Is the Church like a hospital? If yes, how so? If not, why not?
Some things to consider:
o What is the Church's mission?
o Does being a Hospital describe all/part/any of the Church's mission?
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The Blog of Calvary Community Church, established for dialogue and conversation about God, his Word, and his community to accomplish and facilitate our discipleship--the process of becoming like Jesus.
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About Me
- Aaron Perry
- I am Assistant Professor of Pastoral Theology and Leadership at Wesley Seminary @ Indiana Wesleyan University
13 comments:
The church should be partly like a hospital. A place to go to get spiritually and mentally healed. Some churches are more like a retirement home though - people just hanging out, riding out there earthly days, for mutual benefit of themselves (stereo typically I say this of course).
I believe the church is a lot more. It is especially like a family - a place for mutual support, accountability, healing, safe haven. But, the church is even more than that. It is God's instituation to himself - all the above, but also a place to meet, worship and focus on Him. Kind of like a do-jo (martial arts school) where the sensa (master) leads and everyone else follows and learns his ways. OK, maybe this is a stretch, but I couldn't think of another comparison.
Dan Paoletti
Hmmm.... I think you have outlined future questions, Dan! I am thinking of Mark 3 and how Jesus outlines God's followers as his mother, brothers, and sisters. Family is certainly a major description of Church. You're definitely right in saying that Church is a lot more.
If it is a place for healing(hospital), does it stop being a hospital once you're healed?
Depends........if we are talking about the church or The Church. Individual local congregations may very much function like a hospital. We've questioned ourselves on this issue at CCC as we see people come in for a little diagnostic work up or even major heart surgery only to "get better", and then move on. I think a much more complex analogy is needed.
The Church is The Church - it is what it is uniquely designed by God to be. So there is probably no perfect analogy. Comparing it to a hospital has some merit albeit limited. I think being a "hospital" for those who are brokenhearted, in all kinds of bondage, or just plain sinners in search of a savior is just one of the many roles of The Church - and certainly of a healthy local church.
Perhaps the better analogy is that The Church is a spiritual "healthcare system" for all levels of spiritual health - i.e. a birthing center for new believers, an education and training program for maintaining good health - a.k.a. preventive "medicine", office visits to monitor growth and development - and healing, clinics and hospitals specific for those in various states of spiritual illness, and even long term care facilities.
Along with the analogy goes the various roles of "healthcare providers" including teachers, counselors, diagnosticians, advocates, technicians, treatment-specialists, etc. who are ready to help those seeking good health. There is even the need for the administrative types to support a complex, multi- dimensional healthcare system. These have parallels to those of us in The Church and God's expectations of us to use our spiritual gift(s) within The Church...and the church.
Of course any healthcare system has to deal with the end of life issues. That's another whole discussion topic. But from my many years of experience as a nurse I know that there are sick people who come to the healthcare system and never get well. Some just exist in a state of chronic illness until they die. Others even come into the hospital DOA - and they leave the same way. Many other's regain and/or maintain health for the rest of their days. I think we can see similar scenarios in the spiritual healthcare system of The Church.
Probably the better analogy is The Church as The Body - with Christ as the Head. But I'll leave that one to Michele as our resident anatomy and physiology expert!
Beth C.
The following was posted in another post. I am pasting it here. "Someone has said that the church is a hospital for sinners rather than a rest home for saints. I think that is true but sometimes we are the patients and sometimes we are the practitioners. Christ is the doctor and the Bible is our diagnostic reference source."
Beth, you have brought a fascinating perspective to this question. Like both you and Dan said, the Hospital analogy is minimal and incomplete. You also make a great distinction between church and Church.
When you talk of Church as a health care system, I think you are pushing in good directions. I usually end up thinking about Church as City, which I think would be faithful to what you have brought up here.
I will have to think more about end of life issues. We are gaining a strong bench of questions to ask! :)
I am also copying and pasting this comment from "Mintaska" here. (It was originally placed under 'Everyone is a theologian'):
The Church (Church - Bible believing, preaching and behaving) is like a hospital. The Church can be a place to be healed from the most fatal of illnesses, death. The Church of Jesus Christ also has the power to treat and heal pride, covetousness, lust, hate and a host of other conditions. But unlike a hospital the sick can and should help heal others that are sick. And unlike a hospital the congregants (patients) of a local body are interconnected and cannot function in an effective way without the other congregants functioning in a healthy(living a holy spirit filled life) manner.
I had one additional thought to add to the analogy that The Church is a spiritual healthcare system. (Hopefully my colleagues in Community Health Nursing will forgive me for the oversight earlier!)
One very important component of The Church is the family and the home - a place where children are nurtured and trained in the ways of Christ and a place to develop the most important relationships (next to our relationship with God, of course). Further, we as adults develop in our faith through relationships in small networks of believers or affinity groups - often meeting in the home. This then further identifies The Church as a healthcare system by its inclusion of good "Home Health Agencies".
Beth-- You have touched on a very important point. Let me see if I can expand it a bit. The North American cultural practice of healing is often to isolate--to keep germs away from people and to keep people away from germs. Sickness has the ability to "de-politicize" people...to take them away from community. (Now think of Jesus *touching* lepers and often being on the outskirts of towns where the most defiled people are!)
Anyway, I remember hearing the story of a lady from Mexico who, when she became ill and went to the hospital, had family *move* into the hospital with her (not sure how the admin handled it!). *Healing* was not just the ridding of disease, but the support and proximity of family.
It may be that hospital is not too lacking an analogy--just that our definition of hospital needs to expand! :)
Interesting point. I think the separation of family from a patient who enters the hospital is primarily a Western - or at least American phenomenom. In many cultures and nations, a patient cannot even enter the hospital unless a family member accompanies him/her. In the former it's because of a cultural expectation in which family insists on being present. In the latter it is the standard for hospital admissions.
Excellent, Beth. I always like when someone who really knows things backs up what I thought (because I usually don't know!). :)
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