THE MESSAGE AND THE MEDIUM
How the Knowledge of the One True God and the One True Faith Are Preserved in the Government, Life and Worship of the Church
The Church, in keeping with the clear message of the Bible, has always taught that there is a clear line of distinction between the ways, mediums, forms and fashions of this fallen world and the Kingdom of God. The one is the product of fallen and sinful human nature, the other a revelation of the one true God and the one true Faith for the salvation of mankind. They represent two opposing spirits and objectives. For according to Scripture, the flesh struggles against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary one to the other. They are incompatible and irreconcilable because they arise from two different sources and serve two different purposes.
We see this already in the Old Testament in the life of Israel, the Church of the Old Testament. Beginning with God’s call of Abraham there was a clear directive to get out from and leave his kindred – his pagan surroundings, in pursuit of the kingdom that God would reveal. This kingdom, in every way would stand in clear distinction from the kingdom of this world that knows not God. It would represent a different world and different way of life. God didn’t tell Abraham to simply introduce the new into the midst of the old but to leave the old order and ways in order to embrace the kingdom or rule of God over His people.
As you follow the history of Israel from the Exodus to Canaan there is a clear directive from God that His people are to disassociate themselves from pagan forms and ways in favor of that which God would reveal and institute for His people. They were always to “come out from among them and be ye separate”. The promises to Israel from God were always that He would be their God, their provider and protector, IF they would flee all expressions and associations with a pagan society and pagan forms of worship in favor of the kingdom that God would reveal to them – a sacred and holy nation sanctified or set apart unto the Lord and in no way identified with the fallen and sinful world from which they were being rescued.
When God led Israel in conquest over the pagan lands, the instructions were clear. They were not to borrow things and ways from the pagan people nor could they intermarry or participate in any way with the pagan forms of worship. All pagan forms and expressions were to be destroyed. God revealed and instituted something totally different and sacred in the way they were to live, eat, be governed and worship. The message was that the Kingdom of God was to be distinct and in no way reflective of the fallen world and paganism around them because the God they worshipped was in no way like the pagan gods.
This same message is applied to the Church of the New Testament. The Saviour called on those who would follow Him to understand the clear distinction and break with the fallen world. The way to heaven, He taught, is straight and narrow and there are few who find it, while the way to death is wide and broad and many go in thereat.
The Apostle John taught us to “Love not the world neither the things that are in the world. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of eyes and the pride of life is not of the Father but is of the world, and the world passeth away and the lusts thereof, but he who does the will of the Father abides forever.” Saint Paul taught that we are to “Be not conformed to this world but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
The Church is the New Israel in whom the Blessing of Abraham is fulfilled through faith in Christ. Thus Saint Peter applies the words spoken to Israel of old to the Body of Christ, the Church: “But you are a chosen generation, a holy nation, a royal priesthood, a peculiar people that you may show forth the praises of Him Who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.”
The same theme continues through all the Gospels, the Epistles and into the Revelation of Saint John. This world, with all its fallenness will pass away, but the new order of God’s Kingdom will abide forever. The Kingdom of Heaven will not be a mixture of the old and the new but the old will be consumed by fire and all things will be new. The Church is already a foretaste of this reality and therefore must not intermingle the ways of the world.
The Church understands herself to be the Bride of Christ, a pilgrim and stranger for whom this world is not her home. She lives and moves and has her being in a new kingdom that is uniquely sacred and distinct from this world. She is the New Israel of God. Thus, the Church, as the “called out ones” (meaning of ecclesia from which we get the word Church) is to reflect the newness and distinctiveness of the Kingdom of Heaven as a witness to the one true God and the one true Faith.
In view of all of this, along with the Church’s self understanding as the Body of Christ, the Church draws a clear distinction between that which proceeds from and fulfills the desires of this fallen world and that which is sacred and holy and proceeds from the Holy Spirit in the Kingdom of God.
This results in a clear line of distinction in several crucial areas of the life of the Church. In all these areas, the Church understands her faith and life to be divinely given and revealed and therefore not open for negotiations. The Church believes that the Holy Spirit was given to the Church, just as Christ promised, to guide her into all truth. Therefore, that which the apostles established and passed on to their successors is given by the Holy Spirit as surely as the Holy Scriptures themselves.
First, as regards the government of the Church, the Church follows the apostolic form of government, i.e., the order and structure established by the apostles; namely, that Christ is the head of the Church, the absolute sovereign, while the oversight and shepherding of the Church on earth is committed to bishops, the icons of Christ and successors to the apostles, who are served by presbyters and deacons. These, together with the laity, gathered around and drawing its life from the Eucharist (the Body and Blood of Christ), form the Body of Christ. In this way the very structure of the Church reflects the Holy Trinity and the unity of the Faith.
