ecclesiology - Issues addressed by ecclesiology

The theological study of the nature of the Christian Church. The term can also signify the science of church construction and decoration.

In Christian theology, ecclesiology is a branch of study that deals with the doctrines pertaining to the Church itself as a community or organic entity, and with the understanding of what the "church" is —ie. its role in salvation, its origin, its relationship to the historical Christ, its discipline, its destiny (see Eschatology) and its leadership. It is, therefore, the study of the Church as a thing in itself, and of the Church's self-understanding of its mission and role.

In addition to describing a broad discipline of theology, ecclesiology may be used in the specific sense of a particular church or denomination’s character, self-described or otherwise. The most generic definition given by Thayer's Greek Lexicon is “a gathering of citizens called out from their homes into some public place.” While the term today is closely tied to the Christian church, its roots are therefore broader. These uses in the Hebrew Scriptures of ekklesia are not regarded by most Christian theologians as referring to the Church specifically (in context, they refer to a specific gathering for a partricular circumstance), even though many of these same theologians regard the Jewish people (as "The People of God," a community that understood itself to be defined by a unique covenant with God) to be a foreshadowing, a prototype or a sort of living prophecy of what would one day be the Christian Church.

Issues addressed by ecclesiology

Ecclesiology asks the questions:

Who is the Church? Is it a visible or earthly corporation -- a "church" in the sense of a specific denomination or institution, for instance? What is the relationship between living Christians and departed Christians -- do they (those on Earth and those in Heaven) constitute together the Church? Or is the Church's authority dependent on and derivative of a prior divine revelation, and individual institutions are the Church to the extent that they teach that message? Is, for instance, the Bible a written part of a wider revelation entrusted to the Church as faith community, and therefore to be interpreted within that context? Or is the Bible the revelation itself, and the Church is to be defined as a group of people claim adherence to it? What does the Church do? What are the sacraments, in the context of the Church, and are they part of the Church's mission to preach the Gospel? What are the proper methods of choosing clergy such as bishops and priests, and what is their role within the context of the Church? How does the Church's 'new covenant' relate to the covenants expressed in scripture with God's chosen people, the Jewish people?

Beliefs that define the Church

Body of Christ Biblical canon Creed Orthodoxy Theology -- beliefs about the nature of God. This can include Pneumatology - beliefs about the Holy Spirit, Christology - beliefs about Jesus being the Messiah, and Soteriology -beliefs about how people are saved

Rituals that define the Church

Liturgy Ritualism Sermon Sacrament Eucharist Baptism Pedobaptism Believers Baptism Confirmation Chrismation Holy Orders

Topics in church government

Apostolic succession Autocephaly Canon Law One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church Separation of church and state Full communion Laity Ecclesia (sociology of religion) Sect Cult Ecclesiastical polity Connectionalism Congregational polity Episcopal polity Presbyterian church governance Clergy Pope Patriarch Metropolitan Archbishop Bishop Elder Priest Deacon Pastor Priesthood of all believers