Reformed Evangelical Synod of America

Posts Tagged ‘Protestant’

The Vincentian Canon discusses what we call the Consensus Fidelium or the “Consensus of Faithful Christians”. It refers to what has been believed by the large body of Christians in all places and at all times. Defining that is not an exact science but the task has it’s benefits in my opinion.

In our era, the American Church is primarily known for it’s herd mentality and penchant for following the latest fads. To some, the word “Evangelical” means “the church of what’s happening now” – a full dose of zeitgeist covered with a thin scriptural veneer to attempt religious respectability. The emphasis, however, is on doing what we feel is right.

A body – synod or congregation – heeding the consensus fidelium will take a different tack. They will ask “what is essentially Christian?” and to derive their answer they will begin with the study of scripture but seek to check their conclusions against the conclusions of others whom the Holy Spirit has called before us to the task of discerning God’s will. In our age that’s so suspicious of the “traditions of men” (our own favorite mindless traditions excluded of course!), seeking to learn the consensus fidelium on a matter is nothing other than a form of “historical and transcultural humility”.

Thomas Oden’s Systematic Theology “Classic Christianity” is helpful in that regard. A former worshiper of every innovation however destructive offered by “progressive Christianity”, he was converted to “paleo orthodoxy” when his experiments with theology left him cold. His advice?

“What I needed to do was listen. But I could not listen because I found my modern presuppositions constantly tyrannizing my listening. I realized that I must listen intently, actively, without reservation. Listen in such a way that my whole life depended upon hearing. Listen in such a way that I could see telescopically beyond my modern myopia, to break through walls of my modern prison, and actually hear voices from the past with different assumptions entirely about the world and time and human culture. Then I began reading the decisions of the ancient Ecumenical Councils. Only then in my forties did I begin to become a theologian.”

The day for theological experimentation at the expense of human souls is over. The day for theological restatement and the reinvigoration of the life of the Church is upon us. Our text is, of course, the whole of Holy Scripture. But with a new historical humility, our pathway to the prophetic word of the hour is through the central tradition of the Church and consistent with the prophetic word before. The day for engagement in mission is upon us as well. It is here that experimentation is called for as we seize the day and live out the Word of God afresh, yet in a way consistent with the consensus fidelium. In the first century, Christians did so by rescuing infants left to die from exposure and wild animals. In this century, Christians may accomplish the same thing by embracing in any number of ways those facing unexpected pregnancies. The times have changed but the calling remains the same.

As Reformed and Evangelical people, we emerge from the Reformation and cherish its affirmation of the “five solas”. Embracing the heritage of the Reformation is not a calling distinct from pursuing the consensus fidelium. In an age when some consider anything resembling a “denominational” term passe, we embrace the name. We recognize that our fathers in the faith affirmed these “solas” precisely because they were confronted by a schismatic hegemony that had seriously compromised the testimony of the Body of Christ. How? By departing from the ancient consensus fidelium! In pursuing a faithful restatement of the Reformed, Evangelical, Protestant, and, yes, Catholic faith for today we simply live our our calling as Reformed and Evangelical people. Because our roots run deep into history and through the historic church, that means we likewise pursue the consensus fidelium. Will you join us as we do?

Dr. Martin Luther nailing his Ninety-five Theses to the door of the University Church at Wittenburg.

How can one be both Catholic and Protestant? The two camps seem to be completely opposed to one another, and yet for the better part of five hundred years, there have been those who have walked the journey of faith maintaining both a Catholic and Protestant identity. In order to engage in a fruitful dialogue on this topic, it is important to get behind the evolved meanings of both words to discover their roots.

The word Catholic is an adjective derived from the Greek καθολικός (katholikos), meaning ‘universal’. Any Church holding to the theological and moral concepts expressed in Sacred Scripture and the Nicene Creed are rightly called Catholic Churches, for they have maintained the one truth that has been handed down by Christ through the Church. Such a definition of the word Catholic is defended by Vincent of Lerins in a work known as the Commonitoria.

