The executive summary:
Recommendations and Resolutions
1. Towards new ways of being church and deeper engagement in mission
4. Across Britain there are many examples of Christians experimenting
with new forms of church. We are living in a transitional time as new
ways of being church come into being alongside more traditional
forms. We do not believe that traditional church is dying, far from it
in some places, but we do believe that the next decades will be marked
by a ‘mixed economy’ of forms of church. The suggestions and resolutions
in this section are intended to inject some flexibility into our systems
which will allow us to explore how things might be done differently,
whilst maintaining an essential accountability to each other.
5. Communication is the key to all relationships. We have been impressed
by the dynamism of networks of workers and enthusiasts in the
church. Some of our most significant and successful pieces of work have
been generated in this way. We need to learn from major charities like
the National Trust and Christian Aid. Direct contact is about good
relationships. All projections about future communications strategies
predict a huge increase in computer use. We doubt that there is any
church in the URC where at least one person is not on-line.We therefore
suggest that the church should explore the creation of an e-mail direct
mailing network and the use of other ways of using electronic media
which will allow members and adherents greater access to, and
participation in, the life of the United Reformed Church.
Resolution 37
General
Assembly instructs the Communications and Editorial Committee to
undertake a feasibility study on the use of electronic media as a method
of communication in the United Reformed Church and to report to the 2006
Assembly.
6. In 2003
central committees cost us £138,181. We are not convinced that
committees are in every case the most productive way of achieving the
ends of policy and programmes, and we give due notice that during 2005
we will be considering other options for achieving those goals.
7.One of our
greatest achievements has been the creation of the Ministry & Mission
Fund and the centralised payment of ministers. Those whose memories are
long enough will recall the previous system of paying ministers locally
and therefore understand the magnitude of the achievement. However,
experience of some Synods failing to meet their pledges for the last two
years suggests that a review of the Fund and its operation is badly
needed. We recommend that this take place during 2005/6 and that a
report be made to the 2006 Assembly.
Resolution 38
General
Assembly instructs the Treasurer to conduct a review of the Ministry &
Mission Fund and report to the 2006 Assembly.
• Fundraising and
the creation of an income rather than expenditure led budget
8. We have been
deeply impressed by the giving in local churches. This is particularly
noteworthy when the objectives are clear, such as building and re-furbishment
projects, Commitment for Life and many other good causes. We believe
this bears witness to the generosity of God’s people, and we believe
that to be a response to God’s generosity to us. We also note the
increase in outside funding available for faith-based community
projects.
9. This is in
marked contrast to the giving to the general funds of the church through
the Mission and Ministry Fund. We believe that the church needs to ‘get
real’ about stewardship (which in other professional worlds is called
fundraising). We are lamentably unprofessional in our approach. During
2005/6 we will be considering the possibility of appointing a
professional Director of Fundraising for a five year period.
10. We know that
the expertise exists within the United Reformed Church to turn some of
the unwanted hulks of yesteryear into possibilities of spiritual and
community regeneration. Three Synods are exploring what might be
possible, and reports will be made to Mission Council and Assembly in
due season.
11. One of the
United Reformed Church’s success stories is the Special Category
Ministry Scheme (hereafter SCM). Assembly has made 30 places available
for stipendiary Ministers to serve outside standard Synod quotas in
posts which could not otherwise be supported. Several posts are usually
filled by full-time Education Chaplains and others by Workplace
Chaplains; these Ministers are almost invariably working in settings
where they represent the whole Christian Church and not just the United
Reformed Church. Most of the other posts are pioneering roles, often
with no guarantee of success, but with a view to building up the work of
the Church in support of God’s mission. All SCM posts are subject to
careful oversight and periodic review.
12. The Catch the
Vision process, and especially the responses to the Equipping the Saints
report, suggest there are several needs that we could best address by
expanding and broadening the SCM scheme. In particular:
i. the
outstanding commitment to develop a ministry of Evangelists;
ii. the need to
be able to call ministers with the necessary language skills and
cultural background to serve in our multicultural congregations;
iii. the need to
find a way to welcome onto the United Reformed Church Roll of Ministers
those from other denominations with particular skills and callings;
iv. the need to
have resources available to encourage new ways of being Church.
