"The Church is one, holy, catholic and apostolic."

"The Church is where the Word of God is faithfully preached and the sacraments duly administered."

"I am the Church. You are the Church. We are the Church together."

What is the Church? The quotes above are traditional and popular expressions of the nature of the Church. But are they adequate to describe the complexity and ambiguity of our communities of faith?

This week I have been working diligently on my prospectus, exploring the nature of the Church through its practices. That is asking the question, does what we do reflect what we believe? Can we discover the answer to the question, "What is the Church?" by looking at our practices and polity as communities of faith?

I think the answer is yes. After all, we have all understood the implicit messages in our own congregations communicated through the daily practices of the Church.

What have you learned about the Church from the practices in your own communities of faith? Those of childhood and adulthood? What did the things your congregation do tell you about what Church is and ought to be? What did they fail to teach you?

What does CWM tell you about the nature of the Church?