The word Protestant is an adjective derived from the Latin protestari meaning ‘publicly declare’. The use of the term dates to the Diet of Speyer, held in 1529. Since that time, the term Protestant has been used in many different senses, most often as a general term describing those, rooted in Western Christianity, who believe that the true Christian Church can exist independently of the Roman Catholic Church.

For a long time, many of us outside of the Roman Church have struggled with the term ‘Protestant’, finding it to be an insult or an affront; but the meaning of the word is a noble one. Protestants are those who make a public declaration of their faith against all adversaries, heresies, and wiles of Satan. When one comes to a proper understanding of the term Protestant, it is not a term of shame, but a badge of honor.

At the same time, many Protestants shirk to be called Catholics, fearing that they, somehow, will be associated with the Church of Rome; yet history teaches us that the ancient Church was not initially centered on Rome, and her influence can be seen to have changed over the centuries through a collusion of civil and religious authority in the Roman Empire and, after the Empire’s fall, through mandated expressions of civil religion that spread throughout Europe in the Dark Ages and into Medieval times. To be a Catholic, one need not subscribe to the superstitions and false teachings of these eras; one need hold fast to the Word, inspired by the Holy Spirit.

A true Catholic will have no problem with the ‘five solas’ of the Protestant Reformation, properly understood, for they will require the Catholic to simply affirm what Scripture clearly teaches and what the Church Fathers reliably taught.

At the same time, a true Protestant will rejoice in the nature of the Church itself – a body we are promised will never die or pass away, but one which shall be perfected and brought into the eternal presence of God at the last great day. The idea that the Church and faithful preaching has been absent from the earth for even a day since her birth on the first Pentecost Day must be rejected as flying in the face of the very words of Christ. While we can always seek to reform and refine the Church to be more purely what Christ intended, we must never confess that the Church has disappeared.

Certainly there remain matters that are unresolved between the Catholic and Protestant mindsets. Indeed, even within the Protestant realm there are many varied views on the how’s and why’s of the faith – but following Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord is and must be the central focus of the life of any individual, community, or ecclesial assembly that professes to be Christian.

To be both Catholic and Protestant may be an uneasy coexistence for many, but when faced with a right understanding of what it means to be both, their coexistence becomes a joy – for it is always a joyful thing to stand up for the faith once for all delivered unto the saints.

Father Robert Lyons is a presbyter of the Reformed Evangelical Synod of America. He serves as the Manager of Chaplaincy Services at Wishard Memorial Hospital in Indianapolis, and is leading the effort to plant a new congregation in Central Indiana. He and his family reside in Bargersville, Indiana.

What is the RESA?
The Reformed Evangelical Synod of America is an ecclesiastical body dedicated to proclaiming the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ through Word, Sacrament, and Service. Members of the RESA have gathered together from Anglican, Lutheran, Reformed, and Eastern traditions of the Church in a spirit of unity and cooperation to make known far and wide the saving power of Christ. While maintaining the Doctrines of Grace preached in the ancient Church and recovered during the time of the Reformation, our Synod also retains the Historic Episcopate, an ancient and venerable form of Church government, handed down from the primitive Church.

Why the RESA?
The Reformed Evangelical Synod of America is a home for those dedicated to the sovereignty of God’s grace and the primacy of his Word. We stand firm in our conviction that the Holy Scriptures are the infallible Word of God, while at the same time encouraging study of the Church Fathers – both ancient and reformed. For us the Fathers never overshadow Scripture, which we believe contains all things necessary to salvation; their role is to illumine Scripture for us with their words, and to keep us in a historical continuity of belief that, sadly, is lacking in much of Christendom today.

Why the Historic Episcopate?
The Reformed Evangelical Synod of America has adopted the historic episcopate as its means of ecclesiastical government because of its ancient roots and its ability to connect believers from various streams in Christ’s holy Church.

How does the RESA worship?
The Reformed Evangelical Synod of America worships according to the form contained in its approved version of The Book of Common Prayer, which brings together elements from our many root traditions in a harmonious whole. The weekly preaching of the Word and sharing of Communion in the celebration of the Divine Service is at the heart of our worship, as is regular immersion in Sacred Scripture through daily prayer in the Church and the home.

Conclusion
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