Replying to Nobody

I agree whole heartedly. There's efforts in my country to compel churches to allow anyone to be hired, even those who aren't adhering to Christian principles. Firstly, I'm not really sure why such a person would want to work for the church...

But a more interesting point is that political parties are allowed to descriminate between who has the right political views to be employed in the service of the party and who doesn't when hiring. And to my mind, what the church does is no different, you hire for belief in the organisation, so it shouldn't be made an object of politics.

But your quote also mentions the difference between hiring and being a member, and any church that discriminates when people who don't look like everyone else show up is also in the wrong.
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Dikaios1517 1y ago

Yes, it certainly has multiple applications. There are four things going on here:

1. Church Offices, such as Pastor, Elder, and Deacon, which must adhere to the system of doctrine the denomination believes the Bible teaches.

2. Church employees, which are not office holders, but who the church ought to be able to hire or not hire based upon how closely that church believes they ought to adhere to the system of doctrine.

3. Church membership, which is formally coming under the authority of a particular church, and the only requirement is a credible profession of faith.

4. Attendance at a particular church without membership, which ought not to be barred for anyone, regardless of what they believe. However, this does not necessarily apply to what they look like, or rather how they present themselves. If someone shows up in their birthday suit, they're getting turned away, sorry.

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Nobody 1y ago

Okay fair... But if someone is out in public in their birthday suit they'd also be arrested for indecent exposure if they went to a shopping centre rather than a church.

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Dikaios1517 1y ago

Very true!

There is certainly some room for discretion when it comes to folks who are actively belligerent, drunk, high, or otherwise presenting themselves in a way that would be an undue distraction for those who came to worship.

But this comes down to recognizing the purpose of Sunday worship. It is not for public outreach. It is for the saints to worship their God as he has called them to, and to fellowship with and build one another up.

When doing outreach ministry, one should absolutely expect to encounter folks of all stripes, and probably keep the young children at home with a babysitter.

d7
Nobody 1y ago

That was well articulated.