13. An expansion
of the SCM scheme and opening its posts up to a wider range of people
would allow us a controlled way of responding to these needs within
proper financial disciplines. To achieve the maximum benefit, we propose
that it should be possible for the Scheme to fund work jointly with
other sources of money and that in exceptional cases it could support a
lay person with key skills for a particular mission challenge. There are
some specialist chaplaincy posts, for example, for which lay as well as
ordained candidates are suitable.
14. The SCM is
funded from the Ministry and Mission Fund and that would continue. As
the money cannot be spent twice, an expansion of the SCM scheme would
reduce the money available for supporting other forms of ministry; but
even after the gradual expansion proposed had been fully implemented,
the impact on Synod deployment quotas would be small compared with the
reductions already agreed by Assembly due to falling membership numbers.
Resolution 39
General
Assembly rejoices in the valuable and creative work done by the small
minority of ministers working under the Special Category Ministry
scheme, who are complemented and supported by the equally crucial work
led by ministers in more traditional roles. Noting the pleas from around
the Church for ministry in situations where no suitable United Reformed
Church minister is available, and requests for the Ministry and Mission
Fund to be used more flexibly, Assembly resolves:
a. to
increase the maximum number of posts on the Special category Ministry
scheme by six (full time equivalents) in each of the five years 2006 to
2010;
b. to make the
additional posts open not just to United Reformed Church ministers but,
where appropriate, also to accredited ministers of sister Churches and
to suitably qualified lay people:
c. to continue to
fund the scheme within the Ministry and Mission Fund, recognising that
some posts might require a financial contribution from local sources;
and
d. to request the
Ministries Committee to continue to administer the Special Category
Ministry scheme, including overseeing the support and accountability
structures for each post.
2. Towards a slimmer, more rigorous
organisation
16. The detailed
argument for this proposal is to be found in
pp 15-25. Reference should
also be made to
pp 11-14
Resolution 40
General
Assembly resolves that there shall be one level of council between the
General Assembly and the local church
Resolution 41
General
Assembly resolves that as from General Assembly 2007, there shall be one
level of council between the General Assembly and the local church, the
thirteen ‘new Synods’.
Resolution 42
General
Assembly appoints a Commission of Assembly to investigate the creation
of a London Synod, to report back to the 2006 Assembly.
17. Our
traditions treated their ‘Assemblies’ in different ways. Presbyterianism
regarded its Assembly as primarily a business meeting, there to set
policy and act as the supreme court of the church. Congregationalism’s
traditions were of annual meetings which were not simply deliberative
but also inspirational, and the Churches of Christ followed a broadly
similar pattern. The structure of the United Reformed Church ensures
that its Assembly is structured in a presbyterian manner, but it behaves
in a way which encompasses all its inherited traditions. Those functions
will inevitably be interwoven to some degree.
18. The Assembly
Arrangements Committee have thought at length about Assembly. Their
concerns are partly finance driven. Assembly is a very expensive
exercise. It costs us upwards of £250,000 pa (and rising) – or £7,000
per hour of debate. It is annual, and it is the same size as it was in
1972 when our church was twice the size it is now. We note that every
time Assembly has debated its size with a view to reducing it, it has
actually increased it.
19. We wish to
test the mind of the church that a radical change is needed. We believe
that the proposal we bring will reduce the costs to church
significantly, and ensure more efficient government. We propose that an
Assembly of 250 meet every two years for five days. We believe this
would save in the region of £170,000 pa.
Resolution 43
General
Assembly resolves that, as from 2007, General Assembly shall meet every
two years.
Resolution 44
General
Assembly instructs the Assembly Arrangements Committee to prepare a
detailed scheme for a representative Assembly of 250 people, and report
to the 2006 Assembly.
