overcomes idolatry and dualism
When we are thinking in trinitarian terms we diminish the influence of both idolatry and dualism in our lives and Churches. If we want to build a Church that avoids the lure of idolatry and dualism then we need to consider another focus, or another point or another leg, to our above continuum of building a Church as a Movement and Institution.
The next post will attempt to offer a third aspect of Church which might be critical to help ward off idolatry and dualism.