Solving Problems By...Creating the Same Problem?

It's funny how sometimes when we combat a problem, all we seem to do is make that very same problem worse. It may even be that in proposing a solution to a potential problem, we actually cause the problem we were trying to avoid in the first place. This isn't just a modern phenomenon; there are historical examples that sometimes make us scratch our heads in wonder.

One example is the way Victor, the bishop of Rome at the end of the second century, handled the issue of the date of Easter. Most of the churches at that time celebrated Easter on the Sunday after the 14th of Nisan, the Jewish date for the Passover. It was widely held that a Sunday was the appropriate day to celebrate the risen Lord, since Sunday was the Lord's Day in commemoration of the resurrection. Still, there were a number of Christians, mostly in Asia Minor, who thought it was most appropriate to commemorate the crucifixion of the 14th of Nisan, and the resurrection two days later, no matter on which day of the week they fell. They were called "Quartodecimans" after the Latin word for fourteen.

The issue had created some small controversy between the parties, but through the middle of the second century both sides had pretty much agreed to let each other celebrate as they chose. Victor. however, decided that unity in the church's observance was paramount, and proclaimed that all churches should call councils and set the date of Easter as the Roman church reckoned it. In fact, a large portion of the church did, but the significant region of Asia Minor was largely Quartodeciman and did not want to change their practice, which was rooted in the practice handed down to them from such figures as Philip, John, and Polycarp.

So, in order to achieve unity, Victor excommunicated the church in Asia Minor! Yes, he decided unity was best achieved by splitting off a large chunk of the church from the majority. The desire for a unified practice may have been a worthy goal (and at Nicaea would become the official position of the church), but Victor's "solution" only created the problem he sought to avoid. The churches of Asia Minor protested strongly, and Irenaeus, who himself followed Roman practice, sent a letter of reprimand to Victor stating that he needed to put a true unity in the church ahead of his desire to enforce a particular practice. To his credit, Victor backed down. He heeded Irenaeus' call not to break fellowship over an issue like this.

What kinds of problems are you facing? Are the solutions you are considering likely to help solve the problem, or might they possibly create the very problems you are trying to avoid? We need to exercise wisdom, particularly when we are standing for Jesus Christ, in order to resolve issues in such a way that the problem is properly dealt with and that we honor God in what we do to solve it.