To minister, original sin, patristic,
pneumatology, the River, 'seed faith'

Word meanings and definitions

The meaning of :
to minister (v.), original sin, patristic, pneumatology,
the River, seed faith, church word index

What Is 'to minister' ?

to minister [ Latin minister (servant, one who performs a service)]. To serve or help another.

In the Christian context, to minister is to serve or help in the name of Christ, through the example of Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:5-6). Anyone who does this is a 'minister', though most people use the word to describe the 'ordained minister' who an organization sets apart to take care of the sacraments, preach sermons, and devote themselves to the spiritual care of the members of the local church. (The root meaning tells us why in most governments, cabinet members are called 'ministers' and their offices are called 'ministries' -- they're supposedly there to serve the nation.)

The Hebrew word for ministring is sharath, which means 'to attend to or wait on'. The New Testament uses several Greek words for this, including hierourgeo (to serve in a priestly or cultic way); huperetes (a subordinate); and the primary word for Christian thought about service, diakonos (one who does another's bidding).

You can also check the dictionary for 'minister'.

What Is Original Sin ?

Original sin is not about infants having dreams of evil. It's not about how creative we are at sinning (it's all a variation of what's been done before). And it's not about turning us into a miserable pack of sad sacks moaning, 'Woe is me'. Original sin is about the fact that even the best of us turn away from God in some way, even the best of us at our best is in the same basic dilemma as the worst of us, and even the holiest of us at their tippy-top is a universe distant from God's holiness. None of us are born with the faith; that is poured into us as we live. That's not to say that we're basically all evil monsters (God created us good, says Genesis), but to say that there's some 'monstrousness' in all of us, and it affects everything we do. And, there's a bit of this monstrousness in whatever way we gather together -- clubs, teams, parties, unions, companies, cartels, ethnic groups, nations, governments, churches. We each add a bit of our own monstrousness to the group, and we take into ourselves a part of the group's monstrousness. (We also add and take on goodness.) Our monstrousness isn't something we created recently. It is rooted in our origins, in the very beginning of the human race, hence, it is 'origin-al'. But each of us adds something more to it.

What Does Patristic Mean?

patristic [ < Greek patriarkhês < patria (lineage; < pater (father)) + arkhos (ruler)]. That which comes from the leaders of the early centuries of the church, ca. 100-451 AD, between the last of the Apostles and the Council of Chalcedon. The leaders of this period are known as the 'Church Fathers' or the 'Patristic Writers'. Many of them were not just theologians, but also bishops. Bishops were much more personally involved than now, since their dioceses had fewer members, little bureaucracy, and much less of a clear separation of bishop from ordinary worshipper. These early patristic leaders built much of the base for the theologies, worship, and church practice the Church has treasured (and sometimes regretted) since then.

What Is Pneumatology ?

pneumatology:

1. the study of the Holy Spirit: that is, of the work, person, purpose, and nature of the Holy Spirit. To understand this field of study, remember this Greek stuff: 'pneuma'-to-'logos' -- the Spirit takes us to the living Word (that is, to Christ (John 1)). A simpler term for it: Spirit-talk. 
2. the subfield of theology that revolves around matters of the Holy Spirit. Inquire under 'Trying to catch the wind'. Anyone who writes about the Spirit will bump up against the limits of pneumatology sooner or later, and it always sounds a bit strange and even heretical. And sometimes it is.

Often mistaken for:

1. numerology (magic and lies using numbers)
2. pneumaticology (the science of the operation of drills)
3. nematology (the study of threads)
4. nematodology (the study of a phylum of unsegmented worms)
5. nemotology (the study of the character of Captain Nemo, or of a missing animated fish)
6. nomo'tology (the study of when there's nothing more to study)
7. pneumoniology (the study of the transcendent experience one feels when bronchial problems reduce the level of oxygen to the brain)
8. newmathology (the study of what the pre-1960s US generation could never understand about their kids' schooling)

One of the trends in recent church practice is that pneumatology has been becoming more 'practical' and 'experiential'-- that is, more about things we do, live through, and take part in than about thinking about the Spirit. That's a good counter-punch against the rather extreme over-theologizing of some theologians. But a lack of clear thinking creates very serious discernment problems, and discernment is even more important now than it ever was, in this era of the Big Lie and the Web of Little Lies.

Here's some really sharp blogging on today's lack of a real 'pneumatology' in most circles of the church, from Dan Edelen. The replies are good, too.

What Is 'the River' ?

'the River' : The current wave of Pentecostal revivalism, which first swept out from Toronto and now gets its pulse from Pensacola FL area. It's characterized by emotional experiences and some rather vigorous manifestations : falling to the floor, body gyrations, laughter, and in the early going even animal sounds. The term 'The River' was chosen by many of those involved because it gives a word-picture of what this wave feels like, rather than refer to it (as the press has) as 'Toronto Blessing' or 'Brownsville Revival'. It also catches its character -- it flows along from one place to another, and just as it seems to be peetering out another flood rolls into it from somewhere else. It's characterized by emotional experiences and some rather vigorous manifestations : falling to the floor, body gyrations, laughter, etc.

The 'river' imagery is ere old, going back to pre-Christian Middle Eastern baptisms for ritual cleanness. These were originally done in streams and springs, in moving water, but later was shifted to pools in or near places of worship. John the Baptist recast that imagery in a daring new way in his ministry, as did Jesus. The song 'Shine Jesus Shine' calls on the Spirit to flow as a river in us; the song 'Peace Like A River' sings of the settled soul God gives us, flowing in us and going outward.

What Is 'seed faith' ?

'seed faith' : to entrust money or goods or time to a ministry so you can receive God's special benefit in return : a financial surrendering will give you financial gain. If you are to believe its adherents, seed faith giving, and especially the 'hundredfold blessing', is the key to human happiness. They speak of it as if it spices, slices, splices and dices, and with all this you also get a full set of screwdrivers and a 12-volume package of the greatest hits of 1982. In truth, it grinds and blinds and binds the minds. 'Seed faith' is not a biblical idea nor a biblical term, though many pentecostalists act like it is. Its everyday-language translation is 'gimme'. If a preacher says 'Build me up', pray that the Spirit grasps them, but don't send money. (By the way : 'this ministry' = 'ME').