Planning for grace
John Henry Newman, the recently beatified English cardinal, said that the church is shaped by the dynamic interaction of three elements: worship, theological reflection and institutional governance. As he saw it, these three activities work in creative tension. Left to themselves, each sphere becomes corrupted: worship tends toward "superstition and enthusiasm," theology toward "rationalism," and governance toward "ambition, craft and cruelty."
Those churchly iniquities are common enough. Those who walk away from church might be categorized according to what wounded them most: the rigidity or chaos of the liturgy, the sterility of the theology or the character flaws of the leaders.
Yet Newman's scheme omits one element that is crucial in the life of the church: people skilled in the everyday practices of faith. If a church does not form people who live in Christ and display some measure of forgiveness, compassion, hospitality, care for the Earth, solidarity with those who suffer and perseverance in distress, then no liturgy or theology, however rich, and no governance system, however inspired, will save the church.
