Congregationalism
Congregationalism is a Christian movement, inspired by Calvinist , born in England in the second half of the sixteenth century. He then firmly established in North America from the seventeenth century. Congregationalism is a form of ecclesial governance which is widespread in many Protestant denominations, we can talk about governance Congregationalist churches.
Summary |
History
Defenders of Congregationalism claim that the origins of this system of governance back to the early church of the Christian church . Such writings laid the groundwork for governance Congregational Church type, although Landeskirchen Lutheran themselves had not introduced this type of governance . Then from the Anabaptist movement of reform Zwingli in Zurich may have practiced a form of Congregationalism without this aspect of their theology a battlefield . Congregationalist movement as we know it today was born of the movement itself Puritan , which was itself diverse within the Anglican Church from the early seventeenth century. These are the founding fathers of the English colonies in America who brought with them in New England this system of governance of the Church. The Baptist churches that were born among the English emigrants in the Netherlands, in England and the English colonies in America in the seventeenth century have also adopted Congregationalism.
The foundation of this doctrine is attributed to the English theologian Robert Brown (1550-1633). Browne and his entourage first Congregationalists, develop the idea that the church must be founded by an alliance (in English a covenant, a term that refers to the covenant in the biblical sense of the term) explicitly passed by individuals who 's felt touched by grace, a Calvinistic perspective.
Congregationalism is thus based on an ecclesiology contractarian, and democratic, in that it postulates that the church must be formed by the consent of the Christians, and that within it the congregation is the only source of power ( According to the revealed word of God).
We can trace the idea of a training contract from the church to several sources subsequent to the Reformation , including the Anabaptists of Bohemia in the years 1520 and 1530, the divines of the faculty of Heidelberg in the 1560s, the theologian English William Perkins from the 1570s, and the Scottish theologians in the second half of the sixteenth century.
Robert Browne is the first Englishman to openly challenge the legitimacy of the Anglican doctrine, and to advocate for true Christians separation of the Anglican Church , followed by the formation of a congregation on a contractual basis. The first congregation was formed and by Browne and a handful of his faithful, to Norwich in 1581. Browne, originally named pastor of the Anglican Church in 1579 at Cambridge , was then forced to flee with his faithful principal, Robert Harrison , in Middelburg , the Netherlands.
Browne and Harrison publish from Middelburg , from 1582, a series of books, including their main work A Treatise for Reform Without Tarrying for Any, published in 1583 under the mantle, who can be held for the founding manifesto of Congregationalism. Browne returned to England in 1584. He was excommunicated from the Anglican Church in 1586, but finally cease all dissident activity, and ended his life in England with discretion.
Browne's ideas are spreading, however, first in England. They are essentially taken over by Henry Barrow and John Greenwood , who in 1588 published The True and False Church Church virulent challenge of the Anglican Church. It is remarkable that the book was published in England secretly while Barrow and Greenwood have been imprisoned since 1587. They are executed in 1593.
Anglican monarchical repression and prevents the end of the sixteenth century the development of Congregationalism in England. So the Netherlands that this doctrine takes off. First with the works of Francis Johnson and Henry Ainsworth , two English exiles in the Netherlands , including A Confession of Faith of the People Called Brownists, published in 1596.
But mostly due to the English clergyman John Robinson (1576-1626), and its exiled English congregation in Leiden , for allowing the development of Congregationalism in North America. That some members of the congregation in Leiden in 1620 who sailed aboard the Mayflower , bound for the North America , where she founded a famous social contract, the Mayflower Compact, the colony of New Plymouth.
In 1628, there were other Congregationalists, led by John Winthrop , who leave England to found the colony of Massachusetts. It is dominated in the early years by the famous Congregationalist minister John Cotton. In 1636, parishioners of the Congregational minister Thomas Hooker left the Massachusetts , and founded the nearby settlement of Connecticut. Hooker and his congregation in 1639 adopted the first constitution written in North America, the Fundamental Orders of Connecticut.
First Congregational authors
- Robert Brown
- Robert Harrison
- Henry Barrow
- Francis Johnson
- Henry Ainsworth
- John Robinson
- John Cotton
- Thomas Hooker
- Cotton Mather
Congregationalism as a form of church governance
Congregationalism is a form of ecclesial governance practiced by many Christian churches. In this system of governance, human decision-making sovereignty resides in last place at the local congregation. The congregation, mostly defined as individuals with freely chosen to be part of the local church by a public process, has the right and power to decide on matters of any kind on its management and in particular on issues personnel, funding, doctrine and church practices in general .
