new church life: september/october 2017
of external behavior – so important in the Israelitish church – but the order
needed for acting in freedom according to reason – things protected under
the first law of Divine providence. So priests are charged with compelling no
one’s belief, and leaving in peace those who do not disturb the church. He cited
Bishop Willard Pendleton as saying that one of his key jobs was protecting the
freedom of the church.
Among his main points was that the laity of the church will feel engaged
in and supportive of the church when they have ample opportunity to
exercise their freedom and rationality in church matters. He gave examples
of when doctrine clearly requires a priest to limit the possibility of laymen
introducing disorder into the church, and examples of less clear doctrinal
application where what would be gained by insisting on following the priest’s
understanding would be more than lost by suppressing the freedom of the laity
to take initiative according to their best understanding. For discussion, he left
us with three models of governance with varying types of lay involvement.
In his prepared response, the Rev. Lawson M. Smith acknowledged
that the loves of dominion and the pride of one’s own intelligence have
destroyed all previous churches, but pointed out that hellish loves work by
means of falsified truths. He emphasized the need to teach genuine truths,
and not to substitute the commandments of men for what the Lord says. He
recommended simplifying the roles and responsibilities of the clergy to reduce
the opportunity for dominion.
Following a period of small group discussion, time remained for seven
individual responses, several of which noted the need for good communication
in our changing times, in which lay individuals expect more “say” in church
matters but have less time to read and reflect on the Word.
Abhorring Evil
The Rev. Derek P. Elphick introduced the second speaker of the morning, the
Rev. Bradley D. Heinrichs, and his topic: “Abhorring Evil in a Tolerant World.”
Brad set the stage by citing contemporary studies which identified tolerance
as the new “religion,” while caring and fairness are the only moral values
acknowledged by many. In spite of such trends, the Lord urges us to battle
evil, look it in the face, see that it is infernal and horrible, and not only shun
it but feel averse to it and at last abhor it. (See Doctrine of Life 95) He teaches
us that evils are not without consequence, but contagious. (See True Christian
Religion 120:2)
Brad said that while we are tending to those in disorder, trying not to
offend them, simple people are getting lost, spiritually. They are easily misled
by the appearance that falsity is truth and evil good, and think they are doing
good when they are actually aiding evil. He raised the question of what the
398