> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://matthew-d-burkholder.ghost.io/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # What is the Church? - URL: https://matthew-d-burkholder.ghost.io/what-is-the-church/ - Published: 2020-05-25T19:57:09.000Z - Updated: 2026-08-28T19:42:43.000Z - Author: Matthew D. Burkholder - Tags: Theology, #Migrated-1787946130805, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-08-28 15:42 ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/c3/77/c3777722-be50-4049-bbc2-3363f1fed5cd/content/images/2026/08/pexels-photo-3722888-jpeg-w-976.jpg) Photo by Dominika Greguu0161ovu00e1 on [Pexels.com](https://www.pexels.com/photo/low-angle-view-of-concrete-building-3722888/?ref=matthew-d-burkholder.ghost.io) By now, you are probably aware that hundreds of Ontario churches have [signed a letter](https://www.reopenontariochurches.ca/?ref=matthew-d-burkholder.ghost.io) urging the government to reopen churches. If you sensed an underlying militancy to the message, your suspicions have been proven correct. One of the primary contacts is [now calling](https://pursuitofglory.org/50-reasons-why-christians-should-protest-the-lockdown-and-the-closure-of-churches/?fbclid=IwAR3P8%5Ftgx6nNQj11U8Md9LK-Tp2TejaVBgS7h0a7na-cfyXE5g8EoC-izXo&ref=matthew-d-burkholder.ghost.io) for Christians to protest the continued order for Church buildings to remain closed. Without quantifying the term "protest" beyond being respectful and loving, I am left wondering what this influential pastor is expecting of his readers. I am cautious about developing any comprehensive response to any one of his 50 reasons as their pointed nature makes this difficult. However, I believe these responses as a whole represent a fundamentally misguided theological understanding of what the church *is* and what the church *does*. #### What is the Church? If you've been around a particular segment of the Christian faith, you are bound to have heard the phrase, "the church is the people, not the building!" Perhaps you come from a different background that recognizes the *space* of worship (often called the "sanctuary") as a holy place. If you're not sure what tradition you come from, consider what your Sunday morning looks like. Is your building simple or adorned with sacred objects? Before the service, is there the sound of people talking and laughing, or is it quiet and reflective? One's ecclesial understanding of worship is affecting our emotional response to this crisis. I have a great deal of empathy for Christians feeling physically disconnected from the means of their worship. We all should see this time in our history as one of profound loss. However, in straightforward terms, we should remember that the Church is a *subject,* and that subject is Jesus Christ. Something does happen when believers gather in a building to read scripture, pray, sing, preach, and observe the sacraments of communion and baptism. That something is a tangible manifestation of the presence of Christ on earth. We do not have the freedom to divide the Church into two distinct subjects: The Church is not "people and building" + Christ, the Church *is* Christ. We may turn to the waters of baptism as an example where these subjects merge into one. Baptism is no mere symbol, but a meeting place of grace and faith. What does it say, then, if the Church acts as though its mission is in jeopardy because our buildings are closed? Yes - we are in grief. The lack of accompanying voices as I sing to a camera weighs heavy on me. We are experiencing a temporary loss of something special in the act of Christian worship. However, *the Church has not, nor will ever be closed.* To speak otherwise is to say that Jesus Christ is closed to the world. It makes a confusing statement about what the Church is. Our buildings are closed because they present a severe risk to our community. Instead of comparing ourselves to the world, the Church should be *cautiously* *celebrating* that businesses are opening. We should hope that those nearly crippled by the economic impact of this lockdown may experience recovery. But for the *Church* to need to be "re-opened" because the Beer store is open cheapens what we are in the world. > If your church requires an open building to "be the church," what does that say about the mission of Christ? In considering the sacrifice of his mission, Jesus said, "Foxes have dens and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head" (Matt 8:20). Sometimes following Christ involves following him into physical homelessness. It's a hard concept to accept for churches who have left the inner city for suburbia or left smaller communities for mega-sized gatherings. This is not a critique of those churches and the model of growth they employ. The best approach for church ministry seems to be one that embraces the best components of the attractional and missional models. But the concept of homelessness appears to be hitting megachurches a little harder. The "game-time" performance has been paused, and to blunt, a lot of people are wondering aloud if some churches are more concerned with financial recovery than a recovery of the mission. When "doing" church is a large scale, massively coordinated and profoundly expensive endeavour, shutting a building down must be profoundly anxiety-inducing. This isn't a criticism. It's a reality. In the race to get the game back and running again, many churches are failing to reflect on what God might be desiring to teach us silently. A certain level of control has been taken away from us by this virus. Many pastors have busyness and work wrapped up in their identity, and the idea of pausing is too much to handle. We need a different set of questions. Are we too much like the world? Does our church model need to change? Who is falling through the cracks in our community? How can we best support them? Why is *one way* of doing church worth potentially sacrificing lives for? The Church must adapt to its new surroundings–as it has done for centuries. Not because the Church needs to "change," but because the subject itself is as dynamic as Christ. From the house churches of the early Church to the Megachurches of the modern era, the Church has found a way to read scripture, pray, sing, preach, and observe the sacraments of communion and baptism in a variety of contexts together. We must do so again. We will do so again. It saddens me that because the Church looks differently during this pandemic, individual leaders are convinced the Church has met "zero" times. Jesus met the needs of the world while homeless. Surely we can do the same.