Congregationalism created so ecclesial independence for the local church vis--vis other bodies such as church denominations or other local churches. This model of church governance is not monolithic and it lends itself to flexibility, it can be done in different ways depending on the circumstances of the local church: some churches advocate total independence vis--vis any other group or ecclesiastical authority, while others choose the path of interdependence and associate freely with other local churches in a confessional-type training in order to pool resources and encourage an attitude of mutual brotherhood and Reciprocal protective vigilance.
Within the local church itself, the human decision-making authority lies with the congregation, but that does not coexistence of other decision-making structures such as a pastor or a board of pastors (elders) and deacons, the latter being last subject to decisions of the congregation.
Within Christianity, Congregationalism is distinguished from Episcopal governance systems and presbytro-synodal. In the episcopal system, a local church is subject to the authority of a hierarchy of bishops and, in the system presbytro-Synodal local church delegates at a synod of Representatives, this Synod may exercise authority over local churches.
Biblical foundations of Congregationalism
Defenders of Congregationalism use a variety of New Testament texts to support this system of governance Church: Mt 18:15-20, Acts 6.3; 13.2-3, 15.22, 1 Cor 5.2; 2 Cor 2 6 , Ga 1, 1 Th 5.21
Among the evangelists Matthew is the only one to relate a conversation in which Jesus describes the process to be followed in case of sin within the Christian community (Matthew 18:15-20). The discipline process described seems to be communal in nature and it appears to require the agreement of all members of a church (Mt 18.17) and the church to which the text refers seems to be a local church. Several texts in the Acts of the Apostles seem to give the local church as a local body the right to choose their leaders and their representatives (Acts 6:3; 13.2-3, 15,22). In the writings of the Apostle Paul to the Corinthian church, Paul instructs the church to exercise entire local Church's discipline (1 Cor 2 Cor 5.2 & 2.6). In his first letter to the Thessalonians the apostle Paul exhorts the local church to test prophecies, the task is not restricted to ministers only. Similarly, in Galatians 1 Paul uses the whole church to be responsible for the education they receive and reject all teaching contrary to the gospel he himself had previously preached among them.
Congregational churches in French-speaking Europe
In France , Belgium and Switzerland churches practicing Congregationalism are most often Protestant evangelical churches , although Congregationalism is not practiced by all evangelical Protestant churches. On the world stage, Congregationalism is particularly present in the Pentecostal movement, which is booming in Africa and Latin America.
References
- CO OWEN NORMAN & RS (Editors), Perspectives on Church Government - Five Views on Church polity, Broadman and Holman, Nashville, 2004, p.172.
- M. Luther, Works, Volume IV, a meeting or Christian community has the right and power to try all doctrines, call, install and remove the preachers. , Labor et Fides, Geneva, 1958, p.84.
- a and b CO OWEN NORMAN & RS (Editors), Perspectives on Church Government - Five Views on Church polity, Broadman and Holman, Nashville, 2004, p. 174.
- CO OWEN NORMAN & RS (Editors), Perspectives on Church Government - Five Views on Church polity, Broadman and Holman, Nashville, 2004, p.157.
- CO OWEN NORMAN & RS (Editors), Perspectives on Church Government - Five Views on Church polity, Broadman and Holman, Nashville, 2004, cf. p.159-169.
See also
Bibliography
- Henry Barrow , The Writings of Henry Barrow, G. Allen and Unwin Ltd.., 1966. The True and False Church Church (1588), with John Greenwood, in The Writings of John Greenwood, Together With The Writings of Henry Barrow Seal and John Greenwood, 1587-1590, ed. Leland H. Carson, G. Allen and Unwin Ltd.., 1962.
- Robert Browne and Robert Harrison, The Writings of Robert Harrison and Robert Browne, ed. A. Peel and L. Carson, London, 1953.
- Champlin Burrage, The Early Franais Dissenters, 2 vols. Cambridge University Press, 1912.
- Jean Delumeau and Thierry Wanegffelen , Birth and affirmation of the Reformation, Presses Universitaires de France, 1965.
- HM Dexter, Congregationalism of the Last Three Hundred Years, as seen in literature icts, London, Hodder and Stoughton, 1880.
Related articles
| Origin and Background | Christianity Augustine of Hippo Reformation John Calvin Five Solas Synod of Dort |  |
| Features | Five Points Theology of the alliance Principle regulator of worship | |
| Documents | Institutes of the Christian religion Confessions Geneva Bible | |
| Influences | Theodore Beza John Knox Ulrich Zwingli Jonathan Edwards Princeton Theologians | |
| Churches | Reformed Presbyterian Congregational Reformed Baptist Low Church Anglican | |
| Peoples | Afrikaners Huguenot Puritans Pilgrims Scottish | |
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