Excommunication

[Lamb]

Does your church (congregational assembly of a specific denomination for those who oppose the term church used in this manner) have a procedure that it follows for excommunication? Have you ever witnessed a member go through the process?

 

[visionary]

Glad God doesn't have one in His.

 

[psalms 91]

No, biblically if after going through all the steps up to and including taking sin before the congegation and they still refuse to repent then we are instructed to turn them over and put them out but also to welcome them back once they have turned and to restore them but I know of no church that actually follows this

 

[Ackbach]

No, biblically if after going through all the steps up to and including taking sin before the congegation and they still refuse to repent then we are instructed to turn them over and put them out but also to welcome them back once they have turned and to restore them but I know of no church that actually follows this

The churches I've been in have this exact procedure in place, just like in Matthew 18 (yes, God does have a procedure for His church in this matter). And it has happened, though not frequently. To be absolutely clear on this, the only sin that gets you excommunicated is failure to repent.

 

[Romanos]

I have never witnessed this, but it is good to ultimately strive to work matters out in the manner Matthew 18 prescribes.

 

[Rens]

If people go live together they're just told that it's sin and they don't like that, so they pick another church. It's no problem in most churches here.

 

[psalms 91]

Unfortunately Messy that is the state of many churchs, they compromise principles and morals at the peril of the ones they compromise for

 

[MoreCoffee]

Excommunication (meaning deprived of communion in various degrees the lowest (least severe) being something like exclusion from the sacrament of the Eucharist and the highest (most severe) being something like expulsion from the church) happens in the Catholic Church. I have not seen it, but it does happen.

 

[Lamb]

Lutherans practice it but I haven't known anyone personally who has ever gotten excommunicated. It's a really huge thing. I've read online about a guy who had it happen to him and read the reasons why but that was about 10 years ago and I don't remember what he was rejecting about Christianity.

 

[MoreCoffee]

Excommunication is a pastoral measure intended to help the erring brother/sister reevaluate whatever it is they are doing or have done and come back to God in genuine repentance. It is not usually a public scandal or a matter spread abroad by the pastors and elders of the Church. I think that more often than not it is associated with matters like divorce/remarriage or other matters of misconduct (sexual or otherwise) than anything else. Of course serious scandal - such as public teaching contrary to Church doctrine or far more serious matters such as exploitation (sexual or otherwise) of others - does receive public notice usually through the press.

 

[Lamb]

I would tend to think that oftentimes it becomes public when the person being excommunicated doesn't agree with it and wants to put up a big fuss and embarrass the church, but all he is doing is make a fool of himself.

 

[MoreCoffee]

I would tend to think that oftentimes it becomes public when the person being excommunicated doesn't agree with it and wants to put up a big fuss and embarrass the church, but all he is doing is make a fool of himself.

That doesn't happen too often in my diocese. I think Catholics do not migrate to a perceived safe-haven denomination when they are excommunicated. Some may. Not too many.

 

[PezGirl73]

I have seen it once in my lifetime. It was done rightly and correctly - following the parameters of Matthew 18, and involved a party unwilling to repent for a sin that was brought to their attention. It took roughly 7-8 months for the whole thing to happen.

 

[MoreCoffee]

I have seen it once in my lifetime. It was done rightly and correctly - following the parameters of Matthew 18, and involved a party unwilling to repent for a sin that was brought to their attention. It took roughly 7-8 months for the whole thing to happen.

Did the accused party swap denominations after the process was completed?