The quiet withdrawal, or tea nd cookies to the glory of God. / Article – Rudolf Möckel / KAE RM 00 2001-05-01
The domestic Christian
community.
To a large extent unnoticed by the evangelical and
church-going public, a movement has been taking shape in the last few years
which provides abundant food for thought, as it casts a definitive light on
the overall situation of the church in our country. I mean the movement of
"quiet withdrawal" from congregations and communities. It is a movement
that goes inward, retreating back into the individual home.
For a long time wrongly thought of as a mere peripheral phenomenon, this
movement has by this time attained such dimensions that it can no longer be
ignored with a good conscience. More and more Christians are withdrawing
from the churches, congregations, communities and associations of which they
have long been loyal members, but to which they no longer want, or no longer
are able, to belong. Apart from Christianity as seen in a church or free
church perspective, they practice their religion in domestic Christian
groups, domestic circles or domestic communities.
What are the reasons for this? And what is the background to this
development?
It is an objective fact that an increasing number of Christians suffer from
an ever more prevalent sense of spiritual homelessness. They cannot any
longer find any local congregation or community at accessible distance of
which, in good conscience, they can count themselves members. In their
Established Church congregation they find themselves not infrequently
confronted with sermons that are both critical of the Bible and politically
or psychologically tendentious, and which fail to satisfy their hunger for
an unambiguous proclamation of the biblical message, for spiritual community
and a care of souls based on the Bible.
In their local free church congregations they often meet with a charismatic
mode of worship in which, for good (and biblical) reasons, they find
themselves unable to participate. In Christian communities they repeatedly
come up against rather short-lived new trends of evangelization and
congregation-building which dominate the life of its members in a way that
cannot be overlooked, sometimes also with polarizing effect.
The result is spiritual homelessness. In spite of their best intentions, an
increasing number of Christians simply cannot any longer bring themselves to
set foot in their local congregations and communities.
*) This extract is taken from the Information Letter no. Nr. 204/01 of the
religious movement "Kein anderes Evangelium" ["No other gospel"].
In principle, there is certainly nothing to be said against
Christian domestic groups. The author we have quoted indeed confirms this in his
subsequent remarks. On the contrary, as we can see from the letters of Paul in
particular, domestic groups constituted the basis of the early Christian
congregation. Here are some examples that illustrate this:
Greet Prisca and Aquila; also greet the church that is in their house.
Rom 16,3 Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow
workers in Christ Jesus, 16,4 who for my life risked their own necks, to whom
not only do I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles; 16,5 also
greet the church that is in their house. Greet Epaenetus, my beloved, who is
the first convert to Christ from Asia. Rom 16, 3- 5;
Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanas;
1Cor 1,14 I thank God that I baptized none of you
except Crispus and Gaius, 1,15 so that no one would say you were baptized in my
name. 1,16 Now I did baptize also the household of Stephanas; beyond
that, I do not know whether I baptized any other. 1Cor 1,14-16;
Greet Nympha and the church that is in her house.
Col 4,14 Luke, the beloved physician, sends you his
greetings, and also Demas. 4,15 Greet the brethren who are in Laodicea and also Nympha
and the church that is in her house. Col 4,14-15;
Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of Onesiphorus.
2Tim 4,18 The Lord will rescue me from every evil
deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory
forever and ever. Amen. 4,19 Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of
Onesiphorus. 2Tim 4,18-19;
The passage above, Rom 16,3-5, "Greet Prisca and Aquila... and
the church that is in their house", shows us clearly that the congregation at
that time was localized in private families and private houses, and that – by
contrast with today’s form of worship, where the faithful come to the
congregational meeting place to hear the preacher – the preachers, like Paul,
came into private houses in order to preach the gospel.
But already about forty years after this, when the Revelation of
John was written, we can see from the recipients of the seven epistles to the
churches that we here have to do with Christian congregations specific to the
individual cities.
The church in Ephesus.
Rev 2,1 To the angel of the church in Ephesus
write: The One who holds the seven stars in His right hand, the One who walks
among the seven golden lampstands, says this: Rev 2, 1;
The church in Smyrna.
Rev 2,8 And to the angel of the church in Smyrna
write: The first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says this:
Rev 2, 8;
The church in Pergamum.
Rev 2,12 And to the angel of the church in
Pergamum write: The One who has the sharp two-edged sword says this: Rev
2,12;
The church in Thyatira.
Rev 2,18 And to the angel of the church in
Thyatira write: The Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His
feet are like burnished bronze, says this: Rev 2,18;
The church in Sardis.
Rev 3,1 To the angel of the church in Sardis
write: He who has the seven Spirits of God and the seven stars, says this: ‘I
know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead. Rev
3,1;
The church in Philadelphia.
Rev 3,7 And to the angel of the church in
Philadelphia write: He who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David,
who opens and no one will shut, and who shuts and no one opens, says this: Rev
3, 7;
The church in Laodicea.
Rev 3,14 To the angel of the church in Laodicea
write: The Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of
God, says this: Rev 3,14;
All seven letters are addressed to Christian "city
congregations", and convey both an assessment – in terms of praise or blame
– of the behavior and life in faith of the members of the congregation, and
also, in some cases, an injunction that they should change their ways.
(See also Excursus 02: "The
seven Letters to the churches.")
Although here and there in the Pauline epistles we also find
words of blame for some domestic communities and individual believers, the
judgment of the Lord given below, on the congregation of Laodicea, is an
instance of exceptional severity.
Because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
Rev 3,15 ‘I know your deeds, that you are neither
cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.
3,16 ‘So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit
you out of My mouth. 3,17 ‘Because you say, "I am rich, and have
become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you
are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, 3,18 I advise you to
buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments
so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not
be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see. Rev 3,15-18;
This shows that in these forty years not only had the
development from domestic communities to larger urban Christian congregations
been accomplished, but also that in consequence the external, unbiblical
influences on individual congregations had become stronger, so that the whole
congregation suffered spiritual damage.
And this also appears to be one of the major problems of our times. So long as
we have to do with domestic communities on a scale of about 10-20 individuals,
the situation remains manageable. The individuals are all well known to one
another, and have what practically amounts to a family relationship. Although in
the course of time one person or another will always be found who has superior
capabilities in a particular area of responsibility, such as Bible study,
preaching, care of souls etc., and who will therefore come to take a more or
less leading role, there is nonetheless, in the majority of cases, no clearly
defined leadership function.
It is quite a different matter in larger congregations. These do not function at
all without some form of congregational leadership. The tasks to be managed are
various, and take up so much time that in most cases, even if there is an
attempt at first to allocate responsibility for this function to a member of the
congregation who will do the job in his spare time, it soon comes to be
recognized that it is a full time occupation, so that a professional
congregational leader will then have to be engaged for this purpose.
And here now a phenomenon makes its appearance with which we all are acquainted
from the sphere of professional life: especially in the first phase of this
development, where brethren exercise the function of leadership in their spare
time, critical voices will soon be heard to assert that this matter or the other
could be better managed. This often leads to controversies and disputes, which
naturally affect the life of the congregation and create a discordant
atmosphere. Groupings will then also come into existence, and small power blocs.
The members of these may perhaps present a public appearance of relative unity,
but in the long run it is rarely possible to keep the resulting power struggles
behind the scenes.
After the climate of feeling in the congregation, and among the members of the
congregation, has come to suffer more and more from this state of affairs, it
will be thought that the problems may be solved by the appointment of a full
time leader, which ushers in the second phase of the process.
Depending on his character and attitude, the new man at the top will be either a
strong or a weak leader. In either case, however, he will not succeed in solving
the actual problem facing this congregation, but only – in a best case
scenario – in suppressing it. It will continue to smolder below the surface,
waiting only for a suitable moment to break out again. For the problem does not
lie with the person who is the leader, but in most cases with some few members
of the congregation, who always and in all cases think that they know better. We
are all familiar with this situation in the context of professional life: where
positions and functions are at issue, generally a few know-alls will soon also
be found who judge that everything is too fast or too slow, too vague or too
specific or whatever. So it is misdirected aspiration, envy, cocksureness and
last but not least the hunger for power that lead to situations of this sort.
In many quarters the attempt is then made – in a third phase of this
development – to keep this aggressive cabal in check by appointing a
collective leadership committee, a "council of brethren", "leadership
group" or however it may be termed, which will operate in tandem with the full
time leader. But unfortunately here again precisely those people will be
appointed to the committee who were already engaged before in furthering their
own ends, and so the whole story repeats itself.
It can easily be seen that here we do not yet have to do with those groups that
promulgate false and unbiblical doctrines. Rather, these are congregations of
unimpeachable doctrine in which – as a result of the personal characteristics
of some of their members and the inability of the other brethren to keep them
within bounds – conflicts repeatedly ensue, so that valuable brothers and
sisters are forced to leave the congregation.
(See also discourse 60: "When
should a Christian leave a Church?")
But as mentioned by R. Möckel in the extract quoted at the
outset, in some congregations it is also the case that the Christian who
believes in the Bible increasingly finds himself confronted with unbiblical,
perhaps charismatic tendencies, in which he cannot participate with a clear
conscience. A visitor to a congregation of this sort who gives expression to his
(biblically based) opinions, if these are at variance with the practices of the
group – for instance, speaking in tongues in a charismatic congregation –
will be anathematized at once, and would be well advised not to show his face
there again.
But increasingly the trend towards a unified church is also to be observed in
many congregations. This applies not just to the Protestants, who through the
complaisance of their church leaders have effectively acknowledged the supreme
authority of the Catholic church in questions of Christian belief, but also, and
particularly, to our evangelical community.
So Dave Hunt reports in his book "Die okkulte Invasion" ["Occult
Invasion"] (CLV Verlag [CLV Publishers], ISBN 3-89397-272-2) [Harvest House
Publishers, Eugene, OR} on the "Promise Keepers" conference in the USA,
which 39,000 church representatives attended. The initiator of the conference,
Bill McCartney, said in his opening speech: "Here a dream is coming true.
(…) It is fascinating to see how barriers between the denominations are being
pulled down. Protestants and Catholics [and Mormons] are meeting together on
this occasion. The object of the meeting is church unity." This conference
brought together the ÖRK [Ökumenischer Rat der Kirchen: Ecumenical Church
Council], the NCC [National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA],
Pentecostals and Charismatics, Evangelicals, Mormons and Catholics (including
600 Catholic priests).
And Dave Hunt then writes:
"Vice-President Dale Schlafer, who
organized the conference, explained that this new unity was not based on
doctrine, but rather on relationships. Tom Watson, leader of a Texan
congregation, uttered a word of warning:
‘Ought we not to be concerned that this call to unity, at the expense of
Christian doctrine, emanates not just from the evangelicals, but also from the
apostate ÖRK and from New Agers, who draw their wisdom from spirit beings on
the other side? Has Scripture not warned us that this day would come (2Tim
4,3-4)?’
A concern for morality and the environment is being made the excuse for
compromises in the area of faith. Kenneth S. Kantzer, former editor of
the journal Christianity Today (CT), has written:
‘In view of the corruption of morals that is so widespread, destroying the
foundations of a free and just society, we evangelicals have an urgent need to
join with our Catholic neighbors. And also with the Mormons, conservative-minded
Jews and humanists who share our values (...).’
If Jesus had joined with the rabbis in a similar coalition for moral
improvement, he would undoubtedly have become a great ethical reformer, and
could have accomplished much good – and without having to be crucified."
But what does this now imply for our theme, in concrete terms?
Should Christians who believe in the Bible really be urged to retreat into their
own domestic circle, in order to avoid all these dangers?
It must be clear to those in positions of authority in the congregations that
this trend will probably continue to grow in future. Although the reasons listed
above are all both serious and important, they are probably nonetheless not the
main reason for the migration of faith into the private sphere. The biggest
problem for the congregations in coming years, in connection with their loss of
membership, may well be the competition offered by the Internet.
In the past, frustrated members of a congregation had few alternatives. If they
changed their congregation, they often came out of the frying pan into the fire.
Through the universal availability of the Internet and the increase in religious
websites, Internet portals and religious discussion forums, access to all kinds
of information (as is now known, for all age groups) has become much quicker and
easier. The great advantage of this medium is that a person does not have to
leave his house – a fact that admirably answers to the ever increasing "cocooning"
tendencies that have been remarked – and that one does not have to take on board
the information that is offered, but can actually exit from the virtual world at
any point – by contrast with a sermon in church, for example.
In coming years, then, many members of congregations will obtain their
information – in parallel to congregational meeting calendar – from the
Internet as well. And on the basis of the knowledge thus obtained, people will
be a much more critical presence in the congregation than has generally been the
case in the past. Consequently there will be a difficult task facing those in
positions of responsibility in the congregations. False doctrine will spread
over the Internet still more rapidly and effectively than it is at present able
to do in some congregations. But sound and biblically grounded information will
also be available, and it will be down to the individual believer what he
absorbs and what he does not. And if he then enters the congregation with the
information he has absorbed and puts it up for discussion, it will be up to
those in positions of responsibility to decide how they should react.
