I urge you to read the Early Church Fathers. They did not see the Church this way. To them, the Church was a concrete institution with a hierarchy and creeds and lots of refutation of heretics who tried to change the faith that was passed on by the apostles through their successors.
i agree, and i'm sure this was a valid perspective then; as was Paul's "i know the wolves will come in as soon as i leave." So i am suspicious of your Fathers wadr, who cobbled together a second and even a third council of Nicea, to impose their will--or let's just say that i am with the dissenters there, where the "Church" was officially laid to rest, or exploded, or however you might look at that, the
Institutionalizing of the church.
It was critical to them that every local church throughout the known world hold the same faith.
thus excluding the First Son by decree, yes.
I believe that the novel idea of an "invisible church" is a product of the hopelessly divided Protestant world.
yet we are told that the Kingdom does not come by observation, and cannot be pointed at; and we are cautioned, in many places, not to be setting up standards for judgement to apply to other people. Personally i find these at odds with following Christ, although i am aware of the passages used to justify this.
And you say "invisible," but one can feel the Spirit moving through a closed door imo, if they are quiet enough to listen. I can easily recognize the Church myself, wherever Christ is manifest, and someone is putting themselves out without any hope of gain.
No doubt this characterization is not adequate for you, and there are other wor...things that these need do in order to be considered acceptable, or "visible" to you; and i can only suggest that you follow your heart there, and judge for yourself, but if you cannot find believers even among foreigners who would not agree with your characterizations of the Church, then imo you have just accepted God in your image.
Actual unity is impossible for anyone who teaches the primacy of private interpretation.
yet Paul's private interpretation, 3 years of purposely avoiding the other Apostles so as not to be influenced by their beliefs during his formative period, seemed to serve him quite well, did it not. And imo another way that that concept falls on its face is that everyone essentially develops their own interpretation, their own take on things, no two people even in the leadership of some sect will agree completely on everything.
Nor, frankly, would i want them to. I at least do not need clones of myself, and i do not believe that God is seeking this either. We do not have to agree on beliefs in order to be in unity where it matters. Your beliefs do not serve God in any way; what i believe is essentially irrelevant to my neighbor, who only cares whether i have faith in God--even if they would not put it that way. "
Love...believes all things" can hardly be explained any other way imo.
Which Church (or system of interpretation) is correct?
that is for you, all alone, to judge; "
Seek your own salvation."
As for me and my family we are going back to the source.
that is what you tell yourself, and that is what pretty much everyone ends up
saying that they seek or follow but then when you ask them for a description of their "first love" things seem to quickly deviate from the statements little children would make, and so i would have to ask you what "source" you are referencing, or for a description of your first love.
Because with all due respect i doubt that you followed Paul so to speak, or even studied Scripture for 3 years on your own, without a lot of guidance into the doctrines that you surely hold dear now...and that you cannot conclusively demonstrate even from Scripture to everyone's satisfaction. It's what everyone does, and what Scripture expressly tells us not to do, in more than one place.
Your desire for some unobtainable unity of beliefs, wherein everyone else of course comes around to
your way of thinking, is to me the problem, and not the answer. Catholic Charities does not require any unity of beliefs in order to provide service to someone in need; why should i?
If i am qualified/disqualified somehow only after you have inquired about or discerned some one of my beliefs, then it seems to me that i don't need Christ, i just need the right guy to approve my path.
And wadr i have yet to find one whose advice after conversion was "leave town. Today. Don't take an extra shirt or shoes. Don't take any money. Stay where you land, and eat what they feed you." etc, so wadr i think i will advocate against anyone who has signed a Contract for Jesus, thanks though, and i have no judgement for anyone who feels comfortable in that system either--if it works for you, fine.