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Mission Council
1 Our meetings
1.1 During the year Mission Council has met at High Leigh, Hoddesdon; the Arthur Rank Centre at Stoneleigh; and All Saints Pastoral Centre, London Colney. Those with long experience of these meetings have said that during this year Mission Council has found a sense of purpose and a method of working that has been elusive previously.
1.2 The Moderator has made a valuable contribution. In particular he encouraged the Council to listen to the Bible, rather than study it, and to respond in worship. His gentle and sensitive leadership has enabled the Council to handle important and sometimes complex issues in a positive spirit. That work has been undergirded by the contribution of his chaplain, Stephen Thornton, who has used words and music in worship that has been at the heart of the meetings.
1.3 At the October meeting Provincial representatives were asked to say from a local church perspective which particular issues needed to be on the agenda of Mission Council. Care has been taken to ensure that these issues are being taken up in one way or another.
2 Responding to the Assembly
2.1 Report of an appeal to the 1994 General Assembly (Record pp1-4)
The subject of this appeal was an unhappy situation which had arisen in a particular place in the course of setting up a new group pastorate. Events have moved on considerably since and the case is of no further concern to a wider audience. However the Assembly Commission which heard the appeal asked the Mission Council to consider certain questions regarding the creation of group pastorates and the grouping of churches generally.
Over the past two years or so various groups of people have looked at the questions on behalf of Mission Council. What appeared to be simple questions have proved to be very complex and to lead the discussion into several broader areas. Mission Council offers these comments as a rather belated response to the Assembly Commission request, along with the assurance that it has asked its Advisory Group to set up a working group to look at the wider issues of the grouping of churches. This work is seen to be of considerable importance.
2.2 1995 Assembly resolution 50. This resolution asked Mission Council to carry out a review of our present understanding and practice of oversight, and in particular to consider the work and responsibilities of moderators of provincial synods. A lot of work has been done, first by a special task group and then by the Mission Council Advisory Group. This work is being collated into a single paper and then, as a next stage, district councils and synods will be asked to look at the ways in which they share oversight with provincial moderators.
2.3 1996 Assembly resolution 54. This resolution asked Mission Council to review procedures for the discipline of all church members, whether they be ordained or not, and also procedures in the case of pastoral difficulty or breakdown. Work was done on this and the following response is offered to Assembly.
1. Discipline of members. After some initial work was done on this, it was agreed that there was a prior need for study on the nature and understanding of church membership. This task has been given to the Doctrine, Prayer and Worship Committee.
2. Discipline of local church officers. It was recognised that some guidelines on this could be helpful and the Thames North Province has agreed to produce some.
3. Procedures in the event of pastoral difficulties or breakdown. This also was looked into with care and Mission Council makes its response as follows:
3.1 Dealing with pastoral difficulties and breakdown is primarily the responsibility of elders’ and church meetings, together with the district council and provincial moderator in certain circumstances. District councils in particular need to be sure that their procedures are reviewed and publicised at regular intervals, and that available resources of support are also made known.
3.2 Provinces are urged to give support and training to those who may be involved in seeking to resolve difficulties. In particular, attention is drawn to the experiment of appointing pastoral consultants in Thames North Province, and the organisation of courses in conflict management and intervention in East Midlands, Thames North and Southern Provinces.
2.4 1997 Assembly resolution 18. At its October meeting Mission Council gave a great deal of time to considering how this resolution, calling for more study on human sexuality, would best be implemented. It agreed to the following proposal:
Mission Council should remit responsibility for the implementation of resolution 18 to a core group of 5 of its senior members, plus the General Secretary, who will act as secretary. ‘Senior’ is intended to describe gifts and experience rather than age.
The core group would work through the conveners of the sub-groups described in paragraph 2 below. It would be responsible for arranging the ecumenical consultation required by the resolution. This requirement must also take account of the position of LEP’s and the recognition of ministers of and by other denominations. It would consider and respond to requests for the appointment of co-opted members to each Working Group. It would negotiate the allocation of Assembly appointed staff to any sub groups to be the in-house contact person. This would be considered with due sensitivity with regard to the workload of the staff.
The core group would oversee the work of the following four sub-groups and in due course would report to Mission Council. The sub-groups would be:
Biblical authority (6 people)
Authority of General Assembly and other councils; and the role of personal conviction (6 people)
Ordination and human sexuality (8 people)
Reflection on wider issues of sexuality (8 people)
The Core Group, as part of its role, will give consideration to the implications of the findings of the working groups because this work is not an end but part of a process. The Core Group will report to the March 1999 Mission Council with a view to a report being submitted to Assembly.
