When "church" isn't church anymore.

After much thought and several Facebook post, I've taken the conversation to a better format. Facebook just isn't that agile when it comes to full-blown conversations.

The "conversation" (actually many post and conversations) is about something I love very, very much- the church.

Just mentioning "church" can be controversial and confusing given how its meaning has been twisted and redefined since the 3rd century. So, let's start with that- what is "church"?

"Church" (as defined in the Christian/New Testament) is the "community of Christ followers" also known as "the body of Christ". It is through this community that Jesus continues to do his work through both corporately as church and also through individual members of the church. It is a "family" who go through life together and care for one another as a family should.

What the church is NOT is a building, complex, basilica, campus, temple, cathedral or any other kind of physical, earthly structure. It is not made of brick, wood, drywall or concrete- it is made of people. It's not a corporation or a business or a exclusive country club- even though they operate that way.

Since the 3rd century, "church" has been redefined and remade by human (and mostly pagan) hands. It's biblical definition and role recast by Greco-Roman pagan religion and philosophy, emperors and kings, popes and reformers, revivalists and evangelists, along with several centuries of man-inspired tradition.

Church from the 3rd century onward has little in common with the community of believers we see in the Christian/New Testament. And we have been dealing with consequences ever since- the fracturing of the church into denominations, the division of the body into clergy and laity, a culture that breeds passivity in the pews and entertainment at the pulpit, church ministry programs, programmed worship.... the list goes on and on.
   
Why does "church" today look so radically different? Why are we doing all these  rituals, rites, traditions, formats and programs that have NO scriptural support whatsoever? What happened? Why do we continue to do all these things- and never ask why?

Maybe it is time we start asking- but I'm not sure we will be happy with the answers we get.