The Power of the Church

The Sacramental Ecclesiology of Abraham Kuyper

Michael R. Wagenman

• Publisher: Pickwick Publications
• Year: 2020
• Print ISBN:
  9781532697654
  9781532697661
• eBook ISBN:
  9781532697678
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Theology

It is fascinating that in all the media reports and discussions of the church's abuse of power in the early years of the twenty-first century, few if any seemed to notice that the accusation of the church's misuse of power presupposed a shared understanding of the positive use of power within the church that had been violated. Rather than an interest in the sociological aspect of this question, this book examines the more ontological and normative aspects of it. That is, it investigates and discerns the foundational theological framework of culture and society and the location and purpose of the church within them. As a cultural force and societal institution, what does the church constructively bring to the human community?

1

Introduction: The Disappearance

Church, Power, and Abraham Kuyper

The Disappearing Church

Eighty kilometres east of Brussels, a church stands atop a small hill overlooking a pastoral vista. The church is constructed of rusty steel beams separated by gaps which make it very much unlike the nearby churches. It is an optical illusion. The building is nearly invisible when viewed from one angle but when viewed from another angle the church reappears. Depending on where one stands, it either appears or fades away from view. Even standing within the structure, one’s view of the outside world may be entirely obstructed or virtually uninhibited. This ecclesial disappearing act is not only the artistic work of Pieterjan Gijs1 but a deeply philosophical statement about the evanescent place of the church in contemporary Western society today. Depending on one’s vantage point, the church as a cultural and societal institution is either deeply formative to one’s identity or simply nonexistent.

From a critical and demographical perspective, the contemporary church in the Western world is marked by dwindling attendance, shrinking fiscal budgets, and evaporating cultural and social influence. The church buildings of earlier eras today have been transformed into museums, historical/cultural centers, restaurants, and private homes. Even in those churches that still operate as places of Christian worship, the empty pews can be matched by the theological vacuity of the pulpits. The churches that remain standing retain their outward appearance but their sacramental or devotional or cultural significance is waning. Whereas the steeples of centuries-old churches once functioned as geographic and theological points of reference for pilgrim and resident alike, today one is left wondering what of their former power remains. On the other hand, one cannot deny that the cultural institution of the church remains and continues to be a voice of piety, morality, hope, and virtue not only to the faithful but to the societies which surround them. As a cultural institution, the church continues to exert its power of influence over members and detractors alike through its very presence within society. In this way, the church remains present and visible. And yet, as with the eerie desolation of the see-through art installation in Belgium, whether or to what extent the church retains significance (religious, spiritual, historical, cultural, etc.) for the society in which it is located is another matter—often a matter of one’s personal or subjective perspective. The church buildings may still be visible in the contemporary cultural landscape of the West but their power remains an open question. In this way, we can ask whether the church has “disappeared” from its previously held place of formative influence in the lives of peoples, cultures, and societies.2

One reason why the church has seemingly disappeared for some today may be the perceived or actually questionable exercises of power for which the church has been called to account. The early years of the twenty-first century have included reports that document a host of ills within the Christian church of one kind of another. The Roman Catholic Church is rocked by clergy abuse scandals on multiple continents. The Anglican Communion struggles to come to grips with widely divergent attitudes and practices on a host of theological, ethical, and liturgical issues and how those in positions of ecclesial leadership can respond in ways that promote harmony rather than friction for the communion as a global body. Independent Protestant churches in North America face social scorn after leaders are found guilty of embezzling funds from their ministries for lavish personal projects. Charismatic or Pentecostal pastors, believing they can avoid the notice of the twenty-four hour news media, preach outlandish messages to congregations who, it is quite reasonable to say, should know better.3 The church today clearly faces serious questions—questions often connected to the nature and exercise of ecclesial power. These questions demand an answer if the church is to avoid utter invisibility and remain positively constructive on the cultural landscape of modern society.

In these ways, the term “disappearance” is helpful for it carries within itself this very nuance: the church remains physically visible as a building within the institutional marketplace of our society; and yet the church has clearly been dislodged from its previously-held place of prominence and central significance in the cultural story of the West. This change has made possible the sociological study of the church’s “disappearance” even while church buildings continue to dot urban and rural landscapes. Like “Reading Between the Lines,” while the church remains present, it is nevertheless in danger of disappearing today.

Documenting the Church’s Disappearance

Sociological studies have been published which attempt to chart, explain, and even correct the declining membership and influence of the church, primarily in western European and North American society. The Canadian sociologist Reginald Bibby regularly publishes research on the state of the church in Canada. His most recent work documents that the average weekly church attendance of Canadians has dropped from 60 percent to 25 percent in the 60 years from 1945 to 2005.4 Bibby and others have also shown that the drop-off rates are much steeper when youth and young adults are considered as a sub-demographic instead of the general population.5 The Evangelical Fellowship of Canada’s study, Hemorrhaging Faith: Why and When Canadian Young Adults are Leaving, Staying and Returning to Church, shows that “by young adulthood only one in ten respondents raised in Catholic and Mainline traditions reported attending religious services at least weekly—compared to four in ten raised in Evangelical traditions.”6 Despite stories of renewal and revival of the church occasionally,7 this research shows that not only is the church struggling today but the vitality of tomorrow’s church may appear grim. This sociological data is one example of the cultural shifts that have taken place in Western societies that have had a marginalizing effect on the church’s place within culture and society. While...

Table of contents

• The Power of the Church
• Abstract
• List of Abbreviations
• Preface
• Chapter 1: Introduction: The Disappearance
• Chapter 2: Power
• Chapter 3: Disappearing No Longer
• Chapter 4: Sovereignty, Authority, and Power
• Chapter 5: The Ecclesial Sphere and Kerygmatic Power
• Chapter 6: The Nature of Ecclesial Power
• Chapter 7: The Sacramental Nature of Ecclesial Power
• Chapter 8: Conclusion
• Appendix 1
• Appendix 2
• Bibliography