I'm just throwing this out there to chew on, but it strikes me that there are some notable similarities between the form of government used by the Vikings and that used by the Scotland sprung, Calvin influenced, Presbyterians. Hurstwic, a site dedicated to educating "the general public on the history and culture of the Viking Age" describes the Icelandic government (The Norse form of government that we know the most about because there are more written descriptions from Iceland than other lands of the North men.) as follows:
Throughout the Norse world, open-air governmental assemblies called þing (things) met regularly, usually once a year in most of the Norse lands. Local þing, regional þing, and (in the case of Iceland) a national þing existed, called the Alþing. These meetings were open to virtually all free men. At these sessions, complaints were heard, decisions were rendered, and laws were passed.
Some sources describe the government in even more detail, explaining that:
The ting was the assembly of the free people of a country, province or a hundred (hundare/härad/herred). There were consequently hierarchies of tings, so that the local tings were represented at the higher-level ting, for a province or land. At the ting, disputes were solved and political decisions were made. -- Glen Erikson
Essentially the Vikings used a form of government that included local governing bodies which were in turn mediated by regional governing bodies and at the largest extent by a national governing body, or parliament, called the Althing.
The Presbyterian form of government was instituted by John Knox of Scotland (a country overrun by Vikings during the Middle Ages) and heavily influenced by John Calvin of Geneva (who was born in Noyon, which is located in northwest France close to Normandy where the Vikings (also called Normans or Northmen) settled). Within the Presbyterian church, local churches are governed by elected elders who meet regularly as a session (sometimes called the Consistory). Representatives of the session gather throughout the year in a larger, regional group called the Presbytery (sometimes called the Synod). Members of each Presbytery gather once a year in a national assembly called General Assembly.
| Vikings | Presbyterians | |
| local | local Thing (attended by any free man who wished to attend) | Session/Consistory (attended by elders who were elected (or hired if you're talking about the teaching elder) by the congregation) |
| regional | regional Thing (attended by members of the local Things) | Presbytery/Synod (attended by members of the sessions/consistories) |
| national | Althing (attended by members of the regional Things) | General Assembly (attended by members of the Presbyteries/Synods) |
I have heard it said that the American form of government is directly descended from that of the Presbyterians (such as in this article entitled, A Presbyterian Nation, Thank You). However, I agree with Steve Salyards who believes the two systems developed around the same time and within the same climate and were similar for that reason, not because one was built upon the other. But these parliamentary ideas, which rumbled throughout Europe and overthrew, or radically changed the nature of, many a monarchy, were a chief tenant of the Norse system of government, one that they brought with them as they invaded those very parts of Europe that later felt the rumblings of self-government rise up from within them.
I have often been told that the Presbyterian form of government springs directly from the Bible. Providence OPC (of Chilhowie, Virginia. How's that for a cool name for a town?) sums up this belief rather neatly when it states on its website, "The word 'presbyterian' comes from the New Testament Greek word for 'elder." First and foremost, then presbyterianism is a form of church government based upon the Bible's teaching that since the close of the Apostolic age, Christ has ordained that His church be led and ruled by duly ordained officers known as Elders." This argument, drawing a link between Presbyterian rule and Scripture is about as sound as the argument that an Episcopalian might make that the word "episcopos" comes from the New Testament Greek word for "bishop" and therefore episcopalianism is the form of church government based upon the Bible's teaching.
Please don't read into what I'm saying. I think the Presbyterian form of government is fine as far as institutional church governments go. It's certainly not one that focuses on nurturing and exhorting fellow churches/presbyteries. From what I've heard, meetings of the Presbyteries and General Assembly tend to focus on legal issues (generally regarding the Book of Church Order, which comprises the rules or laws of the institution). But then again, the purpose of the Norse Things tended to be legal in nature as well (although they had a Lawspeaker who had memorized the law and recited it rather than a written book to refer to).
I suppose this whole train of thought leads to other questions. Does church government mean the same thing as church leadership? Or does church government only involve the legal, while church leadership is more pastoral (which would include nurturing and exhorting as opposed to only being concerned with the legality of the church). Should the government of church look different than the government of a nation (in form? in function?)? If so, how so? And perhaps the most important question of all, if the Presbyterian form of government did indeed spring from that of the Norse, should our congregation chip in to outfit our pastor with broadsword and wooden shield before he attends Presbytery next season?
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