Overcoming the scandal of division

Throughout the ages, Christians have been more divided than united. Power struggles, differences on points of theology and sometimes pure expediency have led to the formation of new denominations and micro churches.

To many outside the Church, and within, the followers of Christ have acquired a negative image of in-fighting and disarray.

Successive popes have referred to the “scandal of Christian division” and the Catholic Church is working with other churches to bring about a greater level of unity. Pope John Paul II reminded the Catholic faithful to work for unity in his 1995 encyclical Ut unum sint (“That They May Be One”) in which he wrote: “At the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church committed herself irrevocably to following the path of the ecumenical venture.”

But what happens on the ground when you work towards unity, when you work towards coming closer, instead of moving further apart? Christian unity — if not structural, then by cooperating with a shared faith and common purpose — brings people closer to God and his kingdom. And that is, after all, the point of being a Christian.

There is also an element of collaboration between Christians helping the people of God in this life.

“There is so much pain and suffering and inequality in our society and in our world — we really don’t have the time or the luxury to do it ourselves in our own peculiar way.” This notion is shared by many who believe that it is far easier to find similarities between our Christian denominations than differences. Potential relationships between churches, in that view, can bring about positive change in our world.

Rev Suzanne Peterson is the public policy and advocacy officer for the Anglican archdiocese of Cape Town. She believes that our witness as people of faith is often seen as stronger and even more authentic when we can work together.

“We have our differences and we need to acknowledge them, but we can also be agents of encouragement and change when we can work together,” she says.

Dominee Francois Neethling of the Dutch Reformed Church in Durban believes there are huge benefits to Christians working together on many different levels. “We can be more effective in our work,” he says.

“Shared resources, shared energy and ideas—all these broaden our spectrum and help us to reach a greater understanding of life and therefore we can do more. We can learn from one another”, says the dominee, who is also an executive committee member of the Diakonia Council of Churches, an ecumenical movement in KwaZulu-Natal founded by the late Archbishop Denis Hurley. “By working together as a group, we can multiply our effectiveness.”

Dominee Neethling says his experience in working with other Christians has “honestly enriched my life”. He says when Christians come together, instead of focusing on differences, similarities are easily identified and “we lead on our shared values of love, forgiveness and charity”.

Once we have discovered our similarities, he says, Christians find it easy to respect their differences. “The moment you start to interact with others, you gain respect for them.”

Rev Peterson agrees: “I believe that more unites us as human beings, seeing ourselves created in the image of God, than divides us.” She believes that we are called to work for “the common good—not only as articulated in Catholic social teaching, but also in response to the command of Jesus to love one another as Jesus showed love for the world and humanity”.

Fr Stanley Botha of Our Lady of the Assumption parish in Brooklyn/Milnerton, Cape Town, says we actually have no choice in whether we want to work with each other — “it is the Lord’s command” that we do so (Jn 17:21). And, the priest says, it’s easy to work with each other and the benefits are vast: the Church serves its community, but the community is better served when Christians serve it together.

Fr Botha has been involved in ecumenical efforts in Milnerton for 20 years. For the past 15 years of these, Fr Botha and other religious leaders in his community have come together for a week of unity in which they live together and attend services at each other’s churches. “We bond easily, we love one another,” he says.

“Respect is grown out of time spent together. You can’t love what you don’t know — you have to develop a taste for it,” the priest says. “We find we are so close to one another.”

Fr Botha says the Church could be torn apart by in-fighting and worrying about conservative or progressive movements. “The Church needs to pull together — just as all Christians need to pull together.” He believes looking inward can be destructive to those already in the Church and those who might one day join. Instead, looking to our neighbours helps us to be a community. “We need be a Church for the community, not a cultic church.”

Rev Peterson considers herself lucky because her work includes many ecumenical and inter-faith areas where the focus is mainly on making life better, especially for those who suffer most in our society — addressing issues of sanitation, education, anti-corruption, housing, and encouraging people to be more involved themselves.  “We are all called to do our part. I have learned so much and met such amazing people who are deeply committed to ecumenical and inter-faith work and witness—I’m really fortunate and blessed in that regard,” the Anglican cleric said.

Rev Ian Booth of United Congregational Church of Southern Africa (UCCSA), chairman of Diakonia, believes denominational differences are becoming increasingly less important for the modern generation. “They are deciding whether or not to be Christian or Buddhist or Muslim or Hindu, rather than whether to be Congregationalist or Methodist or Catholic”.

“The important thing is the degree of Christian service that is offered and the degree of justice that is evident in that service — for more than which denomination is offering it,” he says.

Rev Booth, who is also the CEO of Durban’s YMCA, says that working with other Christians means gaining different perspectives on what we’re doing. “The more we work together the more easily we find similarities”, he says. “In fact some close friendships grow between people from different denominations as they discover how much they do have in common.”

He adds that working together also portrays an image of Christian unity to the broader community. “It helps to break down suspicion and prejudice among different denominations as we learn to trust one another, and realise that our similarities are greater than our differences, and we can achieve far more together than we each can individually.”

Many lay people adopt a similar philosophy. Hlawulani Mkhabela, a member of Bryanston’s Methodist church in Johannesburg, says: “Since we believe in the same thing, it just makes sense to come together. When we put together our beliefs and thoughts, we find the same themes underlie our practices. The concept of the power of love itself implies coming together.”

Dominee Neethling similarly believes that there is a negative perception of Christians among a growing population, and conflict between Christians discourages people from turning to Christ. “Strong in-fighting undermines our effectiveness in doing what we were meant to do: evangelise,” he says. “How can you spread love if you don’t love one another? We cannot afford to fight about nonsense.”

Fr Botha says if we spend too much time on ourselves and put ecumenical activities on hold, divisions will be found in the Church and Catholics will move away from the Church. “There are so many benefits to being outward looking,” he says.

“When we work together, the possibilities are endless,” says Ms Mkhabela, who is involved in a non-profit organisation that helps to contribute to the education of children in communities through their churches and schools. “When you start operating with something more than material things in mind, you operate with love. We need more of it in general.”

Dominee Neethling says the impact his relatively small church has been able to make in the community was made possible through their ecumenical work.

This is amplified when there is some structural unity. “The impact we make as the Diakonia Council of Churches is significant,” the dominee says.

He adds that his involvement has contributed to personal growth. “The moment you get active in faith, you grow in faith. Differences are not a concern,” he says. We are Christians—we are the same.

“You cannot be a church if you are only interested in yourself.”