This government is distinct from the kingdoms of this world. The Church does not follow the patterns or forms or mediums of the governments of this world that are the products of and serve to fulfill the desires of fallen human nature, such as dictatorships, the papacy, congregational rule, popular vote, anarchy, or majority rule. The Church is not a democracy but a theocracy. Again, there is a clear line of distinction between the mediums of the world and the sacredness and holiness of the Church and her message that reveals the one true God and the one true Faith.
Second, as regards the life of the Church, there is also a clear line of distinction between that which defines society and that which defines the Body of Christ. The heartbeat of society is generally geared towards consumerism, secularism, materialism and entertainment. Its main focus is on self-indulgence – the worship of self. Even its “Christian” holidays are mainly a devotion to self-indulgence and entertainment.
But the Church marches to the beat of a different drum – by that which is sacred, holy and otherworldly in sharp contrast to that which is secular, materialistic and earthly. The Church calls us to lose ourselves, as regards this world, in order to find ourselves in the Kingdom of God. The Church has her own calendar, her feasts and fasts and holy days. Remembrances such as Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Valentine’s Day, May Day, Arbor Day, President’s Day, Independence Day and the like are not a part of the calendar and observances of the worship and life of the Church. They belong to the kingdoms of this world.
The Church has her own unique way of life that goes beyond the calendar, feasts and fasts and includes clear and absolute teachings on morality, appropriate lifestyles and manner of dress both for clergy and laity. Not merely for the sake of following rules or being moralistic but for the sake of bearing witness to the true nature of God and the true nature of the Kingdom of God.
Third, as regards the teachings or dogmas of the Church, she follows the apostolic doctrine. The Church does not look to the intellect of divinity schools or the latest fads in the latest books by the latest gurus, educators or pop icons. All of these, she sees as reflections of a fallen world and out of touch with the life and spirit of the Church. Her doctrine does not change or develop with time, nor is it ever subjected to vote, popular opinion or faddishness. The understanding of truth as relative has no place in the dogma of the Church. Her dogma is not derived from nor does it reflect the views of popular psychology, political correctness or current religious understanding in the world, which are alien to the life and spirit of the Church. Her teachings are held to be Divinely given and revealed, once and for all. The strict and careful stance of the Church regarding her dogmas is for the sake of preserving a true understanding of God and of the Faith of Christ, for it is by this that we must be saved.
Fourth, the same is true as regards the worship of the Church. As with her government, way of life and doctrine, the Church holds that her worship has been divinely given by the Holy Spirit for the preservation of the true Faith.
Her Divine Services come from the very forms of worship that God revealed to His Old Testament Church but now reflect the New Covenant and the fulfillment and realities of the old types and shadows. This was the way of worship adopted by the early Church as established by the apostles, and as witnessed to in the writings of those who succeeded the apostles. The New Testament Church knew no other form of worship other than that which God had revealed. It was unthinkable that just any form or any way could be appropriate for the worship of God. The worship of the Church had to be divinely revealed and true to God’s nature and the Holy Faith.
The forms of worship for Israel were not optional. It was not left to personal likes nor could it be a mixture of the paganism that surrounded them. The worship of God’s chosen people had to be pure and had to reflect the true and sacred nature of the one true God and the one true Faith He had revealed.
As with Israel, the hymnbook of the Church is the Psalter. Additional hymns have been written by the saints whose faithfulness to the truth of the Church and whose humility and holiness have borne witness to their God-bearing lives. It was unthinkable that just anyone who had not attained to purity in the Church could provide her music. It must come from a mind and heart deeply saturated with the life and spirit of the Church.
Again, as with Israel, the language of worship in the Church is the chant. This has been revealed to certain saints by divine revelation as the way the saints and angels worship at the throne of God in heaven. The Church understands that the worship revealed to Israel and that which she now follows, was given as an earthly pattern of the heavenly worship. Since the Church in heaven and the Church on earth are one, they must worship in the same Spirit and the same truth. The book of Hebrews (chapter 9) talks about this very fact, that the earthly worship of the Church is a pattern of the heavenly worship. The worship described in the Revelation of Saint John, reveals the same idea as regards the worship of the saints and angels before the throne of God, complete with hymns and incense that are still used in the Divine Liturgy of the Church.
In addition to the above, there are several other crucial characteristics of the worship of the Church that draw a clear distinction between it and the ideas of contemporary “Christian” music and worship.
First, the worship of the Church is not a form of entertainment nor does it draw from the entertainment venues of the world. Good entertainment is fine in its place but the worship of the Church is not entertainment nor should it resemble entertainment. The worship of the Church must always lift us out of this world into the Kingdom of Heaven. It is a sacred and holy work intended to manifest and worship the one true God and the one true faith He has revealed.
