The Event of Church (2)
and greet the church at their house, and my beloved Epenetus Romans 16:5
Church – Yesterday we discovered that the two Hebrew words for “assembly” are not quite the same. Qehillah focuses on the event of experience with God. ‘Edah focuses on the unity of the whole people God appoints. We found that ekklesia, the Greek word translated “church” is never ‘edah, only qehillah. But synagoge can be both qehillah and ‘edah.
What can we conclude? Please remember that the doctrine of the church is not going to be concluded in just a short look at the words. We can only point the direction since there is so much more to consider, but we can say at least this much. It appears as though the Hebrew idea behind ekklesia is about a “happening”, an event, not a place. A church is a gathering event called by God for His purposes. It doesn’t appear to be a routine meeting in a particular place with a set agenda. Remember that qahal is first found in the idea of a gathering of soldiers for war. It is the purpose that precipitates the gathering, not the other way around. Church, from a Hebrew perspective, is all about why we come together, not about where we come together.
Recently I read a comment by a man who was distraught because he didn’t seem able to plant a new church in his community. You can see how his thinking has been affected by the idea that church is a place. Maybe we should have church rather than go to church. How much more might we accomplish for the Kingdom if we began to think of church as an event rather than a building?
But there is more. When we point in this direction, we realize that there is an element in the Hebrew idea that is not present in the Greek word ekklesia. ‘Edah – the unity of the gathered assembly – is never picked up by the word ekklesia. The event of church does not mean unity. The event is focused on the reason for the event, namely, the call of God. We gather because God calls us to gather, and we gather because He has something to tell us and something for us to do. But that is not the same as being in unity. It is the word synagoge that enables us to communicate the idea of a single, unified whole. If we are going to experience ‘edah, our gathering cannot focus on the individuals in the group. It must focus on the whole group all together. Does this give you a clue about Paul’s comments on sharing the single mind of Christ or Jesus’ comments on unity?
The “church” is a unity, a single body (remember Paul’s language) where every individual fades into the whole, integrated unit, where no single member is any more valuable than any other and where every member is vital to the functioning of the whole. ‘Edah is a body without hierarchy, without “professionals”, without status-seekers and without individual glorification. It is the one assembly, doing what God commands.
What directions begin to emerge? Perhaps we need to re-think “church.” If the Bible’s view of church is an event called for a purpose of a single, completely unified body, a lot of things will have to change. Now, what will you do about it?
Topical Index: church, ‘edah, synagoge, qehillah, ekklesia, Romans 16:5
