Friday, November 12, 2010

How Should Church Decisions be Made?

How about by casting lots?  There are 21 verses in the KJV in which this is done.  In Leviticus 16:8, it is commanded by God Himself.  Lots are to be cast to choose which of two goats shall be slaughtered and burned upon the altar, and which shall be the scapegoat, sent out alive into the wilderness, symbolically bearing away Israel's sins.  In Acts 1:26, Matthias is chosen as an apostle by lot.

So there's plenty of biblical precedent, or warrant, or whatever, for making decisions this way, including very important ones.

Or how about by dreams?  St. Peter had one that convinced him Gentiles should be accepted into the Church.  (Acts 10, 11).  St. Joseph had one that caused him to flee to Egypt with Mary and the newborn Jesus.    Joel 2:28 says, "And it shall come to pass afterward, [that] I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions," and this verse is quoted in Acts 2:17, in St. Peter's sermon.  There are dozens of places in the Bible in which God appears to people in dreams:  Pharoah, Nebudchadnezzar, Jacob...

Just food for thought when issues of "authority" arise.

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