Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry - A Thoughtful Proposal
by Captain Rob Reardon
In this
paper, I offer thoughts on the sacraments from a Salvation
Army point of view that could help foster Church Unity.
INTRODUCTION
In 1982, the World Council of Churches
released Faith and Order Paper No. 111, entitled,
“Baptism, Eucharist and
Ministry.” In the preface of this document, it is stated
that “important for the development of this text has been the
witness of local churches which have already gone through the
process of uniting across confessional division. It is
important to acknowledge that the search for local church
union and the search for universal consensus are intimately
linked.”[1] Later in the
preface the dilemma of church unity is addressed as it relates
to justice, peace and reconciliation in the world: “As the
churches grow into unity, they are asking how their
understandings and practices of baptism, Eucharist and
ministry relate to their mission in and for the renewal of
human community as they seek to promote justice, peace and
reconciliation. Therefore our understanding of these cannot be
divorced from the redemptive and liberating mission of Christ
through the churches in the modern world.”[2]
Remaining in the preface, additional
comments are made regarding the need for consensus in the
areas of baptism, Eucharist and ministry so that true unity
can be achieved through the Holy Spirit. Arrival at such
consensus can only be fulfilled through deep conviction and
humility. Such hope is given breath when past contentions are
addressed: “In leaving behind the hostilities of the past, the
churches have begun to discover many promising convergences in
their shared convictions and perspectives. These convergences
give assurance that despite much diversity in theological
expression the churches have much in common in their
understanding of the faith.”[3]
Subsequent to the publication of “Baptism,
Eucharist and Ministry,” The Salvation Army, at the
invitation of the World Council of Churches for an official
response from the highest levels of ecclesiastical authority,
prepared a text that was released in 1985 and later published
in booklet form in 1990, entitled,
“One Faith, One Church:
The Salvation Army’s Response to Baptism, Eucharist &
Ministry.” In this publication, the Army’s non-observation
of traditional sacraments is succinctly presented, aiming to
“emphasize the Army’s unity in Christ and Christian faith with
all who accept him as Savior and Lord while humbly but
confidently presenting its theological position as a valid
alternative to that emphasized in the Lima Text.”[4]
While I
am an active Salvation Army officer and have been dedicated to
the Army’s mission and remain committed to The Salvation
Army’s doctrinal and theological positions, this paper is my
own personal response to the World Council of Churches’ “BEM”
document. My aim is to offer a thoughtful proposal as a point
of discussion in the ecumenical dialogue, using my
understanding of Scripture alongside a Salvationist
perspective on the sacramental traditions. The format of this
paper will be similar to that of the “BEM” document, following
each of the three headings in order and as each relates to the
other.
BAPTISM
In the
fifteenth chapter of Acts the account is given of certain
people and Pharisees teaching that circumcision was necessary
for salvation (15:1, 5). In this situation, Gentiles were
being saved and the Jewish believers were convinced that
salvation wasn’t possible for Gentiles unless circumcision was
performed in order to keep the Law of Moses. Paul and Barnabas
arrived in Jerusalem to look into the situation and come to a
consensus for the sake of unity among the believers of both
Jewish and Gentile origin. Scripture records that much
discussion and debate took place which was followed by Paul’s
address to the assembly: “My brothers, you know that in the
early days God made a choice among you, that I should be the
one through whom the Gentiles would hear the message of the
good news and become believers. And God, who knows the human
heart, testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just
as he did to us; and in cleansing their hearts by faith he has
made no distinction between them and us. Now therefore why are
you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the
disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been
able to bear? On the contrary, we believe that we will be
saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will”
(15:7b-11). Paul concluded: “Therefore I have reached the
decision that we should not trouble those Gentiles who are
turning to God, but we should write to them to abstain only
from things polluted by idols and from fornication and from
whatever has been strangled and from blood” (15:19-20).
