4. The Anabap,st View: Keep them Separate

Transcription

1 4. The Anabap,st View: Keep them Separate Ques,ons for discussion: Jesus says his kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36). We are called strangers and aliens (1 Peter 2:11). Yet, we are called to be salt and light (MaE 5:13-16). How do you see this tension playing out? An Anabap,st response to the two Chris,an rela,onships between Church and State: 1. The Two Kingdoms view (Lutheran) 2. The Synthesis view (Catholic) The response in both cases is very similar and of two parts: Jesus said, My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jewish leaders. But now my kingdom is from another place. John 18:36 And Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people. Therefore, Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you. 2 Corinthians 6:14-17 A Brief History of the Separa,on View Desert Fathers: separa_on as a response to nominalism in the now na_onal church - During the various persecu_ons of the Church, some Chris_ans escaped to isolated parts of the world and dwelled there in anonymity. Tradi_onally, there are many stories of divine aid given to them to help them survive It should seem to us much stranger than it does, that this paradoxical flight from the world aeained its greatest dimensions (I almost said frenzy) when the world officially became Chris_an. Thomas Merton

2 - Interes_ngly, retreat to the wilderness, most oeen the desert, gained significant trac_on aeer Constan_ne. Many felt that Chris_anity was damaged by first the removal of persecu_on and secondly being made the state religion of Rome (380 AD). Nominalism was taking root (Chris_an of convenience rather than convic_on) and many who retreated to the desert saw removing themselves and devo_ng their lives to prayer and worship as the only an_dote for the corrup_on the Empire was bringing to the church. - Some ancient travellers suggested that in Egypt, there were as many people living in isolated proto-monas_c communi_es in the desert as there were in the ci_es - Most famous (and one of the first) Desert Father was Anthony the Great who felt called to separate himself from society and devote his _me to prayer and worship Monas,cism: separa,on both as protec,on and as an example - Aeer the popularizing of monas_cism, it became seen as the place where lay people went to live lives devoted to God. - It offered protec_on, self-sufficiency, an element of isola_on, and a life devoted to God - Though St Anthony popularized monasteries as the loca_on those wan_ng to devote their lives to God went, St Benedict of Nursia laid the founda_ons for western monas_cism that remain to this day - The rules of Chas_ty, Poverty, and Obedience - Withdrawal from the world into inten_onal communi_es that operated on a daily rhythm. Many found an answer [to the ques_on of comfort and corrup_on in the church] in the monas_c life: to flee from human society, to leave everything behind, to dominate the body and its passions, which give way to tempta_on. Justo Gonzalez - In interac_ng with the world, acted as repositories of knowledge, schools and oeen early versions of hospitals. Anabap,sts: separa,on as protec,on, both of faith and culture, and to be an example. The tradi_onal start of Anabap_sm was in Zurich where George Blaurock and Conrad Grebel bap_zed 15 men including themselves on confession of faith. They were subsequently banished from Zurich and most were killed.

3 From this birth, and possibly concurrently to it, Anabap_sm (also called the Radical Reforma_on) spread throughout what is now Germany and the Netherlands. It was usually persecuted wherever it showed up. A list of beliefs stemmed from the call to believer s bap_sm, but not all Anabap_sts followed all the beliefs (especially pacifism). 1. Believer s bap_sm. MaEhew 28: Believers must not swear oaths or go to court for dispute resolu_on. 1 Cor 6: Sinners / unfaithful believers are to be excommunicated and banned from community unless they repent. 1 Cor 5:9-13, MaEhew 18:15 4. Believers must not bear arms or resist wrongdoers. No Chris_an has jus gladii (the right of the sword). MaEhew 5:39 5. Believers must not fill any office or hold any governmental rank, as civil government belongs to the world. It is however, to be passively obeyed if it doesn t conflict with God s laws. John 18:36, Romans 13: Community. Corporate worship, mutual aid, fellowship, and mutual accountability characterize the community. This may be extended to communal living. The community was oeen separated physically from the surrounding secular community. Hebrews 10:24-25, 1 Cor 1:10 7. Priesthood of all believers. Though God raises up leaders and pastors of congrega_ons, the posi_on of the trained professional cleric was oeen absent. Oeen the churches were run by a council of appointed lay people (i.e.: church elders). 1 Peter 2:9 8. Strong Missional Focus. One reason the Anabap_sts were killed so oeen is that they were very rarely silent about their faith. In word and deed, they proclaimed the Gospel of Christ wherever they went. MaEhew 28:19-20 As _me went on, Anabap_sts were forced from place to place by persecu_on. They splintered into many groups, oeen on minor theological differences. The Mennonites, Amish and Melchiorites are all directly descended from early Radical Reformers who espoused these beliefs. Early Anabap_sts didn t consider a formal theology of poli_cs that much, simply because, like the early church, they were too busy surviving. On top of this, most of the early Anabap_st reformers who were trained in academics and theology were killed very quickly. Hence, wri_ngs from these early Reformers are scarce.

