Though
groups like ours are often called "house churches," Christ Home
Fellowship of Kennesaw, GA, is a New Testament assembly, not an
incorporated 5013c "church" in the modern legal
sense. *
We are committed to loving the
Lord, one other, and our fellow man. Our name aptly
expresses who we are: we are Christ-centered, we stress meeting in homes, and we
place an emphasis on good Christian fellowship.
We invite you to look our
website over, and if you like what you see, to give us a call! Before you
call, please especially take a few minutes to read our Letter
to Prospective Visitors.
Expressing our love for God by
following the teaching, commands, and example of Christ and the
Apostles.
*
The word church owes it's etymology to the word kyriake,
meaning "Lord's house". We are not a church in that
sense, since we do not meet in a "church building." We are
also not a
church in the modern legal sense, with articles of incorporation, tax
exempt status, a corporately owned building, salaried staff, etc.
We
have chosen not to trade our freedom of speech on moral issues related
to politics (such as the tragedy of abortion) by applying for 5013c
recognition.
Home gatherings like ours are not subject to zoning ordinances regarding
large incorporated churches, but exercise the constitutional right to assemble in small meetings in
private homes, just like everyone else does for gatherings such as bridge
clubs, barbecues and birthday parties.1
But we certainly
are an ekklesia, meaning "called-out assembly", in the NT
sense.
In New Testament times, believers did not construct special buildings to
meet in. Instead, they assembled in homes. William Tyndale, the translator of
the Tyndale Bible, was aware of this and many more of the
non-biblical connotations of the word "church." Because of
this, he refused to translate the Greek word ekklesia as
"church." Rather, he translated it as
"congregation". Tyndale's insistence
upon accurate translation upset many in hierarchical church leadership
roles. Because
of this, the translators of the KJV were instructed to translate the
word ekklesia as "church" 2, and this word, despite it's
many non-biblical connotations and non-biblical early etymology,
continues in common usage today.
Where
you find the word "church" on our website, please keep in mind
that we are typically using the word in the New Testament sense of a
called-out assembly, not in the common modern legal sense.
1. "Congress shall make no law
respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press;
or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to
petition the government for a redress of grievances" - First
Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.
2. The KJV translators were
given 15 "articles", or guidelines to follow in their
translation. Article 3 stipulated "The old Ecclesiastical Words to be kept, viz. the Word Church not to be translated Congregation etc." (James Baikie, The English Bible Its Story (Lippincott: Philadelphia, 1928), pp. 273- 74)