20. The
governance of the church needs closer attention than we have yet been
able to give it. We need to do more work in this area and we will report
to the Assembly of 2006. We are very conscious of the fact that we do
not presently fulfil the trustee requirements of the Charity Commission,
and will seek to include a method that will satisfy them within our
recommendations. We are attracted by the idea of a ‘Council of the
Synods’ which would bring together (say) 26 people as an executive which
would meet every two months, and include elected Trustees. We also
believe there should be a wider gathering from the Synods which would
meet twice a year to review and steer the policy and mission strategy of
the church. However, we have much work to do on this, and would be
grateful to receive advice, either directly from Assembly, or by
correspondence.
3. Towards renewed ecumenical
commitment
21. Our
commitment to ecumenism is unwavering. The United Reformed Church is
not, nor will it ever be, a builder of barriers that prevent ministers
of other churches from presiding at the sacraments in our churches and
pastoring our congregations. We long for the day when the church
universal will share that openness, but we recognise that it is not
yet. We remain committed to the belief that unity is an essential
prerequisite of effective mission, and are sad when creative local
possibilities are disabled by barriers to which we do not subscribe.
22. The
Ecumenical Committee were asked by last year’s Assembly to assess what
possibilities exist for us to ‘….take further steps towards the unity of
all God’s people.’ Their considered response to that request is to be
found in
pp 28-29. After due care and thought, they bring proposals
which will allow us to develop further our relationships with our
closest ecumenical partners. Their hope is that these conversations
might further the mission of the church in these islands by patiently
addressing the barriers that still exist to our joint working. However,
they are persuaded, after due and diligent discussion amongst our
ecumenical partners, that the time is not ripe for the proposal of unity
schemes. That is not to be interpreted as a measure of our commitment,
but rather as a sensible reading of the position of our partners and a
due recognition of their varying priorities. However, our goal (as it
was in 1972) continues to be the visible unity of the people of God. We
believe that this should therefore be under constant review.
-
Deepening
mutual understanding with our closest ecumenical partners.
-
On-going
discussions with the Methodist Church about the possibilities of
bringing our two national operations closer together.
-
Challenge all
local churches to explore again local ecumenical possibilities
Resolution 45
General
Assembly asks all congregations to look again for more local ecumenical
possibilities and encourages an increase in the percentage of local
churches involved in formally recognised ecumenical situations.
Resolution 46
General
Assembly instructs whatever Councils now and in the future represent the
structure between local church and General Assembly to plan a coherent
strategy for local ecumenism appropriate for each place.
23. As a stirrer
for the imagination we also offer the idea of an alliance as used by the
world of business, most popularly seen in airlines. This idea had its
origins in the deliberations of the Ecumenical Committee. Alliances give
some of the benefits of a single operation to both their customers and
the participating airlines whilst at the same time keeping individual
airline identities, features, modes of operation, etc. and even
competition between them within the alliance. In the church this would
bring some of the benefits of organic unity whilst at the same time
retaining the diversity embodied in separate denominational
identities. Beginning with the things we already have in common with our
closest partners (recognition of baptism and membership) could we create
a “Church of churches” which would have a common identity (enabling
outreach) whilst maintaining separate identities and unique
characteristics? In this model all the members of the participating
churches would be members of both the body and their own denomination,
but able to undertake some common initiatives (e.g. advertising) and to
seek economies of scale in administrative matters and even possibly
programme areas where possible, to release resources for a common
outreach, and over time to grow together.
Resolution 47
General
Assembly affirms further explorations of the idea of ‘a Church of
churches’ and informal conversations between the Ecumenical Committee
and our ecumenical partners.
24. We sometimes
assume that our commitment to ecumenism is obvious because of our
history and our commitment to local ecumenism. That is sometimes more
obvious to ourselves than it is to our partners. If we are actually
serious about preparing ourselves for further ecumenical engagement, we
need to work on two specific parts of our life. The first is the
theology and practice of eldership. Although commonplace in the Reformed
world, eldership is simply not understood by our ecumenical partners who
find an ordained lay ministry at best a paradox. Indeed, if we are
honest we must admit first, that we do not actually understand it
ourselves, and second, that it has generated controversy in Reformed
ecclesiology through the centuries. We owe it to ourselves and our
partners to do some thorough work on this.
