|
the holy catholic Church, |
Nothing to do
with the Roman Catholic church, this means “universal” – all living and dead
believers in Jesus Christ |
The
word church in the New Testament has nothing to do with a building, or even a
denomination – it means a group of believers, who get together for mutual
encouragement, worship, teaching and concerted action. And catholic (note the small
c .. nothing to do with Roman Catholicism) simply
means universal. When applied to a building, it is simple the place where
such-and-such group of believers meet.
Critics
point to the number of denominations (or in recent years, pseudo-denominations
– they claim not to be, but essentially they are!) and say “why is the church
so divided?” … to which question one could give a few responses;-
·
There
cannot be one church in a town of any size – there wouldn’t be enough space in
one building; and if there was one organisation, spread over several buildings,
very soon there would be differences showing – that’s just human nature.
·
Part
of the “differences” is undoubtedly due to a leader’s personality; weak humans
follow a leader more easily than a creed, and some leaders have split churches
rather than yield points.
·
Part
of the differences is due to interpretation of Scripture (e.g. how literally do
you take the Bible?) and the weight placed on Scripture against tradition.
In
choosing churches, following our various house moves, we have kept hunting
until we have found a church where we sense two characteristics (a) Jesus is
faithfully proclaimed and followed, and (b) there appears to be a sense of love
and support in the people. We would urge others to do the same … indeed, be
sure there is such a church close by before you commit to a house move!
Why
is this important?
·
Just
as a glowing coal, taken out of a coal fire, quickly stops glowing, believers
need other believers around them. We are designed to be involved with other
people, in our faith as well as our family life.
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