Unity/Community/Numbers
Well, the time seems to be near at hand when what we have called “The Anglican Communion” will change its nature. With my ear to the ground, I hear moaning and joy; I hear moaning and despair; I also hear (when I strain my ears) rejoicing and excitement.
Among the things that I hear are cries that “Unity is impaired,” and its corollary,”Unity is of ultimate importance.” Coupled with that are statements about “Community” and its alter ego, “Communion.” And, hidden under it all, is the concern about “numbers.” “The parish will lose members.” “The Anglican Communion will lose maybe its largest segment.” “Or, if you are on another page, “The Anglican Communion will cut out its cancerous members.” “That part of the Catholic Church outside Roman and Orthodoxy will be diminished.” (Diminished, in this instance, ususally means “made smaller.”)
My friends, whenever we come to what appears to be a fundamental change (in anything) the very first thing we need to do is determine “original purpose.”
Why is there an Anglican Communion? Why is there a Catholic Church? Why is there a Way of the Messiah? (or “of Christ?”) Why is there a Gospel? Why is there a Chosen People? Why is there a Creation? Why is there Reality?
Often these are questions we choose to duck. It is easier to “quack” on about other issues, and avoid these fundamentals. But if we fail to see the totality and the ultimate purpose behind it all, we cannot begin to see what is needed now.
It is the purpose of this writing to try to contribute to the understanding of Ultimate Reality.
UNITY
The first thing to note about “unity” is that it is a noun, not a verb. That is, unity is static, not active. And in Hebrew, it has a huge variety of meaning. (It needs to be noted, however, that the word translated by the English word “unity” in the Hebrew Bible appears only three times: once in Psalm 133 and twice in Zechariah: it is best transliterated by chabal.) In the psalm, the word means, union, all together. But when dealing with Hebrew, we MUST bear in mind that while we can choose one or another of the “meanings,” to the Hebrew, the totality of all the possible meanings of the word are right there together. Chabal, in its essential meaning, has to do with ‘binding,’ ‘tying.’ Thus the KJV uses the word “band(s)” in the two Zechariah citations. It is easy to see, then, how this can be translated not only “one” or “unity” but also “promise” or “pledge.” What a full search of the meanings comes up with, however, is that the word also can mean “spoil,” “corrupt,” “destroy,” AND ALSO “bring forth” and “travail” (as in child birth!)
Perhaps we need to be very careful about how we use words to “prove” points.
COMMUNITY
Because most of us do not fully understand how English is spelled the way it is, the vast majority of us, I suspect, think that the world “community” is directly related to the word “unity.” If it were related to the word “unitas” (unity – also a noun), it would be spelled with only one “m.” Because it is spelled with two “m”s it’s derivation is from “com” and the verb “munio.” This Latin verb has two meanings: “to build (with) walls, to surround with walls, to fortify, to make secure.” The other meaning is “to pave, to build a road, to prepare a way for.” A “community” was often build on a hill. This way, the inhabitants could see around them, and keep themselves secure. BUT it also can mean that they “making a way for” the coming of the messiah/kingdom of God.
Thus it can mean that the inhabitants are both secure and engaged in a task. Again, we need to be careful how we use words.
NUMBERS
One of the most important issues for most institutions is that there needs to be a means for perpetuation of the institution. Successful businesses need not only workers, but they also need to encourage others to want to come to work for them: the business must continue. The same is true – in an even stronger way – with institutions that do not reward its members with money. Into this category are clubs and associations and so-called non-profits. The reward for these institutions is found in providing a service for those outside the organization, either by a membership provided service, or by fund raising events (that the members enjoy doing) that provide funds to provide the service. Often times (in second and subsequent generations) the service provided becomes less important than the means by which the funds are raised.
All too often churches are part of this last group.
And it is this that I detect in many of the statements that I hear. At the local level, especially. Even among those who want to provide the greatest incusiveness.
Now, each of these three words is of great importance to the Church – but not always in the way the church understands them.
When we ask the original series of questions, and try to fathom their meaning, I think we will find three things we need to keep before us.
Whatever creation is, and whatever God is, we can never fully comprehend it all at once. It is a unity created in a manner we think we can begin to understand, in terms of the mathematics and physics and philosophy and poetry we have developed, each in our own language. Our study of this REALITY fills us with awe and wonder and joy, and, ultimately, peace. It also fills us with an energy and a desire to share the awe and wonder and joy and peace. And this (clearly to me anyway) is why we are. And this awesome, wondrous, joyous and peaceful REALITY is also clearly seen as a unity – a living, active and vital entity. Thus this unity is active and changing and developing. The task of each and all of us is to share our own experience of it with others. It is the human task – and, in bible language, it is called “love.” The other part of our task is to receive the sharings of others – just as we share ours with them. One without the other is not sharing or loving, but forcing – often, when used in connection with the word “love,” called “rape.”
UNITY, then, is vital, active, generous, loving and inclusive.
COMMUNITY – as I see it – is a gathering of those who are filled with awe, wonder, joy and peace, AND share their understandings with each other. Living and shining brightly on top of the hill, they can look out and see the needs where they exist. They act to share their love – expressed in their meal of joyous fellowship – with any who will share with them. It is, then, a function of the community (parish??) to live in awe and wonder and joy and peace. They work together to develop their own understandings and how they can share them with those who do not understand awe and wonder and who may even be jealous of joy and peace.
NUMBERS are not a real concern. Just as there is (today) no christian witness in the town of Nicea, so it is unimportant where a community is located, or of what size it will be. God, we believe, will provide all that is needed: the lamb for the sacrifice, the food for the crowds.
It is NOT the purpose of the church to make everyone in the world a christian. It IS the purpose of the church to help everyone it reaches experience the awe, the wonder, the joy and the peace that makes the creation beautiful, sublime and loving. Success in doing this will provide the numbers needed to accomplish the task the Gospel places before us.
Maybe this is what is needed for the Gospel to succeed. Since the church became an institution – at Constantine’s behest – numbers, conformity and obedience have been its marks. Maybe by becoming leaner, the church will be able to see more clearly the awe, the wonder, the joy and the peace which it enjoys: and seeing, it will more easily do its task of sharing.