4 Schleitheim Confession The confession was one of the earliest representa_ve statements regarding Anabap_st principles (1527). It lays out 7 ar_cles: 1. Bap_sm. Only by confession of faith (no infants) 2. The Ban. Chris_ans who are ac_vely sinning are to be admonished twice in secret and once in public. If they refuse to repent, excommunicate them. 3. Communion. Only for those who have been bap_zed. 4. Separa_on from Evil. The community of Christ should have no associa_on or fellowship with those in rebellion to God. No par_cipa_on in their works (civil or religious) 5. Pastors. Should be men of good repute raised up by the church. 6. Nonresistance. As Christ never exhibited violence, so the Chris_an should no resist it. 7. Oaths. Do not swear oaths, as Jesus forbade it. Mennonites Following the example of Menno Simons, Mennonites rose in Friesland (current border of the Netherland and Germany). They encountered persecu_on and moved to east Prussia, where the persecu_on was lessened. From there, Catherine the Great saw their work ethic coupled with excellence in agriculture as boons, and so invited them into her newly conquered lands in the Ukraine. The Mennonites had a _me of peace there, but eventually peace gave way to persecu_on as poli_cal winds shieed and the Mennonites con_nued to migrate, this _me to the New World. Amish A splinter group of Swiss Anabap_sts following Jakob Amman, the Amish had a similar story to the Mennonites in terms of persecu_ons and migra_ons. Their final mass emigra_on was to Pennsylvania by in large. Over _me, the Amish beliefs in avoiding hubris and the high value they placed on submission and community led them to reject technology that allowed one to exist as an individual. Electricity and combus_on (and everything that comes from them) were technologies that pushed for individualism, and so were rejected. Some forms of technology are acceptable to (many) Amish, including medical advances and fer_lizer given that they don t promote individualism.

5 Melchiorites The Black Sheep of the Anabap_st family. Following loosely the apocalyp_c teachings of Melchior Hoffman, Radical Reformers took over Münster, in prepara_on for the Lord s return. One leader, Jan van Leyden, ins_tuted common property on everyone, forcible rebap_sm, and polygamy. Rebels were exiled or killed. The city was eventually besieged by Lutherans for a year before it fell, and all the leaders were executed. Jan van Leyden announced that a new world order had been revealed to him and promptly began to implement it. Money was abolished; polygamy was legalized; marriage was made compulsory for women. Those who dissented faced execu_on. Alister McGrath Problems everyone had with the Anabap,sts 1. A refusal to bap_ze children tore at a seamless Chris_an society. It aeacked the stability of the state because adult bap_sm meant you were outside civil society and thus rebels against the government God had ins_tuted. Bap_sm as a child was more than a religious statement, it was considered entrance into civiliza_on. Therefore, the refusal to bap_ze infants had been a capital offense since the days of the Roman Empire. One of the reasons the Jews had problems was their refusal to be bap_sed. 2. Pacifism meant that you benefited from the stable society but didn t bear the cost to defend it. Zurich was one of the earliest birth places of Anabap_sm and all it s ci_zens were expected to forcibly defend the city if aeacked, as they had no standing army. 3. If one didn t take disputes to the magistrates and judges and instead resolved them in the church, the church leaders and elders were guilty of gran_ng that power and authority upon themselves in effect. 4. Due in large part to the Melchiorites, but also due to a lack of formalized theology, and lack of a formal hierarchy, Anabap_sm was viewed as chao_c. It was suitable for mobs, rather than a formal, reasoned Reforma_on of Chris_anity.

6 Anabap,st Theology on Poli,cs and Government Of the 8 points that most Anabap_sts assent to, only 4 have significant effect on how we interact with society at large. We re going to discuss as a group each point and see if it resonates with us and if it s compa_ble with how we see CA Church s posi_on within the Tri Ci_es. For each point, ask yourself: - is this Biblically supported? - what would this prac5cally look like in our lives and in our Church? 1. Don t swear oaths or resolve disputes between believers before the courts 2. Civil Government belongs to the world. As the believer belongs to God s kingdom, they must not hold any rank or fill any governmental office. The government is to be passively obeyed excep_ng where obedience would violate God s laws. 3. Chris_ans are to live in the world, but not be of it. They are to be in their communi_es, but not isolated like the monks or Desert fathers. The communi_es need to be accessible to the world that they may be lights on the hill to the na_ons. 4. Do not bear arms or offer forcible resistance to wrongdoers For this one, we ll break into groups for discussion: As a Chris5an, when is violence jus5fied? If you re answer was anything other than never, how do you reconcile MaEhew 5:38-42? If we then are to be pacifists, what consequences would this have for a Chris5ans involvement in: the military, police work, the government? Prac,cal Outcomes of Anabap,st Poli,cal Theology today 1. Separate school system 2. Inten_onal communi_es 3. Rejec_on of technology 4. Refusal to serve in an occupa_on that may involve violence 5. Refusal to take public office or work in the government 6. Refusal to vote

7 Benedict Op,on - A sugges_on by Catholic turned Orthodox theologian Rob Dreher - The idea of recapturing some of the view of Benedict of Nursia and responding to the chaos of society by making inten_onal communi_es of fellow Chris_an believers that are separate from the rest of the world - AdmiEedly, these communi_es are not recommended to be physically separated necessarily, but that the communi_es are to be all members of the faith that do life together, albeit somewhat separated from the public sphere - In many ways, emulates the Anabap_st ideal of in the world but not of it in making communi_es that are separate, yet act as salt and light to the communi_es around them. Making it clear that we as Chris_ans are separate and different from them, yet also being generous and hospitable to all who would come along.