St. Basil Greek Orthodox Church

Highest and Best Use (of the Church?)

Last Monday at our parish council meeting we spent some time at the end of our meeting talking about what the church is called to be/do.  I offered six thoughts in response to this question which I’d like to share with the parish at large.  They are:

1. Local – the church is a local manifestation of Christ (i.e. the people we are called to serve (primarily) are those geographically near the church);
2. A place of fellowship – the friendships and relationships we create through the church should be different than those in the world – since we have Christ as the foundation of those relationships;
3. A place of service – “for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink….  Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family,  you did it to me” (Matt. 25:35, 40);
4. A place of discipleship – A disciple is a follower.  So discipleship is the process of our becoming better and better followers of Jesus Christ – through education/worship/service (in some sense it’s all of the items on this list actively growing and operating in our lives);
5. A place of worship – The sacramental life is what connects us to Jesus Christ – and it’s something we can only get through the church and our active and regular participation in its life.  It is to our soul what blood and oxygen are to our body;
6. A place of outreach/evangelism/missions – Healthy organisms are growing organisms.  Our Lord is very clear that his followers are to “be witnesses to [Him] in Jerusalem [i.e. in our neighborhood], and in all Judea and Samaria [throughout America?], and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

No doubt as we read through this list we feel more comfortable with some of these items and less comfortable with others.  But, for a parish to be truly healthy, it has to have all of these things operating in a healthy way – the church is simply the sum of the parts.  To omit a part (or to do it very poorly) is to reduce the health of the church.

As you read this I would challenge you to ask yourself what you think about each of these items – are they a part of your own walk with God?  If not, why not?

I hope to expand on each of these points in the weeks ahead through short articles.  I invite you to (and very much hope you will) join me on the journey.  God bless.

- offered by Fr. Panteleimon Dalianis