To
further emphasize this newfound unity, Paul would declare to
the believers in Ephesus that there was an expectation of
unity among those who were once hostile towards one another:
“So then, remember that at one time you Gentiles by birth,
called “the uncircumcision” by those who are called “the
circumcision”—a physical circumcision made in the flesh by
human hands— remember that you were at that time without
Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and
strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and
without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once
were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into
one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the
hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its
commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself
one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and
might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the
cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he
came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to
those who were near; for through him both of us have access in
one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers
and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also
members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of
the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the
cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and
grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are
built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God”
(Eph. 2:11-22).
During
the earliest days of the church, a ritual that had been
instituted by God through Moses was set aside for the sake of
unity within the Body. This wasn’t a decision that was made
lightly. Scripture records that Paul and Barnabas embarked on
a lengthy journey to arrive in Jerusalem to investigate the
matter that was causing division. Along their journey, they
heard of the many Gentile conversions. Upon their arrival in
Jerusalem, we are told that much debate ensued. We are
handcuffed by the lack of narrative surrounding this debate,
but we can only presume that considerable time and energy were
expended for such a weighty subject. Thousands of years of
tradition and practice were at stake. Paul, who had been
counted among the chief of Pharisees, knowing full well the
ramifications of the law, was poised to make the decision to
set aside the practice that caused division – for the sake of
unity in the Body, even a sacred act of covenant was deemed
non-essential.
Since that momentous occasion, the Body
once again finds itself divided sharply. Particular to the
practice of baptism, consensus is being attempted, yet we
continue to fall short. Could it be that in the 21st
Century, as in the 1st, it is time to look at a
human tradition that has been sanctified by the church as
non-essential for the sake of unity within the Body? Within
the universal body of the Church, there are numerous manners
in which baptism is practiced. Some practice infant baptism,
while others only baptize adult believers; some faith
traditions sprinkle with water, while others practice full
immersion. Commentary (6) in the BEM document admits to
continued division: “The inability of the churches mutually to
recognize their various practices of baptism as sharing in the
one baptism, and their actual dividedness in spite of mutual
baptismal recognition, have given dramatic visibility to the
broken witness of the church.”[5] Within the
BEM document, baptism is defined as “the sign of new life
through Jesus Christ.”[6] The text
continues by stating: “The New Testament scriptures and the
liturgy of the Church unfold the meaning of baptism in various
stages which express the riches of Christ and the gifts of his
salvation. These images are sometimes linked with the symbolic
uses of water in the Old Testament.”[7]
It must be noted that “historically water
baptism was a common initiation feature in both Jewish and
pagan religions.”[8]
When John saw Jesus approaching the river in the third chapter
of Matthew, John would have been practicing a common ritual to
his upbringing as a Jew. Furthermore, Jesus’ insistence that
he be baptized by John was in fulfillment of Jewish practice.
We know from John 4:2 that Jesus himself did not baptize
anyone. As noted in the passage above from Ephesians, Jesus
came to remove the barriers that had been erected by man; he
came to bring peace where there had been hostility. John’s
prophecy concerning Jesus tells of the intent of Christ’s
baptism: “The one who is more powerful than I is coming after
me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his
sandals. 8I
have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the
Holy Spirit” (Mark 1:8). Thus, the baptism of the Holy Spirit
is what is important and nowhere in scripture is it clear that
baptism by water equates baptism of the Holy Spirit. On the
contrary, we can see that the Apostles at Pentecost were
filled with the Holy Spirit without the precursor of any
physical act (Acts 1:4; 2:1). Once filled with the Holy
Spirit, the Apostles were able to proclaim the Gospel in
languages heretofore unknown to them. It is precisely this
baptism therefore, that enables all believers to participate
in Christ’s Great Commission: “Go therefore and make disciples
of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey
everything that I have commanded you” (Matt. 28:19-20).
