Church accountability as important as any other kind
by Robert Leslie, Editor-in-Chief
As a Christian, I firmly believe that accountability should be an important part of walking with our Lord. It can be very easy to find ourselves thinking or acting wrongly because of misinterpretation, our own preconceptions, or just because we live in a fallen world and are constantly under assault with messages and ideas that are not of the Kingdom. Without someone with whom you can be completely transparent, someone who knows you through and through, subtle or even blatant mistakes or sins can go unnoticed, giving them time to fester and corrupt us. An accountability partner is a friend who watches your back and is willing to ask you the hard questions. I am familiar with the idea of Christian accountability, and I embrace it without reservation on an individual basis. But should there also be some form of accountability for communities of believers?
Last semester in Corey Beals' Christian Foundations class, I had the opportunity to hear theologian and author Dr. Ron Sider speak to my class. In preparation, the we read an interview with Dr. Sider by Christianity Today from April 2005. Among the subjects discussed, Dr. Sider mentioned briefly his conviction that every church should be a part of a structure of accountability:
"It's simply wrong for a local congregation to have no accountability to a larger body ... I'm not saying it has to be one of the current denominations. There can be new structures of accountability ... [But it] is flatly unbiblical and heretical for an individual congregation to say, 'We'll just be by ourselves and not be accountable to anybody.'"
This statement surprised me at first and made then made me think hard. First of all, Christian accountability is an idea that I support; Dr. Sider was merely taking the logical next step and applying the concept to bodies of believers. Secondly, this was not just a hypothetical or distant question for me. My home church (as far as I know) is not a part of any such system of accountability. It is what Dr. Sider would call a "lone ranger" church. So these strong words from a respected theologian made me pause and address this issue where it touches my own life. I have since found myself returning to the question of whether or not I agree with Dr. Sider.
My first question upon returning to this subject, was why I was shying away from this suggestion at all. I've finally concluded that it comes from a suspicion and distrust of religious authorities. I don't like the idea of a council or group outside and above my home church passing down sanctions and edicts. This likely comes from having been raised in such an independent church, but it is certainly also influenced by what I know or have heard about the histories of Christian denominations that submit to a ruling figure or organization. However, when I look again at what Dr. Sider is saying, I don't think that this kind of authority based accountability is what he is promoting.
The relationship he describes really seems more akin to the individual accountability that I identified earlier, one based on friendship rather than authority. In such a relationship, a group of churches, large or small, who share common values regarding theology, tradition, and moral practice, could meet and intermingle regularly to lovingly check up on one another, ensuring that everyone was adhering to a commonly-held interpretation of Scripture. Such a structure would serve to bring churches straying from the fold back to center. I am certain that such church organizations do exist, and it seems to me that this arrangement is safer and preferable to the "lone ranger" style while staying away from authoritarian based models. Whether independent churches join or begin their own accountability relationship, I would agree with Dr. Sider that churches ought to be accountable in some manner. Trying to follow Christ alone, whether as an individual or a church, is not a wise move. We are stronger as one, learning together to live like Christ and reaching out in His name.