On the Ecumenical Nature of Trees

Timothy Radcliffe at the CTE Forum last week likened the Christian faith to a Whitebeam, outside his window.  As always I develop the points he made and so not all that follows is Radcliffe's.

The Traditions as Branches

The first point is the large number of branches terminating in in thousands of leaves (not to mention a similar network of roots below the ground) are all part of the same tree.  It is a vital unity.  This image touches on a well known philosophical question.  How do I know two leaves are part of the same tree?  The fact that two leaves are connected through the trunk, does not in itself mean we would necessarily see them as the same entity.

This leads me to ask what the trunk represents in the analogy.  There is certainly no existing organisation that corresponds to the trunk.  We see only branches, not what connects them.  The trunk could be understood to be God or Jesus.  This does not work for me because the branches would be growing out of something of a different nature.  Perhaps the Kingdom of God is the best analogy we have for the trunk.  This would remind is of the provisional nature of the churches and perhaps the image would imply the necessity for diversity as the Kingdom permeates all human activity.

However, the strongest point of the image is the gut feeling that Christians, of any tradition are part of the same church.  Remember though this is an analogy, used to assert our common identity as Christians, it does not prove it.

The Traditions and the World.

Radcliffe also suggested that the leaves, bark and roots are all exposed to the elements.  The Whitebeam is alive at its extremities.  Indeed without that exposure, if the tree were cut off from soil and atmosphere, it would die.  He argues that just as the tree needs to be naked to the elements, so Christians need to be exposed to the world in counter cultural terms.  We must be open to the questions, insights and explorations of our contemporaries.

This reminds me of my suggestion of a third dimension to reception, transformational reception.  Here the churches together enter into conversation with the world.  I argued that mission is an essential part of the churches experience of sanctification; God's project to reconcile all things to God.

Transformational reception means the churches do not isolate themselves from the concerns of the world, as they pursue unity for its own sake.  Unity happens when the churches act together to present the world with their counter cultural message.

The Chaotic Nature of Ecumenism

I have long used trees as an analogy for ecumenism in a third way.  I have chosen photos for this post of trees with a satisfying shape.  I find there is something soothing in contemplation of a tree with a regular shape. 

Of course this regularity is an illusion.  Move up closer and you will see the degree of randomness of branches growing in all sorts of directions.  And yet, why do they look so regular from a distance? 

Certainly we're all aware of the chaotic nature of relations between the Christian traditions and perhaps a step backwards would enable us to perceive a more harmonious whole.  The danger is of course such a belief might lead to complacency.

Perhaps the best thing is not to put too much faith into glib analogies.  If they challenge us to think in fresh ways, that is positive.  But in the end they are simply illustrations, nothing more.

Comments

[Chris]

As a lover of trees, I enjoyed reading this post and its imagery. Peace to you today.

[Chris Sissons]

Thank you Chris. I've checked out your blog and I'm very impressed. I've been thinking a lot about silence recently and may write about it eventually.