The core group should be asked to consider the possibility of publishing discussion papers on any or all of the areas of its remit, in order to allow wider discussion of the issues involved so that people can be prepared for Assembly discussion.
The treasurer would be asked to authorise an overspend on the 1997 and 1998 budgets to allow this work to begin. A separate budget figure would be negotiated within the Mission Council budget for 1999.
The names of those appointed to the core group and the sub-groups were printed in Reform.
2.5 1997 Assembly resolution 19. This resolution on human sexuality gave rise to a great deal of correspondence and to requests from individuals, church meetings and district councils that it be suspended or rescinded at the earliest opportunity. Mission Council gave time at its October meeting to hear these requests and also to hear comments from those with other and different opinions. A long discussion gave rise to the unanimous acceptance of the following resolution, which was circulated with a covering letter to all members of Synods: Mission Council
a) has received and heard calls from a number of District Councils, churches, ministers and members to suspend or rescind Resolution 19. After careful reflection, Mission Council is of a mind that it is neither appropriate nor within its power to take such action;
b) expresses its continuing concern for the unity, peace and well-being of the United Reformed Church, and reaffirms the vital significance of Resolutions 17 and 18 which emphasise the need for a spirit of unity and for further work to be done;
c) understands General Assembly not finally to have defined the United Reformed Church’s attitude to homosexual relationships and sees Resolution 19 as holding options open until the Resolution 18 process is complete;
d) urges all the councils and members of the church to speak and act with that sympathy and compassion to which Christ calls us.
2.6 1997 Assembly resolution 41. This resolution instructed the officers of Assembly to form a working group to enable sensitive care of district councils, churches and individuals who felt pain and distress as a result of the passing of resolution 19, and asked Mission Council to review the work of the group.
The officers appointed Elizabeth Caswell, Malcolm Hanson, Jim Hollyman, Glyn Jenkins, Lis Mullen and John Waller to this task. Only a very small number of people have sought help from the group. However Mission Council has asked the group to remain in being at least until September 1998 when the position will be reviewed again. This resource remains available.
2.7 1997 Assembly resolution 40. At the time of the preparation of this report, work was not completed on establishing agreed standards for the use of Information Technology at all levels of the denomination. A full report will be made to the Assembly.
3 Actions on behalf of Assembly.
3.1 Minutes Secretary. Mission Council expressed the thanks of the Church to Mrs Christine Hardwick, the retiring minutes secretary, and appointed Mrs Sally Brooks as minutes secretary to Mission Council and Assembly for a period of 4 years, ending with the Assembly of 2001.
3.2 Stipends and pensions. During the year Mission Council acted for the Assembly in passing the following three resolutions:
3.3 Composition of the Ecumenical Committee. This committee had eight ‘core’ members (i.e. appointed by Assembly and not by other committees). Of these, the Nominations Committee has made it a practice to propose at least one person from Scotland and one from Wales. Mission Council agreed to increase the size of the Committee to eight ‘core’ members plus one person appointed by the Synod of Wales and one by the Mid-Scotland District Council, or its successor.
3.4 Moderator of Thames North Provincial Synod. Acting on behalf of Assembly, Mission Council appointed the Revd Roberta Carol Rominger as Moderator of the Synod for a period of seven years from 1 September 1998.
3.5 The attention of Mission Council was drawn to the fact that no provision had been made in the disciplinary provisions for ministers to allow the work of the Disciplinary Commission to continue whenever its Secretary was not available. The following resolution was passed to cover such situations: (Res. 98/16, p7)
In the event of the unavailability of the Secretary of the Commission to carry out necessary duties, Mission Council, acting on behalf of General Assembly, appoints the Convener of the Assembly Arrangements Committee to act as Secretary.
4 Other actions
4.1 In the previous year Mission Council gave attention to the report of the task group on Authority, but it had not formed any conclusions. However, following the creation of groups under Assembly resolution 18, it was decided that the best way forward was to offer the report as a working document to the groups on the authority of the Bible and the authority of the Councils of the church. Any other group or individual in the Church who would like to have a copy of the task group’s report may obtain one from the Deputy General Secretary.