EUCHARIST
As a point of clarification, classic
definitions of the terms sacrament and ordinance are
necessary: Sacrament:
God’s activity, eliciting our response;
Ordinance: Human
activity born out of our obedience.[9] The Salvation
Army is of the view that Holy Communion is considered to be an
Ordinance. We would not hold to the belief that there is a
spiritual or mystical power in the act itself. “A sacrament is
something that has an inherent sanctifying effect, that is,
the ceremony itself is sacred and has the power to make you
sacred.”[10]
It is
best to articulate The Salvation Army’s position concerning
the Eucharist, with the intention of elaborating on the
proposal begun in the previous section. Together they form an
overall praxis for ministry that is born out of a deeper,
non-practicing form of sacramental living as displayed through
active ministry.
Admittedly, The
Salvation Army’s early rationale for not practicing the
Eucharist was practical; it was a well known fact that the
Army’s founder, William Booth was nothing if he was not
pragmatic. Therefore there were four practical reasons[11] for our
non-practice:
1.
Use of wine was universal for communion.
This was unthinkable for the Army with its large number of
recovering alcoholic members.
2.
Confusion existed over who may legitimately preside over the
sacraments.
The Army has consistently applied the principle of the
priesthood of all believers and promotes egalitarian ministry.
This, of course, would include women.
3.
Confusion existed over who would receive the sacraments.
Order would be necessary, especially considering the rowdy
crowds attending those early Army meetings. Would everyone be
indiscriminately offered communion? Who, then, would decide
which persons received and which did not? That question would
very likely lead to unnecessary conflict over a practice that
was intended to promote reconciliation.
4.
The sacraments have been misused in a superstitious way.
Members of churches with a strong sacramental emphasis have
often grossly misunderstood their church’s position.
Going deeper
theologically The Salvation Army believes firmly that we are a
“part of the prophetic tradition, which from Old Testament
times has declared against all comers that ceremonial religion
is not the only, or even the best, way to God.”[12] It is not
denied among Salvationists that “remembrance of the crucified
and risen Christ is central to Christian worship.”[13] But rather
than contain such a remembrance in a solitary act, the
Salvationist would contend that such remembrance was necessary
and ought to be exhibited throughout the entirety of the
believer’s life. When he was General of The Salvation Army,
Albert Orsborn wrote of the sacramental life[14]:
My life
must be Christ’s broken bread,
My love
his outpoured wine,
A cup
o’erfilled, a table spread
Beneath
his name and sign,
That
other souls, refreshed and fed,
May share
his life through mine.
My all is
in the Master’s hands
For him
to bless and break;
Beyond
the brook his winepress stands
And
thence my way I take,
Resolved
the whole of love’s demands
To give,
for his dear sake.
Lord, let
me share that grace of thine
Wherewith
thou didst sustain
The
burden of the fruitful vine,
The gift
of buried grain.
Who dies
with thee, O Word divine,
Shall
rise and live again.
The notion of an
entire life dedicated to sacramental living is paramount to
Salvation Army theology: “Every Salvationist is committed to
this sacramental service. It was for this purpose that the
movement was formed. The call to sanctification involves a
call to sacramental living.”[15]
With the inclusion of sanctification leading to holiness, a
deeper theological understanding begins to take shape. It is
the belief of The Salvation Army that holy living is
sacramental living. As Orsborn’s lyrics indicate, the
believer’s life as Christ’s broken bread and love as his
outpoured wine, is meant to be proactive in seeking to bring
others to a closer communion to Christ himself. Moving away
from the more private and personal act of partaking in Holy
Communion, the sacramental lifestyle at once engages others in
the practice. Retired Salvation Army Commissioner Phil Needham
writes: “There can be no sacraments divorced from everyday
life; there can only be the sacramental potential of each
moment of everyday life. In keeping with its Wesleyan
heritage, The Salvation Army has traditionally used the word
‘holiness’ to describe the sacramental life, and
‘sanctification’ as the gracious act of God which makes
holiness possible. The sacramental life is lived in the power
of the Spirit.”[16]
A recent
suggestion for the Army’s position contends that it is neither
anti-sacramental nor non-sacramental, but instead
neo-sacramental (new expression
of).[17] Indeed, as
I’ve moved from a state of naiveté to a deeper, more mature
understanding of my denomination’s position on the subject of
Sacramental Theology, I can say beyond a doubt that I hold to
our view on the subject. On my best days I endeavor to live in
such a way to embody the mandate set forth in living so that
my life lived is truly Christ living in and through me. In
doing so, I cling to the concept of sacramental living in a
way that brings others closer to Christ through my
participation daily and consistently in the death and
resurrection of Christ – thereby actively remembering…doing
this…as commanded by Christ.
MINISTRY
Insofar as this
paper is focused mainly on a proposal concerning the place of
the traditional sacraments in respect to unity in the Church,
it must be noted that in the third section of the BEM document
concerning ministry, there are several statements with which I
personally resonate as does The Salvation Army as a whole.
Allow me to highlight those statements in which there is full
agreement: “Through Christ, people are enabled to turn in
praise to God and in service to their neighbors.”[18] Most
assuredly, it is our belief that once a soul has been
reclaimed by Jesus Christ, it is an inevitable response on
behalf of the individual to turn their heart simultaneously
toward God and fellow human-beings. “The church is called to
proclaim and prefigure the Kingdom of God…In order to fulfill
this mission faithfully, they will seek relevant forms of
witness and service in each situation. In doing so they bring
to the world a foretaste of the joy and glory of God’s
Kingdom.”[19] The
Salvation Army has, from its inception, had the priority of
Kingdom business at the forefront of our mission on earth. The
Army’s mission statement was succinctly summed up by retired
General John Gowans in 2000: “The Salvation Army was created
to Save Souls, Grow Saints and Serve Suffering Humanity.”[20]
Salvation Army
officers are ordained ministers of the Gospel and adhere to
the principles of ordination that govern most, if not all
Christian expressions of church. There is little disagreement
with the text of the BEM on this subject. “Experience in The
Salvation Army confirms that ‘Christ continues through the
Holy Spirit to choose and call persons to the ordained
ministry,’ and the inner assurance of that call and the seal
of the Holy Spirit have sustained thousands of Salvation Army
officers in [123] lands through a life-time of active and
fruitful ministry. The Salvation Army officer has
unquestionable right to, and theological support for, his
divinely granted and sustained authority – to claim, like the
apostle Paul, to be ‘a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be
an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God’ (Romans 1:1). The
terms used in the Lima Text serve to confirm this belief.[21]
Briefly, to bring this section to an
end, The Salvation Army affirms the position based on
Galatians 3:28 – “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no
longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for
all of you are one in Christ Jesus.” We whole-heartedly
believe that women are not only eligible for full-time
ministry, but are gifted by God to be leaders and visionaries
in the universal Church.
CONCLUSION
I don’t believe
it to be a coincidence that Paul’s words referenced above from
Galatians 3:28 – “…for all of you are one in Christ
Jesus” echo the words of our Lord when he prayed for his
followers in John 17:20-23, “I ask not only on behalf of
these, but also on behalf of those who will believe in me
through their word, that they may all be one. As you, Father,
are in me and I am in you, may they also be in us, so that the
world may believe that you have sent me. The glory that you
have given me I have given them, so that they may be one, as
we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may become
completely one, so that the world may know that you have sent
me and have loved them even as you have loved me.”
Therefore, my proposal as presented is one that would see
baptism removed as a barrier to true unity and those
traditions to whom the sacramental lifestyle takes precedent
over practicing the Eucharist be considered for
full acceptance. A phrase often attributed to St.
Augustine says: “In necessariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus
caritas,” or translated, “unity
in necessary things; liberty in doubtful things; charity in
all things.” I believe that The Salvation Army has something
of value to add to the ecumenical dialogue in these areas
presented. We are a missional movement, compelled to minister
to humanity through the grace and love given us by God through
the sacrifice of God’s son, Jesus and the infilling of the
Holy Spirit. “We maintain that there is a need for the
continuing witness to the freedom of God to bless his people
even outside the traditional sacramental means of grace. We
are encouraged by the comment of Professor John Macquarrie (Principles
of Christian Theology, page 376): ‘Although The Salvation
Army has no sacraments, we could not for a moment deny that it
receives and transmits divine grace.”[22]
While we respect the long held
traditions of the church, we recognize that in the 21st
Century, there remain barriers to those that would believe in
the risen Christ. To reach out and offer to them the
life-giving gift of salvation without human conditions, I
believe is what God is calling the church to do. God offers
unconditional love to the repentant soul, but all too often
God’s human agents attach conditions that prevent the work of
salvation.
In Matthew chapter nineteen, we read
of the young man who came to Jesus seeking the key to eternal
life. After the brief conversation, Jesus told him he was
lacking one thing – that he was to sell all his possessions
and give the proceeds to the poor, then he was to come and
follow Jesus. Shocked and saddened, the young man walked away.
Jesus commented to his disciples, that it was hard for the
rich to enter the Kingdom of God. Perhaps our tightly held
possessions are keeping the church from realizing true unity.
Perhaps Jesus is asking us to leave that which we hold dear to
follow him in saving the world, but we are not able to let go.
Jesus ended this encounter by making the declaration: “For
mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible”
(Matthew 19:26).
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Faith and Order Paper #111 – Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry.
Geneva: World Council of Churches, 1982
One Faith, One Church: The Salvation Army’s response to
Baptism, Eucharist & Ministry.
London: The Salvation Army, 1982
The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine. London:
The Salvation Army, 1969
Songbook of The Salvation Army.
Verona, NJ: The
Salvation Army, 1987
Clifton, Shaw.
Who Are These
Salvationists? Alexandria, VA: Crest Books, 1999
Garrington, Jim.
Equipped for Battle
Chicago, IL: The Salvation Army, 2002
Needham, Philip.
Mission in Community: A
Salvationist Ecclesiology Atlanta, GA: The Salvation Army,
1987
Rightmire, R. David.
Sacraments and The
Salvation Army: Pneumatological Foundations London: The
Scarecrow Press, 1990
Class notes – PW101 Introduction to
Corporate Worship, Wesley Theological Seminary, Spring 2010
[4]
One Faith, One Church: The Salvation Army’s response
to Baptism, Eucharist & Ministry (London: The
Salvation Army, 1982), 5
[8]
One Faith, One Church: The
Salvation Army’s response to Baptism, Eucharist &
Ministry (London:
The Salvation Army, 1982), 11
[9]
Class notes – PW101 Introduction to Corporate Worship,
Spring 2010, Wesley Theological Seminary
[10]
Jim Garrington,
Equipped for
Battle (Chicago, IL: The Salvation Army, 2002),
177
[12]
Shaw Clifton,
Who Are These Salvationists? (Alexandria, VA:
Crest Books, 1999), 59
[13]
One Faith, One Church: The Salvation Army’s response
to Baptism, Eucharist & Ministry (London: The
Salvation Army, 1982), 28
[14]
The Songbook of The Salvation Army (Verona, NJ: The
Salvation Army, 1987), 142
[15]
The Salvation Army Handbook of Doctrine (London: The
Salvation Army, 1969), 180
[16]
Philip Needham,
Mission in
Community: A Salvationist Ecclesiology
(Atlanta, GA: The Salvation Army, 1987), 18-19
[20]
The actual mission statement reads: “The
Salvation Army, an international movement, is an
evangelical part of the universal Christian church.
Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is
motivated by the love of God. Its mission is to preach
the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in
His name without discrimination.”
[21]
Faith, One Church: The Salvation
Army’s response to Baptism, Eucharist & Ministry
(London: The Salvation Army, 1982), 43-44
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