Ecclesiology

Ecclesiology also ecclesiology (from the Greek. ἐκκλησία - church and λόγος - knowledge) is a branch of Christian theology that studies the nature, properties and structure of the Church : as a branch of dogmatic theology and as an element of theology of one or another of the Church fathers .

The New Testament Scripture contains a number of images that reveal the Christian understanding of the Church and its role:

• the image of the vineyard ( Matt. 20: 1-16 ; Luke 13: 6-9 );
• the image of the vine and its branches ( John 15: 1-8 );
• the image of the sown field ( Matt. 13: 24-32 );
• the image of the shepherd and the herd ( John 10: 1-16 );
• the image of a fishing net ( Matt. 13: 47-48 );
• the image of a salvage ship in a rippling sea ( Matthew 8:26 , Mark 4:39 , Luke 8:25 );
• the image of the mother of believers ( Gal. 4:26 );
• the image of the head and body ( Eph. 1: 22-23 );
• the image of the bride of Christ ( Eph. 5:23 ; 2 Cor. 11: 2 );
• the image of the marriage union ( Eph. 5:32 );
• the image of the wedding feast ( Matt. 25: 1-13 );
• image of a building under construction ( Eph. 2: 19-22 );
• the image of the house ( 1 Tim. 3:15 ; Heb. 3: 6 );
• the image of the city of God ( Heb. 11:10 ).

In the patristic books there is a notion of the Church as a ship sailing over the sea of ​​life.

Christian ecclesiology combines two aspects: mystical and canonical.

• The mystical aspect sees the Church as the mystical Body of Christ, for which Jesus Christ is the head ( Eph. 1: 22-23 , Eph. 5:23 , Col. 1:18 );
• The canonical aspect speaks of the unity of the Church around the bishop and the unity of the bishops among themselves, with continuity of succession from the apostles laid by Christ at the foundation of the Church.

The doctrine of the Church, as one of the most important, was reflected in the Nicene Tsaregrad Creed .

From the point of view of Orthodox ecclesiology, any deviation, both from the Church’s creed defined by the Ecumenical Councils ( heresy ), and from the God-established hierarchy of the priesthood of the Church ( schism ), as well as self-removal for a long time (without good reason) from frequent Communion of the Body and Blood of Christ , inevitably leads to a break with the Church. This gap is ascertained by the Church in anathematizing , that is, the statement that it is impossible for the Church to bear further responsibility for a heretic , schismatic, or persistent sinner in his evasion of the Church.