Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. Hebrews 12:1-2a
During a healing session at a Dunamis conference, an Indigenous Christian expressed confusion over her relationship to her ancestors. In the session, God showed her large van driving up to her. As it approached, she saw that it was filled with her loved ones who had passed away. She longed to connect with them, but was unsure how or even if she should.
The Reformers have a history of distancing themselves from our saintly ancestors. Article 26 of the Belgic Confession warns against praying to past saints for fear of idolatry and “misplaced faith.” Though I believe the Belgic Confession to be a more biblical view than the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) on the role of past saints, I do believe that we can learn from the Catholic tradition especially in relation to cultures which highly value the role of ancestors. Unlike the Three Forms of Unity, the CCC significantly highlights the diversity of the body of Christ and the need for contextualization: through the church, Christ “is made manifest to the particular people and culture to which that Church is sent and in which she is rooted. The Church is catholic, capable of integrating into her unity, while purifying them, all the authentic riches of cultures” (CCC, 1202).
The interplay of integration and purification is explored in the article, “African Ancestor Beliefs and Catholic Communion of Saints: Concord or Conflict.” The author explores both “challenging a culture” and “unearthing the spiritual riches of a culture”. [1] Within a Black South African context of ancestor worship, both of these occur. On one hand there is a sense of respect and honour found in the practices related to ancestors which are not dissimilar to the Catholic understanding of the communion of saints. On the other hand, these ancestors seem to act independent from God; they can create a sense of fear; and their existence tempts people to seek guidance from diviners who may act contrary to the gospel. Drawing from an African theologian, Teresa Okure, the author suggests that contextualization requires a Christological basis focused on the work and person of the Holy Spirit, which hopefully will bear a “reciprocal enrichment from the wisdom of this rich tradition.”[1] Though imperfect, the Catholic tradition has at least some theological resources by which to thoughtfully and lovingly engage with cultures in which ancestors are venerated.
The priest offered a picture of the table of the Lord’s Supper. The table stretches into time and eternity and at its edge sits the church, past, present and future.
Belden C. Lane tries to re-engage with ancestors from a Reformed perspective. Lane’s thesis of his article, “Recovering of the Intercession of the Saints in the Reformed Tradition” is summarized in this way: “While Reformed Christians like myself may hesitate in speaking of prayer 'to' the saints - because of a concern to maintain the mediatorial centrality of Christ - it is not only possible, but even necessary, to speak of prayer 'with' the saints, inviting them also to pray for us.”[2] Even John Calvin, Lane argues, conceded to this idea in his conception of the communion of the saints. Calvin writes to a Cardinal, “By asserting the intercession of the saints, if all you mean is that they continually pray for the completion of Christ's kingdom, on which the salvation of all the faithful depends, there is none of us who calls it in question.”[3] Though Calvin’s development of thought, according to Lane, was stunted by the popular cult of saints in sixteen-century Europe, it was primarily informed by the notion of a universal church throughout all the ages.[3]
One element of the Reformers that is also shared by Catholic thought is the idea of imitation.[3] It is hard to argue against that idea that imitating those who have passed us will do much to empower the church today. Whatever conclusions we come to, engaging with this topic under the tutelage of the Holy Spirit will help us carry the message of the gospel to peoples who honour their ancestors, including many Indigenous peoples in North America and beyond.
The speaker of the Dunamis session, an Anglican priest, ministered to the Indigenous Christian struggling with her culture’s connection to the ancestors. The priest offered a picture of the table of the Lord’s Supper. The table stretches into time and eternity and at its edge sits the church, past, present and future. There at the table is Moses and Elijah. Beside them is the cloud of witnesses: one side of the table hosts the ones we have lost and on the other side - the ones who will one day come to sit at the messianic feast. The priest used this image to both affirm and give theological guidance to the Indigenous Christian. As we engage with the cloud of witnesses around us, may we fix our eyes on Jesus, our eternal host.
Spirit of Jesus guide our steps as we walk the trail of those who have gone before us.
[1] The Southern Cross, “African Ancestor Beliefs and the Catholic Communion of Saints: Concord or Conflict?,” n.p. Cited 04 Jan 2025, Online: https://www.scross.co.za/2010/07/african-ancestor-beliefs/
[2] Belden C. Lane, “Recovering of the Intercession of the Saints in the Reformed Tradition,” p. 295, Cited 25 March 2022, Online: https://www.theway.org.uk/back/36Lane.pdf
[3] Lane, “Recovering of the Intercession of the Saints in the Reformed Tradition,” p. 296
The Reformed family is a diverse family with a diverse range of opinions. Not all perspectives expressed on the blog represent the official positions of the Christian Reformed Church. Learn more about this blog, Reformed doctrines, and our diversity policy on our About page.
In order to steward ministry shares well, commenting isn’t available on Do Justice itself because we engage with comments and dialogue in other spaces. To comment on this post, please visit the Christian Reformed Centre for Public Dialogue’s Facebook page (for Canada-specific articles) or the Office of Social Justice’s Facebook page. Alternatively, please email us. We want to hear from you!
Read more about our comment policy.