In the New Testament there are two words that early translators encountered that have an interesting history. The two words are kuriakos and ecclesia. The vast majority of those encounters were with the word “ecclesia”. A handful of other times, it was the word “kuriakos” or “kuriakon”.
The two words in Greek have different meanings.
The meaning of "Ku-ri-a-kos" is understood by its root: "Ku- ri-os," which means "lord." Thus, "kuriakos" means "pertaining to the lord." It refers to something that pertains to, or belongs to, a lord. The Greek "kuriakos" eventually came to be used in Old English form as "cirice" , then "churche" (kerke), and eventually "church" in its traditional pronunciation.
You can see that etymological history in this common this etymological notation:
Church [Old English cirice, circe; Middle English chereche, chiriche, chirche; whence churche, cherche, etc.: -Greek Kuriakon...]
However, “kuriakos” only turns up twice in the New Testament.
1 Corinthians 11:20
Revelation 1:10
In both cases it is translated as “the Lord’s”
The vast majority of times that the word “church” shows up in the New Testament, the Greek word translated is not “kuriakos”,the word that developed into our modern English “church”, it’s “ecclesia”. For example, when Jesus told Peter “upon this rock I will build my church”, the word used was “ecclesia”.
"Ecclesia" appears in the New Testament approximately 115 times. That's just in this one grammatical form. It appears also in other forms. And in every instance, except three, it is translated as "church” in the King James Version. Those three exceptions are found in Acts 19:32, 39, 41. In these instances the translators rendered it "assembly" instead of "church." But, the Greek word there is exactly the same as the other 112 entries where it was translated as "church”.
It turns out that the Acts 19 translation is closest to the actual Greek meaning. It means a civil body or other organized group of what, in public affairs parlience, is called “opinion leaders”; people whose personal convictions sway that of others.
In Acts 19, "ecclesia" is a rather like a mondern town council: a civil body in Ephesus. Thus, the translators chose to use the word “assembly”. However, the other 112 times they translated this word, that means “an assembly of people with convictions and power to change people’s opinions and decisions” they translated it as "church."
Interestingly, The Greek word "ecclesia" is when disected is defined as: "The called-out (ones)" [ECC = out; KALEO = call]. Thus, you can see how this word was used to indicate a civil body of select (called) people. And could also be used to indicate a group of believers “called” to the work and organized and meeting to do so.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica:
In the New Testament, "ecclesia" (signifying convocation) is the only single word used for church. It (ecclesia) was the name given to the governmental assembly of the city of Athens,duly convoked (called out) by proper officers and possessing all political power including even juridical functions.
Quoting from the Oxford Universal English Dictionary on the word "ecclesia":
Ecclesia [mediaeval Latin, and Greek - from : SUMMONED] -A regularly convoked assembly, especially the general assembly of Athenians. Later, the regular word for church.
So, it seems, there is a broader meaning to the word “church” when it is found in the New Testament. It does not just mean an organized, christian religion, or the building in which they meet, or a particular denomination or organanized group of Christian believers. It means a group of people with a common purpose, any common purpose, that meets to discuss and works to further that purpose. An “ecclesia”.
Try using that definition when you find that word in the New Testament. I think you will find it enlightening and sensible.
“Upon this rock I will build my people who are gathered together with a common purpose.” Matthew 16
“And great fear fell upon all the assembled people at that gathering, and upon as many as heard these things.” Acts 5
“He that speaketh in an unknown tongue edifieth himself; but he that prophesieth edifieth the assembly of people called and gathered together.” 1 Corinthians 14
Etc. Etc.
The Book of Mormon uses the word “church” as well. It is generally used the same way there. And if you understand it there the way it is understood above in the New Testament, it also elucidates the nature of “the great and abominable church” that is discussed in 1 Nephi 13. With this understanding, this phrase is not restricted to meaning a religious organization, but to any organization or assembly of people who are united in a common focus. Which actually makes more sense.
(Side note: in the first half of the 19th century, the word “organization” did not yet carry the definition of “a group of people organized to do something”. — see Websters Dictionsary 1828 edition. That came much later. Therefore the English words used for such in the Book of Mormon translated in that era are “church”, “band”, "assembly", “combination” etc.)
The above is interesting to me (which of course, is why I wrote what I had learned), and perhaps a bit of additional support to the generally accepted notion that when we restrict our definition of “the great and abominable church" to entities or people gathered within a religious structure we are missing quite a bit of the whole.
