[Propertalk] The Sunday after All Saints' Day - Part One

[Robert P Morrison]

Here's the first part of my draft for this coming Sunday. During the
liturgy we remember by name all those whom the congregation wishes to
add to our prayers. The list this year extends to about 175 names!
This is still open for revision, of course.
Happy All Saints' Day!
Bob

	THE EPISCOPAL CHURCH OF ST. ALBAN, ALBANY  THE SUNDAY AFTER ALL
SAINTS’ DAY 

	REVELATION 7:9-17  5th NOVEMBER, 2017 

	1 JOHN 3:1-3   PSALM 34:1-10, 22 

	MATTHEW 5:1-12 

	 Chapter Two: “Loving your Neighbour: The Saga Continues” –
with thanks to Deacon Peggy. 

	 I’m sure you’re familiar with the saying about learning from
history, so I offer you, for this celebration on the Sunday after All
Saints’ Day, two stories. There may be one or two historical terms,
but I think their meaning will become clear as we go along. 

	 “In 391/2, Aurelius, the new Catholic Bishop of Carthage, had the
qualities of an organizer, and he was blessed with longevity, which
enabled him to guide the Catholic Church in Africa on a continuous
course until the Vandal invasion. Above all, he had the friendship and
loyal support of one of the outstanding men in human history,
Augustine, Bishop of Hippo.” 1 

	 This first story is about Augustine. 

	 The Donatist controversy had its roots in events before
Augustine’s birth, but its significance was, and remains, extremely
telling.  It “should not be underestimated. For an entire century it
split the church in North Africa into two hostile camps. The schism
concerned the purity of the church, the administration of church
discipline, and the administration of the sacraments. In other words,
the theological issues centered around … the doctrine of the church.
However, … this was a controversy that involved not only the church,
but also the secular authorities and the relationship between the two,
including the place of temporal force in church discipline.” 2 

	 The problem arose when the Emperor, unsympathetic to Christianity,
harassed and threatened bishops, priests and laity unless they gave up
not only their faith, but also handed over their books, their papers
and their church furnishings – the holy hardware and clothing. 

	 Both clergy and laity were put in a bind. They were threatened with
severe reprisals if they didn’t obey the emperor and the government.
They could lose their lives. So, some gave in under duress. Those who
didn’t cave in or compromise were called confessors – they held to
the faith as they had been taught and as they understood it.  

	 “However, not all in the church embraced the attitude of the
_confessors_. Some were willing to compromise their faith to varying
degrees in order to preserve themselves and their way of life. Some of
those fled out of fear and abandoned the faith. They became known as
_the lapsed_. Still others, principally those in the ranks of the
clergy, shrank back under the persecution and surrendered the
Scriptures to their persecutors. This earned them the ignominious
title of _traditors _(_traditio_, “handing over”). Not
surprisingly, the _confessors _viewed the _lapsed _and the _traditors
_as cowards and traitors, unworthy of a place in the church. 

	 “In North Africa, tensions such as those between the _confessors
_and the _traditors _came to a head in the diocese of Carthage.” 3 

	 Eventually a man named Donatus became bishop of and for the
confessors in Carthage. It was from his name that those who agreed
with him were given the name Donatists. 

	 This meant that there were two groups within the church in North
Africa. 

	 “From a theological perspective, the issues between the two
parties concerned differences regarding the doctrine of the church.
The Donatists maintained the pure church ideal. On that basis, they
contended that the _lapsed _and _traditors_ 

	had no place in the church; some even going so far as to contend that
the _lapsed _should be forever barred from rejoining the church.
Others allowed for their reinstatement, but contended that before they
could be reinstated, they had to be rebaptized. Likewise, the
Donatists maintained that _traditors _by their actions forfeited their
offices; for them to be reinstated to office, they had to be
rebaptized and re-ordained. They also maintained that any
ecclesiastical functions purportedly performed by _traditors _were
invalid. It followed that baptisms and ordinations performed by those
identified as _traditors _were not recognized. 

	 “The Donatists proceeded from an ideal and spiritualistic
conception of the church. They considered themselves to be the only
true and pure church. …. The true church for the Donatists was, in
effect, a body which was already holy, or at least had the appearance
of being so.” 4 

	 The emperor by this time was sympathetic to Christianity. In fact,
the emperor was Constantine, who, eventually, ruled that Christianity
was to be the official religion of the empire. But WHICH Christianity?


	 Constantine “urged the Catholic Church to patience and indulgence.
However, patience and indulgence were in short supply.” 

	 After Augustine’s ordination in the catholic church, that part
deemed orthodox, he became involved in the controversy in a community
where people of both church parties lived and worked side by side in
Hippo, a city and region in modern-day Algeria. 

	 Augustine argued that “within that one church there were two
realities, the visible church and the invisible church; the visible
church being the institutional body established by Christ on earth
appointed to proclaim the gospel and to administer the sacraments; the
invisible being the body of the elect, made up of genuine believers
from all ages and who are known only unto God. … 

	 “Augustine …taught that the church was holy, in principle, and
that it (existed) in and through Jesus Christ.” 5 

	 This last idea is important. Augustine said that it was in and
through Jesus that faith was developed, and that we were and are
sanctified, made holy, made saints. 


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