Resolution 48
General
Assembly instructs Mission Council to oversee a cross-committee report
on Eldership which will bring together Doctrine, Prayer and Worship’s
own work on models within the Reformed tradition with the unresolved
questions from Conversations on the Way to Unity and the work of Life
and Witness about the structures of the local church.
25. The second is
to return to the question of personal episcope which we have not
examined in detail since the English covenant debates of the 1980s (when
we accepted the principle), although we did approve the concept of an
ecumenical bishop for East Cardiff in Wales in 2003. The most natural
dialogue partners for the United Reformed Church in all three nations
include episcopally ordered churches. The Methodist Church (with whom we
have over 300 united churches, 116 of which are three way partnerships
or more) are considering at this Conference how they might take
episcopacy into their system. We will not be able to avoid the question
of episcope in any future unity discussions with our closest
partners. We therefore propose that we begin to consider this question
anew.
Resolution 49
General
Assembly instructs the Ecumenical Committee, the Doctrine, Prayer and
Worship Committee and the Advisory Group on Faith and Order, to consult
with our Anglican partners in the three nations to consider how best to
revisit and build on the report ‘God’s reign and our unity', in
particular regarding the issue of episcope.
26. {The Anglican
– Methodist Covenant Joint Implementation Commission has made a
considerable investment in fresh thinking on the idea of Covenant as a
means of taking forward their commitment to full visible unity. We wish
to express a willingness to share in this exploration from our Reformed
background. We hope that this may include in due course other Reformed
Churches in Britain and Ireland}. In brackets because the
Methodist Church may ask ecumenical partners to comment in which case it
is superfluous.
Resolution 50
General
Assembly instructs the Doctrine, Prayer and Worship Committee and the
Advisory Group on Faith and Order to offer a Reformed perspective on the
theme of Covenant.
4. Towards a new spirituality for the
21st century
Developing a
conversation within the United Reformed Church about values and
discipleship which
-
will draw on
our Reformed heritage, the five marks of mission, the three
ecumenical principles and the ‘Catch the Vision’ prayer
-
Creating and
sustaining ‘a learning church’ which is committed to learning about
the faith, how to speak of it and how to live it in
post-Christendom.
27. The need for
learning is expanding, not contracting, for it is part of the spiritual
life-blood of the whole people of God. It is not simply about the
preparation of religious ‘professionals’. Our provision and stewardship
of resources needs to reflect that, and to hold together some of the
tensions that enrich our corporate life, most particularly that between
being ‘united’ and ecumenically committed, and being rooted and
‘Reformed’. It is intended to equip the saints for the ministry to which
Jesus calls us through the life of the world. This resolution will serve
as guidance to the Training Committee for its future formulation of
practice.
Resolution 51
General
Assembly endorses as key training principles for the United Reformed
Church:
-
Integrated education and training to equip the whole people of God
for mission – promoted with coherence and in tune with the polices
flowing from the Equipping the Saints and Catch the Vision reports
-
Ecumenical engagement at every stage
-
The
presentation of a distinctive Reformed Ethos and History in that
ecumenical engagement
-
The
delivery of this policy in a manner appropriate to the circumstances
of the three nations in which the United Reformed Church is
situated.
28. The Racial
Justice and Multicultural Ministry Committee offer to us one of the
dominant contours of the future church. They invite us to make
multiculturalism one of the foundations of our spirituality. Their
argument is given in detail on
pp 33-34.
Resolution 52
The United
Reformed Church declares itself to be a Multicultural Church welcoming
all cultures and ethnicities in worship witness and service, and
celebrating the diverse gifts of the whole people of God for the mission
and ministry God calls us.
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