Communal Salvation
One of my favorite debating opponents and I emailed recently about the idea of communal salvation. (We do agree about some things, btw.) Here's what I had to say:
Since our culture is so individualistic, I think we forget that we’re all in
this together, and that what’s mine is yours. Madeleine L’Engle used to
talk about how what we do to the earth affects it so profoundly that it comes
right back to affect us.
I’ve also heard (very recently) salvation
preached as more of a community project and less of an individual
decision. If that’s true, it makes how we treat each other much more
important and makes us VERY responsible for each other. And (as much as
possible) responsible for each other’s faith. I like that idea, I think,
that we are saved as Israel was, by our corporate relationship to God.
He posts about the concept here, and I think it's worth a read. I keep hoping people will comment. What do you think about that idea?
posted by A. Lo @ 2:25 PM
4 Comments:
Abby,
From what I read of yours, I think we are in agreement on this issue. Our understanding of the community greatly impacts our theology of church, our theology of salvation, our reading and interpretation of scripture, our actions toward one another in confession, repentance, and accountability, the spiritual discipline of fellowship, our understanding of our relationship with Christ...
It makes me uncomfortable when people express time and time again that they have had personal spiritual revelations that have nothing to do with the community. These revelations become spiritual trump cards that divide people rather than bring them together (for example, starting a sentence with"God told me to..." often raises red flags for me).
The Bible has plenty of examples of people who saw visions, dreamed dreams, witnessed the power of the Holy Spirit in powerful ways...but none of these instances (at least that I have found) are solely for the benefit of the individual. The messages they received were meant for the whole community: to edify them, reprimand them, punish them, instruct them. Or they were given to people whose lives were changed in a way that impacted the community (Moses had a personal moment at the burning bush, but he used that message to lead the Israelites out of captivity.)
While I know that what I've said might be offensive to some, totally irrelevant, or even blasphemous, I think it impacts this discussion. The way we view God's relationship with the community and the way we understand his interactions with the community impacts our understanding of salvation. I don't believe that contact with God is ever meant to be totally individualistic. I think that's why he gave us the church...
Honestly, I could write pages about this. I'm so glad to find someone else who thinks along similar lines. Perhaps none of this is relevant to what you're thinking about...but let me leave you with a new discovery:
I'm working at a Christian school in Croatia right now. The way the churches here understand baptism is pretty right on, in my opinion. We had a baptism 2 weeks ago. Two whole churches got together to celebrate the baptism...and we celebrated for hours! This spring, we'll have a retreat at the coast and several people are planning to get baptized from all of the various Churches of Christ in the area. These people are waiting to do it together (as is often done here) because they understand that Church is bigger than their little churches. And because they understand that baptism is not just about them...it's about all of us and God. I think it's pretty amazing.
I just read further down your blog. I'll admit that I'm one of those random people who occasionally reads your blog. In my defense: I do know you a little...and I'm currently living in Croatia where I am still getting my feet under me, so I spend a lot of time on the internet...
Cheers!
Jocelyn
Jocelyn, thanks for commenting. I loved what you had to say about the churches in Croatia (and am glad that someone else agrees)! And you are ALWAYS welcome to comment, because I respect your opinion even if we don't know each other that well.
And Joey, I think you missed the point I was making. Of course an individual has final say about their own salvation. But once someone becomes a member of the Body of Christ, they are just that--part of a larger body. The way my heart functions affects the way the rest of my body functions. If there's something wrong with my stomach that induces vomiting, then of course I'm going to take it easy on the rest of my body and keep it in bed (or on the bathroom floor).
What I'm saying is that if we're part of a community and our "salvation" depends on each other, then we're going to be a whole lot more interested in serving one another. If God sees us as a body, as an Israel that He saves all together, then we need to realize that all the members of that body are responsible for the others.
I think my childhood church did a good job of this (at least as far as I was concerned). There were older couples who acted as my grandparents who weren't related to me at all. I still call people my aunts and uncles who aren't really related to me, either. I've been to family reunions for families that I am not related to, but we were enough a part of each others lives and families that there was nothing weird about it. And that was one of the reasons that I hurt so much when I felt like that church failed my dad--I lost members of my family who don't speak to me anymore, and that hurt most. But I digress.
We all make individual decisions, and that's part of the beauty of communal salvation. If we realize the great worth of our community, then we treat it as something holy and live accordingly. Our individual decisions (at least most of the time, hopefully) reflect the fact that our community is just as or more important than ourselves. That's when the whole "communal salvation" thing becomes evident, I think.
Does that make more sense?
Well you might understand what communal salvation is, but I don’t think you “get” it. Let me try to explain it another way:
Think of it like you think of Israel. God’s people had very specific rules on everything, including how they treated each other as well as outsiders. If you were born into the family of God, you could choose to leave at any time. You could marry a woman and move in with her people and assume her faith (probably a polytheistic one). You could also assume someone else’s religion and adopt their gods (which the Isrealites tried to do pretty often, I think just to hedge their bets). If you did married and moved away, however, you chose to separate yourself from your family and friends, from the people who raised you and supported you. That was just one result of your choice. And I think we all know how the whole “choosing other gods” thing went for the Isrealites.
I think it is like that with a community. If parts of the community are unhealthy, then the whole body is unhealthy. (God sure did punish the Isrealites for things that I bet not every single one of them was doing.) And in the New Testament we are given guidelines for dealing with members of our community who are screwing up and are not remorseful.
You can choose to break off your affiliation with the community. Sometimes you have to find community in another physical location, which requires breaking affiliation, at least on a small scale, as you lose the immediate community you had formed. This is not a cult-like thing. If you leave, that is your choice. It will hurt the rest of the community, regardless of the reason, but that’s how it’s supposed to be. We’re supposed to care about each other enough that when someone leaves or is doing something that hurts them, it hurts us, too.
I don’t have to be around you all the time for us to be saved together. I should, however, remember that if I know you are hurting and I don’t help, I’m responsible. If I see you doing something detrimental to your mental, physical or spiritual health and don’t try to help, I’m responsible. I can only do so much, but I’m still responsible for doing that, at least.
Sometimes I think corporate salvation CAN make the journey seem harder. People are stupid. And annoying. But if they’re there for you when you need them, then they are priceless, as well.
And of course a pillar of strength exits (and I’m sure I don’t have to tell you who that is). This is a Christian idea, after all.
I’m not so sure that corporate salvation is exactly what’s going on or that I have all the answers, but it’s an idea that has grown on me over time, one that I’m still mulling over and fleshing out. I think it might relate to what some people call the “Missional Church,” but it will take me a while to figure all this out. I appreciate your comments, Joey, they’ve made me think harder about this.
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