Breadcrumb Trail Links
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A parent’s heart is filled with anguish at the thought that a beloved child is being bullied at school. Though we have all heard multiple messages telling us that bullying is wrong, it continues to be a problem for many.
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A pastor is like a parent in some ways and experiences continual concern and anxiety for the congregation. The apostle John felt an affection for his ‘dear children,’ which he frequently mentions (cf. 1 John 2:1, 12, 18 etc.). When the church passes through trials or is being oppressed and persecuted, pastors feel distress. It is especially painful when the church is under fire from some other part of the professing Christian church.
My heart is grieved about a David and Goliath situation that I am aware of in another part of Canada. A small congregation of immigrants I once pastored (many of the people recent arrivals in this country) has decided that the time has come to sever its ties with a ‘mainline’ denomination due to the national church’s departure from the Bible and its historic statement of doctrine.
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One might think that this would be a fairly straightforward matter. A group of people believes that it can no longer conscientiously remain affiliated with a larger body because, while the smaller group adheres wholeheartedly to the historic confession, the larger group has rejected significant portions of that confession. So, why not let the small body depart in peace, go their own way, or else affiliate with another denomination with which it has much more in common?
The problem is that the denomination claims to own all the property of the immigrant church, and vows to keep the church building and manse if and when the little church leaves. This in spite of the fact that the 160-year-old local church built its place of worship over 130 years ago, and purchased its manse with its own money. The national church has contributed nothing financially, yet it has the audacity to say that it is the rightful owner of what hard-working blue-collar men and women sacrificed to build and maintain.
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One would think that among those who claim to follow Jesus Christ and to live by the ethical principles of the New Testament, it would be possible for those with a difference of opinion to sit down calmly and reach some agreement. It would seem truly Christian for the national church to give up its (alleged) rights, to show concern for the more vulnerable group, and to be generous in its dealings. One thinks in this regard of Abraham’s magnanimity in letting Lot choose the best land (Gen. 13:8f) and of Jesus laying aside his glory and becoming a humble servant (Phil. 2). Such a decision would be a win/win; no one would lose face; and there would be no further room for acrimony or disputing.
However simple and God-honouring such a move might be, the national church appears to want no part of it. It is adamant that it alone owns the property of the tiny immigrant church. Though it has enormous financial assets and (one suspects) more property than it knows what to do with, it will exact its pound of flesh. It will go to court to have the civil authorities adjudicate this unnecessary situation. To my mind, that seems a lot like bullying.
If the small church loses the legal case, it will have to begin anew in some rented hall or school, while the denomination will have to try and figure out what to do with yet another empty church building. The little church will face hardship, but it will not die. No one can take away its faith, its desire to be obedient to the Word of God, and its sense of mission. The Lord will not forsake them. The Holy Spirit will sustain them. The Father will bless them.
John Vaudry is a retired minister.
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