Theological reflection and new visions for the diaconal strategy

The metaphor of the Church, as the Body of Christ, was the way by which the Apostle Paul appealed to his Greek speaking Gentile audience. His choice of language was inspired because it resonated with a world view promoted by the philosophers of the ancient Greek civilisation. Many parts-one body, resonates with the notion of many particles emanating from the One source, or many sparks from the One light. The Greek philosophical framework/mindset was shaped by universal principles guiding and directing the cosmos and by an abstract/impersonal unerstanding of what it means to be human. The transition from this to the view of the world espoused by the early Church was very radical, but Paul being a good cross cultural missionary started where his audience was comfortable and took them somewhere entirely new. In contrast to the ancient Greek philosophical tradition which is conceptual, abstract, theoretical and dualistic in its language and expression, the Judeo-Christian tradition, grounded in the covenant-relational view of the world, is not abstract and dualistic but deeply historical, rooted, personal and holistic in its language and expression.

The present post modern post Christian culture which pervades western Europe, I believe will be stages, for no more complicated reason than consumerism is the engine room for a post modern view of the world.

Post-modern thinking invites us to believe that it is no longer possible to speak of universal truth. In this sense it has no affinity with either the Greek or the Judeo-Christian world views. Post modern society has moved from a realistic understanding of truth- the belief the truth exists whether we believe it or not, to a constructivist view- that "truths" are things we invent or choose to believe in order to get by. Our consumer culture then provides the criteria for the choice or construction of truths that suit us: "When the only criteria left for choosing . . . are learned in the market place, the truth appears as a commodity. We hear that people 'buy into this or that belief'". By this means western people create makeshift world views. Consumerism is the centre piece of post-modernity. The consumer culture is characterised by obsolescence and is founded on a perpetually broken promise. In the consumer culture everything is made to be brought but nothing is made to last.

That said, there are elements in the post-modern culture which a Church committed to cross cultural mission can tap into. The spirituality and philosophy of the post modern world is intensely influenced by the power of narrative. Each person is encouraged to tell their story and to exchange stories. And whilst their is a denial of any meta narrative there is in the exchange of stories a subtle weaving together of collective stories which does offer temporarily at least a bigger picture. In line with this narrative approach, postmodernism emphasises the personal and relational in life and in this sense it is culturally closer and more akin to the covenant language of the Judeo-Christian tradition than to the universal principles of the Greek philosophical tradition.

It is for this reason, I believe that our search today for appropriate metaphors for understanding the nature and calling of the church will be more fruitfully spent within the language and expressions of the Judeo-Christian tradition, and more specifically in the language and logic of the gospel narratives rather than the subtle apologetics of the Pauline and Pastoral epistles. I make this point here in a conference committed to fresh theological reflection on the place of diaconia within the Church because this shift of focus from dogma to narrative, from abstract and conceptual to historical and personal means that diaconal values will less and less be perceived as marginal to the church but rather central to the very self understanding of the Church.

A Church which is incarnational, narrative based and relational in its focus will of necessity be less concerned about status (who it is) and more concerned about service (what it is for). It will be less preoccupied with the notion of occupying space ( possessive power) and more concerned about transforming relationships (liberating power). It will pay less attention to questions of form and structure and more to questions of essential purpose and meaning, it will be more provisional than absolute in its statements about what it means to be the church. A church whose self-understanding is defined more by its sense of purpose than by its privileged status is a church where the diaconal perspective is a core value, a central dynamic.

So to repeat my thesis which is also my bias: In the climate and culture of post-modern Europe, the relational covenant based language of the Judeo-Christian tradition is more appropriate than the universal abstract language of the Ancient Greek world. This means that Gospel narrative rather than epistle apologetics offers more fruitful sources for finding appropriate language and metaphors to describe the nature and purpose of the Church for the times in which we now live.

II Some ecumenical implications arising from the above

The metaphor of the Church as the Body of Christ, and the Apostle Paul’s vision inherent in this metaphor for UNITY has been and still is the enduring inspiration for the Ecumenical movement. This is not to deny that many other texts inform and explicate the vision of unity. Philip Potter’s sermon on living stones in Vancouver, and Konrad Raiser’s emphasis upon the Household of God are cases in point. My point is that in all of these texts UNITY is the central motif.

