Oikonomía, a better way to pastor

There was God’s Will to consider, and God was understood often to give people not what they wanted but what they needed. He dealt with people not according to fixed principles of justice but in ways that would best bring about each soul’s salvation. The Byzantine term for this was oikonomía, and it is still an important aspect of Orthodox Christian pastoral theology. – Brian Patrick Mitchell, Byzantine Empire—or Republic? in The American Conservative, August 7, 2015.

Oikonomía is a term that is difficult for many Orthodox to understand. But, I do not think that it is just us Orthodox. It is a concept that has been hard for both Old Testament and New Testament believers to understand. From Jonah saying to God that he just knew that God was going to forgive Nineveh, to Habakkuk being horrified that God planned to use incredibly evil sinners to discipline Israel, to the shock of those who expected Jesus to condemn the woman caught in adultery (or be accused of breaking the Law and be stoned himself), believers keep being shocked at what God decides is the best way to bring someone to Himself.

The author of the article points out the reason when he says, “He dealt with people not according to fixed principles of justice but in ways that would best bring about each soul’s salvation.” Americans have a strong built in idea that God is a law and order God. There is only one problem. That is not really what God seems to do in Scripture. He does support principles of justice. The prophets constantly rail against injustice. But, God’s purpose is to bring people into his kingdom. And, if a law appears to interfere with bringing someone into the Kingdom of God, then God has no problem in putting that law aside. Thus, the woman caught in adultery is forgiven outside the law because that unexpected forgiveness is precisely what she needs to hear in order to bring her into the Kingdom of God.

At the same time, this does not mean that God will always ameliorate punishment. The principle of oikonomía is also carried out if God chooses to be tougher on someone. Thus, in the Book of Habakkuk, the prophet finds that the best way to bring Israel back to obedience to God is for God to choose to use a thoroughly evil empire to attack Israel, destroy the majority of Israel, cause intense pain and suffering, and leave the country devastated. In some pastoral advice that Saint John Chrysostom gives, he tells the priest that they must judge the discipline that is applied to a sinner. Some sinners, he says, need to have their discipline lightened, lest they faint from weariness and leave the faith. But, some, he says, are hard-headed so that the only way to get their attention and bring change is for the pastor to apply a much harsher discipline than that which is specified by the canons. In all cases, the canon serves only as a guideline and not as a mandatory punishment. While it is true that in most cases Saint John Chrysostom urges a lightening of penalties, yet he makes it clear that some cases require the strengthening of penalties.

Oikonomía is hard to understand because it is not a simple reliance on written laws and guidelines, rather it is a reliance on a relationship based administration of godly guidelines. God understands people and God understands what will best work to give the best possibility that a person will truly come to him and be saved. In the same way, the bishop and his priests and deacons are called not to simply apply the canon, but to so come to know the person involved that when they apply the canon, they will do so in the way that is most likely to preserve that person’s salvation. Thus someone may be ordained much sooner than expected. A discipline for a sin committed by a church member may either be lightened or strengthened. But, at bottom, whatever action is taken must be based on a knowledge of a person and what will most help their journey to salvation.

Oikonomía is often challenged by people who think that if one is never sure how a canon will be applied that this will give too much liberty to a bishop or priest and that this will lead to unfairness and favoritism. What they fail to understand is that a strict adherence to a canon is precisely what will lead to something worse than unfairness, it will lead to death for all too many who fall under that canon. Even if unfairness creeps in, yet the practice of oikonomía will lead to more salvation than to too much unfairness. It is amazing how often people use the phrase, “it’s not fair,” to justify strict adherence to law and canons, even when such adherence leads to more death and less life.

Ultimately, the principle of oikonomía is a higher principle than the principle of law and order. Or, perhaps a much better way to phrase it is that the principle of oikonomía encompasses law and order as an ideal guideline that is modified as necessary in its application in order that the maximum number of people are saved. Sometimes it is modified and applied with much less strictness than the canon specifies, but sometimes it is modified with much heavier discipline than that canon specifies. In all cases, oikonomía looks only at what will bring that person to salvation. And that is a very hard concept for American to understand.

Please note, oikonomía does not allow a priest or bishop to do anything they wish. A woman may not be ordained a priest. An elective abortion may not be approved or blessed. Unjust wages may not be declared moral. Oikonomía is about salvation, not about permissiveness or lawlessness. That is why it is hard to understand.