Contemporary “Christian” music and worship uses the forms, mediums and venues of worldly entertainment. It reflects the nature of entertainment, i.e. the Lawrence Welk Show, the Boston Pops Symphony, the Grand Ole Opry, Disneyland, etc. more than it reflects the nature of God and the nature of the Christian Faith. Contemporary ideas intend to bring God down to man’s level. The historic worship of the Church intends to lift man up to God. Therefore it does not reflect the earthly but rather the Kingdom of Heaven.
Second, the worship of the Church, not only does not use entertainment venues which may not be evil within themselves, but especially does not use or adopt forms, mediums and venues from the world that clearly grow out of man’s fallen and depraved passions and senses and exist to satisfy and fulfill those same fallen passions and senses. The ideas of “Christian Rock” and “Christian Rap” are completely inconceivable in Orthodox worship. Forms and mediums such as these grew out of pagan worship and/or devotion to the gratification of the sensual and human vanity. They appeal to and entertain the emotions of our fallen and depraved passions.
In the world of consumer religion, many today cannot distinguish between being “blessed by the spirit” and having their fallen passions entertained. The true distinction between the flesh and the Spirit as set forth by the Holy Fathers is unknown in contemporary “Christianity”. Today, the distinction between that which is of the Spirit and that which is of the flesh is confused and intermingled. Many feel that the use of “Christian” words alone make the contemporary forms “spiritual” but fail to reckon how the medium conveys a message and influence of its own.
In the world of consumer religion, many today cannot distinguish between being “blessed by the spirit” and having their fallen passions entertained. The true distinction between the flesh and the Spirit as set forth by the Holy Fathers is unknown in contemporary “Christianity”. Today, the distinction between that which is of the Spirit and that which is of the flesh is confused and intermingled. Many feel that the use of “Christian” words alone make the contemporary forms “spiritual” but fail to reckon how the medium conveys a message and influence of its own.
The entertainment venues of the world, even when words about Christ are substituted for other words, still glorify a certain materialistic vanity and sensuality in dress and lifestyle that is completely incompatible with the ascetical struggle of the Christian that strives for union with Christ through holiness, humility and self-denial. Even the words of contemporary “Christian” music reflect an understanding of the Christian Faith that is very different from the historic Christian Faith, the Faith of the Saints and the Fathers.
That which has grown out of man’s sinful nature for the purpose of satisfying that nature cannot be an appropriate medium for comprehending the true nature of God and the true nature of the Church and her Faith. Whatever such mediums produce, it will bear little resemblance to the historic Christian Faith.
In the Church, it is inconceivable that unbelievers, or unregenerate people who are given to worldly and carnal lifestyles could walk into a worship service of the Church, feel comfortable and enjoy it as they would enjoy a Vegas show. However, this is common in contemporary worship and music. It reveals that these forms speak to and satisfy the fallen emotions and passions. It is also inconceivable that an unbeliever or unregenerate person would “enjoy” a Divine Liturgy in an Orthodox Church as an enjoyable form of entertainment. They may find it interesting or sense something sacred and different about it or even be repelled by it, but they will not enjoy it as a good show or entertaining event.
The early Church did not even allow unbelievers to attend their worship services. Still today, there is a point in the service, before the liturgy of the Eucharist, when those who are not baptized are supposed to depart from the service. This shows how different the contemporary understanding of worship is from that of the historical Christian Faith. In the Acts of the Apostles we read that the unbelievers “dared not join themselves” to the worship of the believers.
Third, the worship of the Church must be in spirit and in truth. In “spirit” has a twofold meaning. It means in sincerity and not half-heartedly. But it also means in the Holy Spirit. The Church believes there is one Holy Spirit from the time of Israel to the present. The worship of the Church must be in harmony with and according to that which the Holy Spirit has revealed and not that which the fallen and carnal world has produced. This results in worship that is also in truth – it reveals and participates in the truth of the one true God and the truth of the one true faith.
Thus, the music and worship of the Church is clearly distinguished from the music and entertainment of the world. One is of the earth, earthy. The other is of heaven, heavenly. One appeals to and satisfies the “feel good” emotions of the flesh, while the other appeals to one who is trying to crucify his fleshly emotions and passions to acquire the Holy Spirit.. The one speaks to the spirit of this age, the other speaks to the Spirit of life in the Kingdom of God.
Thus, the government, life, dogma and worship of the Church are not in any way derived from the ideas, venues or mediums of this world. There is a clear line of distinction between the mediums and venues of the world and the life and worship of the Church for the preservation of the knowledge of the one true faith and the worship of the one true God.
joseph bragg