4.2 Following advice from its Staffing Advisory Group, Mission Council renewed the post of Secretary for Ecumenical Relations for a period of 5 years from 1 September 1998, and also gave approval to the posts of Pilots Development Officer; Church Related Community Work Development Officer; and Centre Minister at Yardley Hastings.
4.3 East Midlands, Mersey and Wales Provinces submitted their proposals for using their share of the CWM gift of grace. These were warmly endorsed by Mission Council.
4.4 The change to Provincial management of Youth and Children’s Work Trainers and Youth Leadership Training Officers was completed during the year. Mrs Helen Brown was thanked for her thorough work in managing the change. It was agreed that the oversight of the programme, on behalf of Assembly, should remain the responsibility of the Training Committee.
4.5 Work was done during the year to seek a way to bring the Holiday Forum back within the committee structure of the Church. In recent years it has been run by an independent group. Mission Council was happy to learn that agreement had been reached with the group, and that the Discipleship, Stewardship and Witness Committee would give oversight to the Forum.
4.6 Mission Council received a report from the Doctrine, Prayer and Worship Committee on the Theology of Ministry. This was part of the response to the Patterns of Ministry report. It was agreed that there should be a two year consultation period and that more work should be done on certain aspects.
4.7 Roger Whitehead was thanked for his pioneering work as Secretary of the Advisory Group on Grants and Loans when he retired on 31 December 1997. David Lane, an elder in Purley, has been appointed in his place.
4.8 The General Secretary read to the Council a letter he had received from Preman Niles, the General Secretary of the Council for World Mission. (The letter was published in Reform.) CWM urged the United Reformed Church to reduce the amount of its annual contribution and to use the money thus saved for mission at home. Mission Council was appreciative of the content of the letter and began a discussion of the implications whilst considering the budget aspects of the Resource Planning Advisory Group report. The letter helped to give mission a high profile in the discussion.
4.9 Mission Council agreed to a proposal that the archives of the Presbyterian Church of England Overseas Mission Committee and those of the Women’s Missionary Association be placed on permanent loan to the Council for World Mission, so long as they are kept at the School of Oriental and African Studies in the University of London.
4.10 The Resource Sharing task group is a means of sharing resources between the synods. The particular focus of its work has been to encourage the wealthier provinces to share some of their money with the poorer ones.
The work is now clearly centred in the annual consultation with the synods. As a result of the two consultations in 1997:
Acknowledging that the inequality of distribution of resources between the synods remains a weakness, the Task Group has every reason to be thankful that the Resource Sharing initiative is one of the ‘success stories’ of the Church. The response of the March 1997 synods was very positive, and signalled generosity and concern for the life of the whole Church. There is now a great deal of openness between the synods, as information about the availability and use of financial resources is shared. Such progress is a cause for celebration.
4.11 The Advisory Group on Grants and Loans is an advisory group of Mission Council. However, because its work has a wide impact on the life of churches and communities throughout the country, this year a full report on the Group’s work is being published as Appendix 8.
4.12 A paper from the Mission Council Advisory Group concerning Assembly Moderators’ diaries was received and approved. For a trial period of four years beginning in 1999, arrangements will be made for Moderators to visit one quarter of the districts during their year of office. This will ensure that during the period each district will receive one visit from a Moderator, in addition to any that may be arranged independently. The General Secretary will administer this scheme in consultation with each Moderator. It will be reviewed before the end of the four-year period.
4.13 The Revd Marjorie Lewis-Cooper began her work as the multi-racial, multi-cultural worker at the time of last year’s Assembly. After a period of acclimatisation, and the making of appropriate contacts, her work for the remainder of the first year has concentrated on a series of extended visits to each of the synods. At the conclusion of each visit she has sent a report to the synod in order to encourage reflection and reaction. It is too soon to offer any overall assessment of this work but Mission Council is well aware of the gifts Marjorie has brought to her ministry - penetrating analysis, theological insight, effective communication, an infectious sense of humour and a vibrant Christian faith. A management group works on behalf of Mission Council to oversee this programme and to give support and encouragement to the person at its heart. The present members of this group are Sandra Ackroyd, Peter Brain, Mia Hilborn, John Macauley, Simon Walkling and John Waller.
Millennium Task Group Committee Members
Convener: Revd Elizabeth Caswell Secretary: Revd Roger Whitehead Revds Peter Brain, Bill Wright, Sheila Maxey, Daphne Beale, Bill Mahood, Joan Grindrod-Helmn, Kristin Ofstad, Peter Southcombe, Chrissy Ross.
1 A threefold commitment 1.1 At last year’s General Assembly the United Reformed Church committed itself to a three-fold approach to celebrating the Millennium: participation with other churches in national plans which would be focused on the theme of ‘A chance to start again’; participation with others in the Jubilee 2000 campaign to tackle international debt; and a call to a year of renewal in 1999.
1.2 During the past year the United Reformed Church has continued to play a full part in the Churches Together in England Millennium Group, increasing our grant to £10,000 per annum until 1999 in order to fund extra staffing. Churches Millennium Enterprises has been founded in order to control and market materials, with Newstart Ltd as its trading arm. 1.2.1 Support for Jubilee 2000 has been considerable and the United Reformed Church has budgeted £5,000 pa for 1999 and 2000. The climax will be at the high level of Christian presence in Birmingham on May 16th for the G7/8 Summit, and the presentation of the petition. It is important to remember that the objectives of this campaign have attracted the support of both the current Chancellor of the Exchequer and his predecessor. We look for this support to be translated into action.
1.2.2 The churches have also set the pace for giving a proper spiritual dimension to the Millennium celebrations, and the CTE group’s ideas have won support from the government. Local churches are involved in the plans for the Dome in Greenwich, and in many parts of the country local Churches Together groups are taking the initiative in planning local community events.
1.2.3 A small group has been writing material for the United Reformed Church’s own call to renewal in 1999. We hope that in each Provincial Synod in spring and autumn of that year the themes will be launched, with local churches using the study and worship material between Easter and Pentecost, and in the weeks leading up to Advent. (Such a timetable will allow for ecumenical groups and themes to be shared in during Lent and Advent). The Prayer Handbook for 1999 will reflect the national theme which will focus on the person and work of Jesus Christ.
2 Committees, Task Groups and ecumenical bodies…. can only go so far in encouraging a positive attitude to the Millennium. The onus for making a spiritual impact, and using the turn of the century positively as a time to think through the nature of our society and the values by which we choose to live, falls on local congregations and Churches Together.
3 Millennium News….. is an excellent publication brimful of news and ideas; many different groups come forward with good ideas which churches would benefit from hearing about. The Task Group would like to direct this information to one person in each District and have asked District Councils to appoint someone who will take responsibility for sharing the information.
Assembly welcomes ecumenical co-operation in preparations for the Millennium and recommends
a) the idea of local Churches Together groups giving every home a millennium candle and encouraging the nation to share in the Millennium Resolution on 31st December 1999
b) the New Start theme of the Churches’ Millennium Group, and encourages local churches to consider how they can advocate a New Start for the world’s poor, a New Start at home, and a New Start with God in their own communities
c) the idea of churches following the same general themes during the period Advent 1999 to Epiphany 2000 and welcomes the proposed ecumenical publication of worship material. 1.1 NewStart Ltd will be producing a millennium candle and a copy of the millennium resolution for every household. Local churches are asked to purchase them, and make a gift of them to the homes in their neighbourhood. Obviously there will be a cost in both money and time, as well as a need for inter-church planning, and that planning needs to begin soon.
1.2 It is not often that the church appears on the doorstep to offer a gift. Here is an opportunity to encourage whole neighbourhoods to unite in a non-threatening desire for a better world. The resolution wording will be such that people of different faith, or no faith, may say them with integrity.
1.3 This simple idea is just one example of how churches might reach into their communities. It is hoped that the theme ‘New Start’ will encourage serious thought about how to help overcome poverty, and tackle the unease and spiritual hunger in our world. Let’s put some effort into using this period for worthwhile reflection and hopeful action: it doesn’t have to be just a money-making Theme Park of a celebration.
1.4 Churches which are offering spiritual hope to their local communities will be glad to be able to think and worship following the same themes and using the same materials from Advent to Epiphany. Churches using the revised common lectionary, Partners in Learning, SALT (Scripture Union) and Roman Catholic educational materials will find that for that period they will all be focused on the same themes. There will be supporting worship materials published by the Millennium Group.
Resolution 10 Presidency at the Sacraments in an Emergency In 1997 Assembly passed the following resolution:
Assembly agrees to ratify its decision of July 1997 to add the following words as a footnote to paragraph 24 of the Basis of Union:
‘The provisions of paragraph 24 are intended to establish the principle that worship should be led by representative persons recognised by the wider church as well as by the local church. The provisions do not prevent the congregation assembled for a baptismal or communion service from themselves appointing, as a church meeting, a suitable person to preside at the celebration of the sacrament in a case of emergency, for example if the expected president is taken ill or held up in travel. The provisions do not require such an action rather than a postponement of the baptismal or communion service if that seems preferable.’ 1. Assembly in 1997 fixed 23 March 1998 as the date by which objections to this addition to the Basis of Union could be registered by Synods. No such objections have been received. The resolution is therefore brought back for a second vote.
Resolution 11 Changes to the Structure General Assembly agrees to make the following changes to the Structure of the United Reformed Church (see the procedure for constitutional amendment set out in paragraph 3(1) of the Structure): a) Amend the existing category at paragraph 2(3)(a) by adding the words: ‘and Assembly appointed ministers who are members of a United Reformed Church in that district.’
b) Amend the existing category at Paragraph 2(4)(h) to read: ‘All retired ministers not covered by clause 2.4.a or clause 2.4.g residing within the province or nation served by the synod, who shall be associate members of the synod having the right to speak but not to vote at meetings of the synod.
c) In the existing category at paragraph 2(5)(c) delete the words: ‘departments and’.
d) In the third sentence of the concluding section of Paragraph 2(5) delete the words: ‘department or’.
e) In the fifth sentence of the concluding section of Paragraph 2(5) delete the words: ‘department or’.
f) In the existing category at Paragraph 2(5)(ii) delete the words ‘departments and’.
g) Amend the existing Paragraph 3(1)(f) to read: ‘If by such date such notice has not been received, a motion to agree the proposed amendment shall come before the General Assembly at its next meeting. Such a motion shall require a simple majority of the members present and voting to pass.’ 1 The current Structure is printed as Appendix B to the Proposals for Union with the Congregational Union of Scotland.
2 Part a) ensures that Assembly appointed ministries are automatically members of a district council.
3 Part b) seeks to clarify the category of synod membership of retired ministers who are serving as interim moderators.
4 Parts c) to f) simply deletes out of date references to departments.
5 Part g) permits the Assembly to decide that a resolution to ratify an earlier decision to change the Basis or Structure be not put.
Resolution 12 Changes to the Rules of Procedure General Assembly agrees to make the following changes to the Rules of Procedure for the Conduct of the United Reformed Church:
Amend the existing Paragraph 1(1) by inserting the following before the present final sentence: a) ‘At the completion of the business of the Annual Meeting of the Assembly, the Assembly is adjourned. The members of Assembly at any time between Annual Meetings of the Assembly remain those who were included on the Roll of Assembly at the constitution of the immediately preceding Annual Meeting of the Assembly.’
b) Amend the existing Paragraph 1(4) by replacing the word ‘four’ in the third sentence with ‘two’.
c) Number the existing unnumbered final paragraph of section 1 as 1(5). 1 Part a) clarifies the membership of Assembly between Annual Meetings of the Assembly.
2 Part b) allows and district councils to make necessary changes to their lists of representatives to Assembly nearer to the start of the Assembly.
Resolution 13 Election of Assembly Officer General Assembly, acting under paragraph 2(5) of the Structure of the United Reformed Church, elects the Treasurer, for the time being, of the United Reformed Church to be an officer of the Assembly. 1 The current officers of the Assembly are: the Moderator, the General Secretary, the Deputy General Secretary, the Clerk of Assembly and the Convener of the Assembly Arrangements Committee. This resolution would add the Treasurer.
Resolution 14 Disciplinary procedures Assembly resolves to increase the size of the Commission Panel established under the ministerial disciplinary procedures from 25 members to a maximum of 50 members. 1 Under these procedures an Appeals Commission of 5 members, chosen from the Commission Panel, has to be appointed to consider each case. Considerations of balance and of necessary skills have to be considered in setting up each Appeals Commission. What was not realised in setting the total number at 25 was that it may take a considerable time for a particular case to be heard and that therefore the number of Appeals Commissions in place at any one time could be larger than the present Panel could resource. This resolution enables such a situation to be avoided.
Resolution 15 Disciplinary Process Noting that Mission Council has resolved to conduct a review of the Ministerial Disciplinary Process in March 1999, Assembly authorises the General Secretary, the Clerk and the Convener of the Ministries Committee to oversee the Process on its behalf, at least until such review has been completed. 1 Whilst the disciplinary Process has been set up and is in operation, no group has been given authority by the Assembly to deal with any questions that arise concerning the Process as a whole. Mission Council has already recognised the need for an early review. This resolution designates certain officers as a group to have oversight of the Process, at least until the review is undertaken.
Resolution 16 General Secretary Assembly re-appoints the Revd Anthony Gerald Burnham as General Secretary for a period of two years, ending on 31 July 2001. 1 Mr Burnham was appointed for a seven-year term beginning July 1992. He will reach the age of 65 in March 2001. Under the powers given to it, Mission Council set up a review group. After discussion, the group was unanimous in bringing the above resolution to Mission Council. In turn, Mission Council was unanimous in adopting it. Tribute was paid to Mr Burnham’s leadership, commitment, energy and vision - as well as to his pastoral support throughout the Church.
Resolution 17 Visit to the Northern Province Assembly agrees that in 2001 a visit to the Northern Province will be made on its behalf by a team of 3 people. 1 The background to this resolution is a request from the Synod of the Northern Province to the Mission Council that it should appoint a Pastoral Commission to visit the province in 2001. The Synod further proposed that Mission Council should prepare a programme of similar visits to the other provinces.
2 The objective of the visit is seen as encouraging the Northern synod to consider its life and work, goals and methods; to enable affirmation and critique of the synod’s structures and patterns of work; and to promote reflection on the operation of the Synod in relation to other councils of the Church, ecumenical partners, and community organisations.
3 Mission Council believes that any such visit should be made on behalf of General Assembly, as part of its responsibility of oversight. It is therefore advising Assembly on what it believes to be a right response.
4 There was doubt within Mission Council as to the value of such a visit, when measured against the time and resources it would use. The visit to the Northern synod is therefore seen as something of a pilot, with the possibility that in future other synods might want to opt in to such a scheme. It would then be possible to make a judgement as to whether regular visits to synods should become part of the life of the Assembly.
Resolution 18 Use of Colleges Assembly resolves to recommend the use of Northern, The Queen’s and Westminster Colleges for initial ministerial training for the foreseeable future. 1 At present the United Reformed Church uses Mansfield College, Oxford; Northern College, Manchester; The Queen’s College, Birmingham; and Westminster College, Cambridge, in addition to a number of recognised courses, for initial ministerial training.
2 The background to this resolution is a concern of several years’ standing that the number of students coming for initial ministerial training was dropping below the level required to supply an adequate number of students to each college. Whilst there is debate about what precisely the required level is, it has to do with having year groups of sufficient size to enable effective learning together and also the need of colleges which are dependent on fee income to have a certain minimum number of students. The question is complicated by the increase in the number of training options open to students now and by the fact that all the colleges operate in ecumenical relationships with the consequence that decisions affecting them may also affect others.
3 This concern caused the Assembly of 1995 to put a limit on the guaranteed future life of Westminster College. It also led to the Training Committee proposing in 1997 that we should cease to use The Queen’s College. This proposal was rejected by Mission Council. 4 Uncertainty of this sort does not help any of our training institutions. In the autumn of 1997 the Training Committee set up an independent review group to consider and make recommendations concerning the number of colleges which the United Reformed Church should use in the foreseeable future. The group sent members to visit all four colleges as well as receiving representatives at one of its meetings. In a lengthy report prepared for Mission Council this group concluded that initial ministerial training should be focused at Northern and Westminster Colleges, that The Queen’s College should continue to be used in a few instances, and that Mansfield College should no longer be used for initial ministerial training.
5 At the end of a long and difficult discussion Mission Council agreed to put forward the above resolution. It decided to defer any decision regarding Mansfield College for 12 months. This was to allow consultation with all interested parties and to allow the College time to respond to the 1997 inspection report. It was also to allow the colleges named in the resolution to plan ahead with a reasonable degree of certainty. The effect of this resolution, if passed, will be that at least for the academic year 1998/9 initial ministerial training will continue at four colleges. Discussion about the future use of Mansfield will take place at the March 1999 Mission Council to enable a further report to be made to the next General Assembly.
Resolution 19 Procedure for Union The General Assembly agrees that the process of decision on the Proposals for Union with the Congregational Union of Scotland be according to paragraph 3(1) of the Structure of the United Reformed Church in the United Kingdom The effect of this resolution is to define the process as being the same as for a constitutional amendment. This means that the matter comes before two Annual Meetings of the Assembly and, in between, will be referred to provincial synods and, in this case, district councils.
This decision, according to paragraph 3(2) of the Structure, requires a two-thirds majority of those present and voting to pass.
Resolution 20 Union with the Congregational Union of Scotland The General Assembly gives first approval to the Proposals for Union with the Congregational Union of Scotland (document dated March 1998) including the Amendments to the Basis and Structure of the United Reformed Church in the United Kingdom listed in Appendix C of the document, and refers these Proposals to synods and district councils. The document containing the Proposals to form the United Reformed Church by a union of the Congregational Union of Scotland with the United Reformed Church in the United Kingdom was finally agreed by the Joint Negotiating Group in March 1998. The Proposals build on the earlier Proposals of January 1988 which were given first approval by the Assembly in May 1988. However they were not approved by the Assembly of the Congregational Union of Scotland and the process ended.
In 1996 the Assembly of the Congregational Union of Scotland resolved to initiate discussions with the United Reformed Church (UK) ‘with a view to effecting the union of our two denominations as soon as possible’. This approach was welcomed by Mission Council and the action in recommencing negotiations was confirmed by the General Assembly in 1997.
Copies of the document containing the Proposals have been circulated to all representatives with Assembly papers. The Proposals are now presented to the Assemblies of both denominations for consideration and decision.
If Assembly agrees to the process proposed in Resolution 19, then this resolution will require a two-thirds majority of those present and voting.
Resolution 21 Consultation with other Councils General Assembly (1) invites district councils and synods to discuss these Proposals and agrees that should any council or synod wish to pass a resolution ‘that these Proposals be not proceeded with’ such resolution must reach the General Secretary by 15 March 1999; and (2) authorises the United Reformed Church (UK) representatives on the Joint Negotiating Group to continue with this work. If more than one-third of the synods or the district councils resolve before 15 March 1999 to oppose the Proposals, the matter will not proceed. If there is no such opposition, the General Assembly of 1999 will be invited to ratify the proposals, a simple majority being required. The views of the Mid-Scotland District Council will be specifically reported to the Assembly.
The members of the Joint Negotiating Group are listed in Appendix F of the Proposals.
Resolution 22 Mission Council Assembly adopts the budget for 1999 as set out on pages 156 and 157 of Appendix 2 The Resource Planning Advisory Group has spent a lot of time during the year in fulfilling its role of giving advice to Mission Council on the use of resources within the context of an overall strategic plan. A large part of the January Mission Council was allocated to a broad look at the mission and ministry of the church.
It is the intention of Mission Council to look in October more closely at the particular questions of the number, recruitment, deployment and use of stipendiary ministers. This discussion will be preceded by consultation with all the provinces.
Before coming to detail on the budget, it is worth recording that many of the emphases agreed in the Five Year Plan presented to the Assembly in 1996 are now being implemented in particular programmes and in the direction of resources:
The one area where progress has been limited is that of growth. However, challenged by a recent letter from the General Secretary of the Council for World Mission (reprinted in Appendix 4), Mission Council has begun to consider how newly-available resources can best be used to stimulate mission.
A new emphasis which has been developed in the past two years is that of bringing our contacts with the world church closer to our own church life in all areas. This is chiefly focused in the Belonging to the World Church programme, which is described elsewhere in Assembly reports. This will require some funding from the general funds of the church. The same is true of our greater contribution to certain world and European ecumenical bodies.
The budget sees a reduction in the amount of money allocated for ministry, chiefly because the allocation to the Pension Fund has been reduced. The last actuarial valuation of the Fund revealed a much smaller deficit and therefore a reduced need for subvention. The cost of ministry is also kept down by a smaller number of ministers on the payroll.
Training costs, on the other hand, are considerably higher. The reasons for this have largely been explained above. Part of the cost of the developments described is reflected in the increased amount allocated for Assembly-appointed staff.
There is need then to comment on the greatest area of change. The grant to CWM is being drastically cut. CWM insists this should not simply be regarded as a saving: it should still be spent on mission. How that should be done requires careful consideration. A comprehensive look at the situation will be discussed in time for the October Mission Council.
Finally, at a time of such significant change and when the future direction of much of our work is under serious discussion, it seems right to hold the level of the total Ministry and Mission Fund requirement at the same figure in 1999 as in 1998. This is made possible by the below-inflation increase in budgeted expenditure and by the use of some of the unexpended income balance.
Copyright © 1998, United Reformed Church
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