Why do we have a Church Federation?

Rev. Kampen grounds the federation of churches in what we confess about the one catholic Christian church and the communion of saints. He then shows where the federation shapes the life of a congregation and the work of a consistory, and offers a practical introduction to classis for elders attending for the first time.

Outline

The scriptural and confessional basis

• Unity is first of all spiritual. Ephesians 4 speaks of the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace: one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism. Over against Rome’s emphasis on visible structure, the Belgic Confession (Article 27) and the Heidelberg Catechism (Lord’s Day 21) describe a church united in the true faith.
• The church is catholic. Christ gathers his church from all times, places and nations. Psalm 87 enrols even Israel’s old enemies among the citizens of Zion, and Christ speaks of one flock under one shepherd as Jews and Gentiles are joined into one new community.
• The communion of saints. Union with Christ binds believers to one another. As members of one body they serve and are served, and they live under mutual accountability (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12; Belgic Confession, Article 28).
• From the local church to the federation. Scripture shows the churches acting as one. Israel’s twelve tribes had a single sanctuary, the church in Jerusalem sent apostles to Samaria, the decision of the Jerusalem council was carried to all the churches, and Paul’s letters were exchanged between Colossae and Laodicea.
• A covenant between churches. The word federation comes from the Latin word for covenant. Churches bind themselves together voluntarily, yet under a spiritual obligation, in order to serve and be served, just as believers do within a congregation.
• Neither hierarchy nor independentism. An independent church acts like an island. It withholds its gifts from other churches, escapes their accountability, and leaves itself open to domination by one minister or a few strong elders. One danger since the Reformation has been that, having rejected one pope, churches produced many local ones. Reformed church polity respects the autonomy of the local church while rejecting ecclesiastical individualism.

Where the federation is felt in the congregation

• Ministers. Pulpit exchanges, and calls extended to ministers of sister churches, rest on mutual trust. A visiting minister has already been examined by the churches together, so a consistory need not examine him again.
• Membership. A member who moves brings an attestation and is received in good standing, without a further interview or trial period. Guests who bring a travel attestation may be welcomed at the Lord’s Supper.
• Worship. Whether in Smithers or in Chatham, a visitor finds a familiar order of worship and the same forms, although each church retains a measure of freedom.

Where the federation is felt at the consistory

• Agreed patterns. The Church Order sets out the basic pattern for the nomination and election of office bearers, the conduct of meetings, worship and the sacraments, and discipline, so that the churches handle these matters in the same way.
• Federation matters. A standing heading on the consistory agenda gathers everything that concerns classis, regional synod and general synod: delegations, reports, overtures and acts.

Attending classis

• What a classis is. The Latin word refers to a fleet: each ship sends representatives to confer on matters of common concern. The word names both the meeting and the region, as in Classis Northern Ontario. Because a classis is itself a meeting, “classis meeting” is a redundancy.
• Jurisdiction, not authority. A classis has no inherent authority. It exercises the jurisdiction the churches have agreed to assign to it, as set out in the Church Order and in the classical regulations in the office bearers’ handbook. Those regulations are not confidential, and any member may ask an elder about them.
• The order of proceedings. A minister and an elder are normally delegated. The convening church calls the meeting to order, the delegates’ credentials are examined, and the classis is constituted. An executive is chosen, commonly by rotation among the ministers, and the agenda is adopted, so delegates must come prepared to judge whether it can be adopted as presented.
• Discussion in rounds. Weightier matters are discussed in rounds. In the first round each man gives only his own initial view; in the second and any later rounds he may respond to what others have said.
• Closing. The classis adopts its acts and approves the press release. It may finish in a single evening or require a full day or more, particularly when an examination is on the agenda.

For discussion

1. What would our congregation lose if it withdrew from the federation and stood alone?
2. Why does a refusal to accept another church’s attestation amount to a breach of the federation?
3. How does belonging to a federation protect a congregation from being dominated by one minister or a few elders?
4. What is the difference between authority and jurisdiction, and how should that difference shape the way a consistory receives the decisions of a classis or synod?
5. If you were delegated to the next classis, how would you prepare to judge whether its agenda could be adopted?