"As the Church is the aggregate of believers, there is an intimate analogy between the experience of the individual believer, and of the Church as a whole"
- Charles Hodge
About this Quote
In this quote, Charles Hodge is highlighting the connection in between private followers and the church as a collective body. He suggests that the church is comprised of all the followers within it and for that reason, the experiences of private believers are intimately associated with the church as a whole. This implies that the health and growth of the church depends upon the spiritual state of its members. Likewise, the specific believer's spiritual experience is affected by the state of the church. This emphasizes the value of unity, fellowship and the requirement for all followers to interact to support each other in their journey of faith.
"The Church knew what the psalmist knew: Music praises God. Music is well or better able to praise him than the building of the church and all its decoration; it is the Church's greatest ornament"
"I see no faults in the Church, and therefore let me be resurrected with the Saints, whether I ascend to heaven or descend to hell, or go to any other place. And if we go to hell, we will turn the devils out of doors and make a heaven of it"
"The real act of marriage takes place in the heart, not in the ballroom or church or synagogue. It's a choice you make - not just on your wedding day, but over and over again - and that choice is reflected in the way you treat your husband or wife"
"I have a friend who lives in the South Side of Chicago. I helped out at a church charity there where they try to give a bit of cohesion to a desperate area. Everyone was very welcoming"
"The Legislature of Lower Canada, consisting chiefly of Roman Catholics, could hardly be expected to support a church which they were taught to consider heretical, and in Upper Canada the scanty means at the disposal of the Government, precluded all hope"
"For the spiritual sense of the Word treats everywhere of the spiritual world, that is, of the state of the church in the heavens, as well as in the earth; hence the Word is spiritual and Divine"
