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The Greek word from which we derive “ecclesiastical” is a combination of two words: “ek”, meaning “out”; and “kaleo”, meaning “to call”.  It originally referred to the assembly of citizens “called out” to govern the city.  This political term was deliberatedly chosen by the early Church to refer to itself — the subject of Christ’s kingdom.

In Calendar: Christ’s Time for the Church, Laurence Hull Stookey reminds us that we are meant to worship together as a church:

“For many people the church is a voluntary organization of individuals and exists primarily for reasons that relate to efficiency. . .  Because such a gathering is purely voluntary, people feel free to participate when they wish (particularly when they ‘need’ to ‘get something out of it’), and to do otherwise the rest of the time.

“A proper theology of the Day of Pentecost says a resounding ‘No!’ to such popular ideas.  It is not something we choose to do (and equally well could choose not to do), but something to which we are summoned . . . The free-spirited individualism of our age is a manifestation of Babel, not Pentecost, as should be evident from the intransigent divisions and intractable conflicts such individualism fosters.  The Risen One, who is present at all times and in all places, seeks to bind together by the action of the Spirit all things that have been wrongly separated.  Participation therefore is not something we do on the basis of personal choice or need; participation in the Body of Christ is inherent in being Christian.  The church, not the individual, is the irreducible unit of Christianity . . .  No matter how haltingly and imperfectly, the church seeks to enact in the present world the justice and grace that characterize the eternal reign of God.”

How do you think of your participation in the Church?  To you agree or disagree with Prof. Stookey?  How would you define the “Ekklesia”?  How does what he says relate to our study of worship and the Church Year?