Collective faith

Please pitch your article ideas to Love Is Moving editor, Ilana Reimer (ilana@loveismoving.ca). Check out our writer’s guidelines for more information on how to pitch. 

Both the Old and New Testaments point to embodied practices and symbolic actions that followers of God are meant to act out collectively. From keeping the Passover, a festival of eating food together, to Jesus instructing His followers to break bread and drink wine together in remembrance of His sacrifice, Christianity emphasizes gathering together and relying on one another to keep alive the stories and the teachings of our faith.

For centuries, the act of showing up to be with other believers has been a common way of honouring God and reminding ourselves of both who He is and who we are. The well-known passage in 1 Corinthians 12 talks about Christians being one body with many parts. We each have individual roles, but those roles only become coherent in the context of the larger Body of Christ. We aren’t lone wolves.

This can be hard to swallow at times. We may struggle with our self image, struggle to accept all the parts of the Body—the ugly things we’d rather hide. We may wish we could change other parts, or even do without them. Yet we cannot. The Body can feel hopelessly slow at times or too wounded to be worth saving. We may to want to give up.

Yet if the metaphor of bodily connection represents a spiritual reality, then we are connected spiritually with one another, like it or not. Part of the process of becoming comfortable in the Body is to unflinchingly accept its limitations and flaws and to choose to see its beauty as well. Christ gave us His Body, both through His death and through instituting his Church. And it is in contributing to the healing, wellbeing, and flourishing of the whole Body that we find joy and purpose.

If the pandemic has taught us one thing, it is that we need the support of a community. God knows this need of ours. By giving us communal avenues for faith, He has laid the foundation for a community meant to operate like an extended family—a community that celebrates together and helps each other through tough times.

In this issue, we’re exploring the larger purpose behind the collective practices of the Christian faith. Pitch us your idea!

If you’re not sure what to write about, these questions could spark an article idea:

• What goodness and beauty do you choose to see in the Church?

• Why does God emphasize collective faith in the Bible?

• What is the larger purpose behind the practice of being part of a Church?

• No community is perfect (and you don’t have to agree with everything—that’s a tall order!). What are you learning about the value of commitment to relationships within your Christian community, even when they are hard?

• Why do you think some Christians abandoning the collective aspect of faith? How might Covid have impacted our habits?

• Proverbs 27:17 talks about two people sharpening each other as iron sharpens iron. Do you have a story where your work or character was strengthened through supportive relationships with other Christians?

• Usually, having skin in the game keeps us invested. How does volunteering (or not) change your view of church?

• Do you have stories of a transformative friendship you want to celebrate? How has this friendship pointed you toward God?

• Send us your specific stories of a favourite Christmas tradition or a memorable celebration within your Christian community.

“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

Acts 2:42