The danger inherent in this motif, as pointed out by feminist theologian Letty Russel, is that, unity is a slippery word capable of radical deformation. Unity talk can quickly degenerate into uniformity and from there it is but a small step to talk of exclusivity. Contextual theologies have played an important role in resisting this tendency towards uniformity and exclusivity by insisting on a universal gospel finding diverse expressions rooted in particular cultures. The Canberra Assembly gave high profile to the gospel and culture study but the response from many was to marginalise the study and domesticate it by reframing the discussion within the Faith and Order debate about unity in diversity. The emphasis being more to limit diversity and prescribe what constitutes legitimate diversity.

One year before the Canberra Assembly the Faith and Order Commission meeting rolled out its new paradigm for understanding the vision of Unity in diversity...Kononia. This metaphor raised a lot of expectations. It was hoped that this would give new energy and clarity to the ecumenical vision. Whilst gospel and culture language were lost in this process, to the relief of some no doubt, the advocates of ecumenical social thought came to life seizing the potential in the koinoia metaphor for moral debate. A fruitful dialogue under the heading ecclesiology and ethics ensued. It was a radical reflection on the meaning of liturgy after the liturgy and was the place where the now famous language of ecumencial space first emerged.

By the Assembly in Harare this dialogue was showing signs of exhaustion and frustration. Progress was real but being consequent to the discussions was difficult. Ironically the popular appeal, not to say public outcry, from the floor of the assembly for a Churches Decade to Overcome Violence came from a sense that moral talk about the nature of the church must be matched by the moral engagement in the real existing world, in the historical narratives of ordinary people. The Decade, I believe, represents the most serious effot yet since the programme to Overcome Violence to find and adopt a language and logic that will enable the church to realise its vocation.

In her book the Church in the Round, Letty Russell suggests that HOSPITALITY is a more appropriate term than UNITY to describe the nature and vocation of the church . Based on a critique of the doctrine of election which is at the heart of the tradition of the church, she argues our unique identity lies not in our privileged status as the body of Christ, but in our distinct calling to live for and to reach out towards the stranger.

Scripture (OT and NT) is full of scenarios where hospitality is key. But it is the sheer density and centrality of hospitality in Luke’s Gospel which gives weight to the idea that hospitality more than unity takes us into the essence of the church.

III Going beyond words

Eucharistic hospitality has been an unhappy discussion point in ecumenical circles. Some believing it is the end goal and others the starting point. There is no way through this impasse but that shouldn’t stop us from going round it, or coming at it from another angle. A bit of lateral thinking is needed to ensure that from a diaconal perspective the deep significance of hospitality as a metaphor for the church is not lost at this time.

Painters from earliest times have drawn a great deal of inspiration from this theme and very readily draw the connections between eucharistic hospitality and the diversity of God’s community. Through medium of brush on to the centre of the canvass they highlight the chosenness of those who usually are out of the frame and lost from the text.

Let us take a look at three paintings where eucharistic hospitality is the inspiration for human community:

1. The slave girl

The central focus is not the meal or those sitting at the meal but the slave girl, the perceptive one, who understands the importance of the event. Her listening posture, her excitement, is the object of the artist’s attention. Through her, we experience the meal and feel its significance

2. Family preparing meal

The picture on the wall is lived out in the activities of the kitchen...nourishment for the business of living, co-operation in making it happen, interaction, affection , intimacy and diversity of age, gender, ethnicity

3. Journey to the promised land

The central character is a messiah type figure who secures the exodus of her black sister and brother slaves via the underground railway. This meal is a momentary pause in a secret journey from bondage to freedom. It is a Passover type meal.

These pictures are inspired by the eucharistic fellowship without dealing directly with it. They point to something else beyond the Eucharist, or give depth to a moment through its association with the Last Supper. Sacrament is about pointing beyond the actual event to the deeper reality it represents. In each of these meals, we are taken on to a deeper reality of solidarity, nourishment and liberation, which comes through these scenes of hospitality.

My being attracted to the theme of eucharistic hospitality, is because it rehearses God’s story without words. Like paintings it allows words to take a back seat...it side steps ecumenical difficulties and allows the Eucharist to speak for itself.

Sam Richards in an essay entitled "Eucharist as story telling" says this: