Hell?

Does the Church believe in a physical Hell?

On page 862 in the Catechism in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, it asks, "What do we mean by heaven and hell?" The answer is "by heaven, we mean eternal life in our enjoyment of God; by hell, we mean eternal death in our rejection of God."

The way I have always understood "hell" is that it is less of a physical place but more of a state of being (spiritual place) eternally separated from God, described vaguely in the Catechism as eternal death in our rejection of God. Hell is interpreted and understood differently throughout the Church, but all agree that hell is a state of eternal separation from God.

Baptism, Redemption, and Salvation

Does the Episcopal Church believe Baptism is required for redemption?

An explanation of Holy Baptism can be found in our Catechism on pages 858-859 of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. I don't intend to plagiarize, but this response restates some of the Catechism.

Several years ago, I wrote a pamphlet About Baptism, which you can access here.

Holy Baptism is a sacrament, meaning it is an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. Holy Baptism is the sacrament by which God adopts us as his children and makes us members of Christ's Body, the Church, and inheritors of the Kingdom of God. Through Baptism, we share citizenship in the Covenant, membership in Christ, and redemption by God.

For the believer, Baptism is the initiatory rite or way into the community of faith. It's our way of acknowledging what we believe through ritual action as we repent of our sins, renounce evil, and accept Jesus as our Savior. In Baptism, we receive God's spiritual graces (favor), are in union with Christ in his death and resurrection, are forgiven of our sins, and receive new life in the Holy Spirit. 

The Episcopal Church follows the ancient tradition of baptizing infants so they, too, can share citizenship in the Covenant, membership in Christ, and redemption by God. In the case of infant Baptism, parents and sponsors make the vows on behalf of the infant and take on the responsibility of raising the child in a life of faith.

Jesus did the redeeming work (Ephesians 1:7, Titus 2:14, etc). Redemption is ours for the asking (Romans 10:13, Acts 2:21). If we genuinely believe, turn to God, and repent of our sins, then we are redeemed and restored to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Baptism is the logical next step (Acts 2:38-41), which joins us with the body of believers that can help us grow in faith and live out the Covenant. So, one should not need Baptism to be redeemed, but one should be baptized as a sign of redemption, and claim their rightful place among the baptized believers who have received redemption through Jesus.

There's another way to think about Baptism and redemption. Suppose we take the account from scripture of the thief on the cross who repented and asked Jesus to remember him when he came into his kingdom. Jesus assured him he would be with him in paradise (Luke 23:42-43). Hanging on a cross next to Jesus, the thief didn't benefit from being part of a covenantal faith community, nor was he baptized, but he received complete redemption.

Do you have to be baptized to go to heaven?

I discuss Baptism in the above question. As stated above, Baptism is the response to faith. As Christians, faith in Jesus as Lord is what our eternal salvation is based on. God's grace through our faith is what redeems us (Ephesians 2:8-9). There is no hard and fast rule that one must be baptized to spend eternity with our Creator.

Evil & God's Intervention

There is so much evil, hatred, disregard of the laws/Constitution now in this country – why does God not intervene?

I want to break this down so I can consider what you’re asking. Sometimes, it’s better for me to define things as I go, to let you know how I’m thinking about them.

Evil can be defined as those things that draw us from God’s love or seek to destroy God’s creatures. Evil has always been and is in society. It strives for power and drives us apart by highlighting our differences and instilling fear between us. Sometimes humans do evil things, but I refuse to believe that humans are inherently evil. Evil can cause hatred brought on by fear. We are often afraid of and condemn what we don't understand or what we can't control. The early church tried to help by identifying the “seven deadly sins” to help us recognize the presence of evil. They are: gluttony, lust, greed, envy, wrath, sloth, and pride. These things are diametrically opposed to the love and grace we have received from God in Jesus Christ.

As far as the disregard for laws and the Constitution in this country, there is another layer. The principles of the Constitution include checks and balances, individual rights, liberty, limited government, natural rights theory, republican government, and popular sovereignty. While the framers included the basics in September 1787, those ideas were debated until it was ratified in June 1788. This included the first 10 articles we know as the “Bill of Rights.” Over the years, the Constitution has been amended to reflect a greater embrace of the people it governs, starting with an understanding of the need for certain freedoms, such as religion, speech, and assembly. These amendments began in 1791 and continue today. I would almost say that the amendments adding the abolition of slavery in 1865, women’s right to vote in 1920, and equal rights (proposed in 1971 – not yet ratified) express a broader embrace of our freedoms and rights under the Constitution. Laws are ways of enforcing the Constitution and should help us live peacefully in a well-governed and well-maintained civil society. The Constitution is only as good a document as those willing to live by it and defend it. I’m not sure why there is such disregard for the established and proven norms that govern our society.

To your overall question, I think that’s where evil comes in. Evil wants division and hatred. Evil thrives in chaos and dysfunction. Evil destroys the people of God, having them turn on each other. Sometimes this evil is caused by whoever is in power. Sometimes it's perpetuated by others. I personally feel that, whatever it is, we, as a people, have the power to stop it.

The litmus test I use when trying to view any situation through a Christian lens is “if it’s not of love, it’s not of God.” I ask myself, “Where do I see unity, equity, respect, dignity, and restoration?” Where is God in the context of all the chaos? The presence of God may come to us through a situation or a person. Mr. Rogers, of “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood,” told the children, “In the middle of all the bad stuff happening around you, look for the helpers.”

I think that brings us to the final part of your question: Why doesn’t God intervene? God’s ways are not our ways. We shouldn’t think of God as a genie that grants us wishes, and we shouldn’t think of God as a puppet master manipulating situations on earth. We should remember that as Christians, we are referred to as the “body of Christ” (1 Corinthians 12).

It was St. Teresa of Ávila (1515-1582) who is credited with this excellent thought: 

Christ has no body but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

Compassion on this world,

Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good,

Yours are the hands, with which he blesses all the world.

Yours are the hands, yours are the feet,

Yours are the eyes, you are his body.

Christ has no body now but yours,

No hands, no feet on earth but yours,

Yours are the eyes with which he looks

Compassion on this world.

Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

We are Christ’s body. We are how God intervenes. We are the helpers. We are the ones who can advocate for love and good. We are the followers of Christ who serve each other and care for one another. Optimistically, as the body of Christ, we can be the beacon of hope in a broken world where evil and hatred exist.

Politics and the Church

Why does church have to be political?

Our lives begin to end 
the day we become silent
about things that matter.
- The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

There is a definition: “The Church is not a building; it is the people.” You can’t have a church, a gathering of the ἐκκλησία (Ekklesia) or what the New Testament calls "Church," without a gathering of believers. Over time, the building became synonymous with the gathering of the people that met there.

Therefore, by nature, the people gathered as the Church have concerns about their daily life and work and how their faith may inform such work. As students of Jesus, what we learn in Church about how Jesus taught us to be, do, and act helps us establish our social ethics. Our social ethic bleeds over all aspects of our lives as followers and informs all our decisions and behavior. Our behavior as disciples and followers of Jesus shows the world what we believe. 

The image of Jesus we have become comfortable with over the years is apart from the concerns of government or apolitical. Therefore, folks have said that the Church should not be political. However, Jesus was deeply concerned with the agenda of politics and issues related to power, status, and right relationships, so much so that it is the primary reason he was put to death by the state. 

Jesus challenged King Herod’s authority and Pilate and the Roman government’s authority. He also challenged religious authority but always advocated for the outcasts of society. Jesus led by serving and called us into the right relationship by serving one another.

As followers of Jesus, we are to be concerned for those on the margins of society, those that society has shunned or forgotten, whom Jesus calls “the least of these” (Matthew 25). Our values propagate through the society in which we function. If our society or government is causing harm to other human beings, regardless of who they are, then it is antithetical to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

In our baptismal covenant (BCP 304), we make promises to seek and serve Christ in ALL persons and love our neighbor as ourselves. ALL means EVERYONE! Jesus gives us many examples in scripture about how we are to care for everyone, including the stranger. The parable of the Good Samaritan is probably the most challenging (Luke 10). We also promise to strive for justice and peace among all people and respect the dignity of every human being. As Christians, we are not vigilantes but strive for justice for others through the social systems in place. Being political (or functioning within the polis) is how we can act. Sometimes, this action is with our vote, and sometimes, it is by peaceful protest of oppressive decisions made by the government.

The politics of Jesus are messy and sometimes unpopular and uncomfortable, especially if the politics of Jesus don’t align with how we decided to vote. Jesus is very political. In turn, the Church is political. However, Jesus was never partisan. Likewise, the Church should never be partisan. The Church, advocating for justice and peace, sometimes seems partisan when we view the issues through a gospel lens, and they align with a particular party’s platform. That doesn’t make the Church apolitical or apathetic to the decisions made in society by governments.

The Christian Church should teach and live Jesus. The Church should never address a party or platform but should address the issues and fears of the people to help them view the world we live in through a gospel lens. This is how the Church is political. It may be uncomfortable, but it’s well within the scope of acting out our faith in the public square.

References: 

NRSV Translation of the Bible.

Book of Common Prayer 1979.

Yoder, John Howard. The Politics of Jesus, 2nd Edition. Grand Rapids, MI: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1994.

The Episcopal Church (part of the Anglican Communion, the world’s 3rd largest body of Christians) is publicly active through the Episcopal Public Policy Network (EPPN). They present the Church’s view on issues worldwide and give you a chance to lend your voice by contacting your elected representatives. You can sign up to get alerts in your email. Their website is here: https://www.episcopalchurch.org/ministries/office-government-relations/eppn-sign-up/