The word “pious” has something of an image problem these days. Nobody wants to be labeled as pious. Pious people are roundly criticized for acting self-righteous and sanctimonious.
Pious originates from a 15th century Latin word meaning devout and conscientious in matters of faith. Philipp Jakob Spener (1635-1705) was pious in the original sense of the word. He came to Frankfurt, Germany in 1666 to pastor a Lutheran church and was distressed by the spiritual lethargy he found there. People were going through the motions of worship and paying lip service to the creeds. They weren’t putting into practice what was being taught. Philipp wrote, “Nobody thinks this has anything to do with them.” He lamented the “heavy drinking and riot” among his people. Fellow pastors were abandoning clear gospel preaching in favor of theological nit-picking, what might be called “dead orthodoxy.” Philipp’s remedy for this spiritual malaise was spelled out in his book Pia Desideria (Pious Longings). Of the six pious longings enumerated in his writings, one was the creation of small groups devoted to intentional Bible study and prayer. While he recommended the groups be led by pastors, he centered them on the “priesthood of all believers” principle. Every believer exercises a priestly function by mediating God’s presence and forgiveness to fellow Christians. He drew upon teaching from 1 Corinthians 14.26-40, that everyone has a hymn, prayer or word of instruction to share with each other. While such groups may not seem revolutionary in our time, they were a decided departure from a special class of priests who had sole responsibility for ministering to the faithful.
Did these groups succeed? Yes and no. Some groups thrived while others experienced discord and schism. The Book of Common Prayer, in use in Philipp’s day, leads us to pray for charity in pursuit of truth: