A REVIEW OF CARL BRAATEN'S IN ONE BODY THROUGH THE CROSS

In One Body Through the Cross

Carl Braaten

I greatly respect Dr. Braaten and keep several his books ready at hand.  Thus I feel a bit of a traitor for being negative toward this volume.

In seems this is a generational preoccupation, the ecumenical institutional unity of the Christian Church. There have been endless meetings and drafts of papers on just how the Christian Church (or "Churches", if you will) will put aside centuries of differences and join into one mighty throng to witness to the whole world. As I said, this seems to be a generational thing. Those born before the Korean War seem to take this task as the be all and end all for the Christian Church. On the other hand, it may be simply an enthusiasm of those in the ministry. Those in the trenches-the laymen-take it as a positive sign that Christians of all stripes are more and more civil and friendly toward one another. It is this overwhelming desire to see "the mating of the mammoths" that is out of place and ill considered.

As a baby-boomer Lutheran, I have attended more ecumenical gatherings than I care to remember. Most were great. Some absolutely stunk. Most laymen come away from these experiences with love and respect for our "separated" brothers and sisters-yet deep down we come to know just what we are. I never realized how much of a Lutheran I was until I discussed the faith other Christians. In the end, I am not going to change for them nor will they change just to suit me.

Ecumenists love the quote Jesus petition to the Father in the Garden "that they all be one". I hope it is not mean-spirited to point out that Jesus also asked that "this cup pass" from Him. That request was not granted and it seems evident that "may they be as one" was not granted either. Indeed, a close examination of any proposal to unify all the Christianity usually entails several "someones" ceasing to be what makes them what they are. This is why some Churches see ecumenism as theological aggression by other means.

That the various Christian Churches have come to treat one another with generosity and respect is no small accomplishment. That most Lutherans no longer take it as a doctrinal certainty that the Pope is the Antichrist is a vast change from the past. That Lutherans and Catholics see themselves as being on the same side in a hostile world would have been inconceivable not that long ago.

I tend to view the problem of Christian unity through the lens of my own extended family. My family has nearly every Christian expression currently available in America. It has "holy-rollers", Evangelicals, staid mainliners, Catholics and several types of apostates. We get together for holidays and we get along well with each other. A few insults are traded-but ...hey...what do you expect.

I wish them all well. May their houses be in peace and prosper. That doesn't mean we can all live together under the same roof.

It may be a little curish to point out since IN ONE BODY THROUGH THE CROSS was published Dr. Braaten was one of the leading individuals to leave the Evanglical Lutheran in America to establish the new North American Lutheran Church.  I greatly approve his actions in building this new Lutheran body; so I find no fault with him in this regard.  On the other hand, since other Lutheran Churches over the world have broken off relations with the ELCA, perhaps the North American Lutheran Church will find they can take up the task of ecuminism where the ELCA dropped the ball.