Except for occasional student seminar studies of discipline in a local or district area, very few modern studies have been done on the actual practice of church discipline among Mennonites. If the Anabaptist concept and practice of church discipline already showed diversity, contemporary Mennonite conceptions and practices show even more diversity in Mennonite churches from the Soviet Union to Western Europe, North and South America, Africa, India, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Japan, not to mention Australia. For example, in many congregations of the Mennonite Church, remarriage after divorce is no longer cause for indefinite excommunication as was generally the case until the 1960s. Confidentiality determines that much of this Christian ministry does not become visible. In many cases, however, the only course congregations take is periodic removal of the names of inactive members from the church's membership roster.
Church discipline is a ministry analogous to evangelism and mission.
Like evangelism, the ministry of church discipline proposes to use only the power of the gospel and of the Spirit of God. Like evangelism, church discipline is not punitive, yet it brings erring believers to decision through the word of admonition, which is the presentation of the gospel. The goal of church discipline is thus the restoration of erring believers to the way of discipleship, the realization of a sanctified church, and the enhancement of the church's witness in the world. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.