With reference to those Christians who already – in obedience
to necessity – have made a "quiet withdrawal" into their own homes, the
author cited at the beginning of this Discourse offers the following words of
advice:
"The first principle that applies is surely this:
it is not a solution to make urgent appeals urging people to attach themselves
to one of their local congregations immediately. Just this is what has often
been tried, for years at a time, and without any success. Nor does it help to
take the moral line, to tell them off, to warn them of the dangers of schism and
sectarianism. We are dealing here with Christians, after all, who desire to
follow after Christ in a life of obedience, and precisely for that reason see no
other option but to make a ’quiet withdrawal’ into a domestic Christian
community."
Thus R. Möckel. It might be worth adding to this that, in the
rather unusual case where a former member of a congregation, who is in this
position, renews contacts with the congregation again and asks for help, it
would be as wrong as it possibly could be to turn this brother or sister away.
This "Now we’re going to show you" mentality is not just to be avoided as
a matter of Christian principle: it has also always proved counterproductive in
the regular life of the congregation, seeing that it is just this attitude that
embodies the reasons for other problems internal to the congregation.
To domestic groups which are looking for support, the religious
movement "Kein anderes Evangelium" ["No other gospel"] offers help in
the following ways (within Germany):
1. The religious movement "Kein anderes Evangelium"
offers to independent domestic groups and domestic communities, on request, the
possibility of getting in touch with competent advisers on matters of biblical
doctrine (e.g. for a weekend). The time will be taken up with joint work on the
Bible, clarification of urgent issues, and also shared religious devotions in
the home. The domestic community can thus obtain answers to burning questions,
and strengthening spiritual nourishment. According to its means, it may be
expected to cover (traveling) expenses.
2. The religious movement "Kein anderes Evangelium" plans
to set up in the near future a "circle of friends" which will hold meetings
and conferences on the local level at appropriate intervals. Individual
Christians, and also entire domestic groups and domestic communities, may join
this circle of friends. In this way they can take measures to avoid being
spiritually isolated, and can find spiritual links without having to give up
their self-sufficiency and independence. It goes without saying that these two offers of help are not a panacea.
However, they are immediate measures that can help to provide rapid and effective help in an overall situation that is
very unclear in terms of church politics. In view of the widely visible spiritual erosion in our country, independently
run house groups and house communities can be of growing importance, especially in the future. It is worth keeping an
eye on them.
Those members of congregations who have not yet taken this step
of withdrawal, but are perhaps thinking of doing so, may find the following
suggestions helpful.
If it may be assumed that your congregation is in possession of the correct and
biblically based doctrine, you should consider, when you pass judgment on
organizational and personal problems and problems having to do with leadership
issues, that the brethren who hold positions of responsibility are only human.
But try to make a point of electing to an office only brethren who are capable
and well qualified (from a biblical point of view as well, as Paul gives us below, in Titus 1:5-9.) for their tasks.
For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God
Tit 1,5 The reason I left you in Crete was that you might put in order what was
left unfinished and appoint[a] elders in every town, as I directed you.
- 1,6 An elder must be blameless, faithful to his wife, a man whose children believe[b] and are not open to the charge of being wild and disobedient. .
- 1,7 Since an overseer manages God’s household, he must be blameless – not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. ,
- 1,8 Rather, he must be hospitable, one who loves what is good, who is self-controlled, upright, holy and disciplined.,
- 1,9 He must hold firmly to the trustworthy message as it has been taught, so that he can encourage others by sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it.
Tit 1,5-9;
If you really want to leave this congregation, first notify the leaders of the
congregation of the step you intend to take, and observe their reactions. Are
these people open-minded and approachable, and do they show a sympathetic
understanding of your arguments, or do they keep you at a distance and give you
to understand that it might well be the best thing, after all, if you were to
leave?
Let me also point out one last thing. Of course it is the case that in a larger
congregation certain problems are more likely to arise than in a domestic
Christian community, in view of the quite different structure of the latter. The
home church, though, is subject to other problems, which must also first be
overcome.
And if you find yourself in a congregation that unambiguously teaches and
proclaims doctrine that is grounded in the Bible, with brothers and sisters in
Christ who really deserve the name, and with brethren in positions of
leadership, who put into practice these words of the Lord –
If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.
Mk 9,35 Sitting down, He called the twelve and said
to them, "If anyone wants to be first, he shall be last of all and servant
of all." Mk 9,35;
in its literal sense in their life within the community, then you should give thanks to the Lord. Nor
should you forget to point this out, time and again, to the brethren – both within the congregation and outside it. The
Lord has blessed you and this congregation.