tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12009297.post4512358935762839719..comments2023-11-02T02:58:53.594-07:00Comments on From the Pew: Re-Thinking Church Membership (Part 24) - The Fruits of Formal MembershipSteve Scotthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10297044571819912511noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12009297.post-24562964669685098102008-07-02T01:37:00.000-07:002008-07-02T01:37:00.000-07:00License to be slothful! Cool.This issue is so amaz...License to be slothful! Cool.<BR/><BR/>This issue is so amazing to me. The more they try to make something work, the more convoluted it gets. The bylaws of many (most?) 501(c)3 organizations (AKA Churches) are longer than some books of the Bible!Sigmundsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15240318945999530039noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12009297.post-47240273944837754092008-06-29T06:17:00.000-07:002008-06-29T06:17:00.000-07:00I reckon churches get confused about "membership" ...I reckon churches get confused about "membership" in the Body of Christ and membership in their non-profit association. The non-profit association is refrred to as a "church", but it is not "the Church" as decribed by Jesus and His Disciples. <BR/><BR/>The association can make just about any rules it wants about qualifications for "membership" in the club. The association is just a tool by which belivers in a particular locale facilitate certain activities as Members of the Body. <BR/><BR/>Becoming a member of the association may be seen as making a commitment to a group of people as they take their journey as Disciples and ministers. It does not, however, have any special spiritual significance. <BR/><BR/>The issue is important to the institution of the association, so it is likely that those with a stake in the institution will seek to conflate Membership in the Body with membership in the association so as to promote institutional health.Vache Follehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14942494955243643381noreply@blogger.com