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6. UNDERLYING ISSUES
After considering the reports of the Working Groups and the correspondence and discussion with other churches, the Core Group reflected on a number of underlying issues which had emerged.
6.1 Multiple theological traditions
6.1.1 We noted first of all that in the history of the Church there has always been more than one theological tradition. Different understandings of the nature, person and work of Christ are clear in the New Testament documents, although a common Christology was worked out in the fourth and fifth centuries. This is reflected in the decrees of the Councils of Nicea (325), Constantinople (381), Ephesus (431) and Chalcedon (451).
6.1.2 In the Latin-speaking West, theology was shaped by St Augustine, with his emphasis on original sin and Christ's work as Redeemer through his atoning death. This tradition was the basis of medieval Catholic theology and the starting point for the Protestant Reformation in the work of Luther and Calvin.
6.1.3 In the East, on the other hand, the work of the Greek Fathers placed more emphasis on creation, new creation and the significance of God's incarnation in Jesus Christ as a hallowing of the created order. This tradition received a new emphasis in late nineteenth-century Anglicanism and has become more widespread in the twentieth century, partly as a result of the ecumenical movement and partly because some have felt it more compatible with modern scientific understanding.
6.2 Theology in the United Reformed Church
6.2.1 Paragraph 18 of the Basis of Union refers to the United Reformed Church's understanding of its faith in relation to Scripture, the catholic tradition of the Church, and its own particular heritage. Of the statements mentioned in that paragraph, the Nicene and Apostles' Creeds bear witness to the catholic faith, and reflect the common Christology of the early Councils. Within the United Reformed Church's own particular heritage, the Westminster Confession and the Savoy Declaration reflect the Western tradition; and the Presbyterian and Congregational statements of 1956 and 1967 reflect the more open ecumenical approach, though their starting point in the Western tradition is clear. (Thomas Campbell's Declaration and Address, which is also mentioned in paragraph 18, is more concerned with ecclesiology than theology.)
6.2.2 The Basis of Union affirms that the United Reformed Church intends to be both catholic and reformed (Basis paragraphs 3, 6 and 9). The Basis also affirms that the life of faith to which the church is called is a gift of the Holy Spirit continually received in Word and Sacrament and in the common life of God's people (paragraph 12); and that in the ministry of the Word, through preaching and the study of the Scriptures, God makes known in each age his saving love, his will for his people and his purpose for the world (paragraph 13). In this way the Basis, whilst expressing confidence that God's eternal purpose is the same from age to age, allows for new expressions of that one purpose in each age (paragraph 9). Thus the United Reformed Church is committed to hold together unity and diversity.
6.3 Unity and Diversity
6.3.1 Diversity, through time and space, is valued as enabling the church to speak appropriately in each place and time. Unity is prized as the manifestation of God's single purpose in all places and all ages. Diversity is valued, not primarily as an inevitable expression of human difference or the creative tension between different views (though it is both those things), but rather as a recognition that the full truth about God and God's purpose cannot be contained or constrained within a single human viewpoint, however inspired. Only in Jesus Christ, claims the Church, is this full truth about God expressed.
6.3.2 The image of the body in 1 Cor 12:14-26 is a classic statement of the relationship between unity and diversity. It is primarily about difference of function rather than difference of view (cf Rom 12:4-5); but the affirmation of inter-dependence is one which we believe we need to hear again today. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honoured, all rejoice together (1 Cor 12:26). The same imagery is used in Ephesians 4:1-16 alongside the sevenfold unity – one body, one spirit, one hope, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of us all – and the goal that we may all attain to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.
6.3.3 This affirmation of the importance of the unity of the Church was clearly reflected in the responses from congregations, district councils and provincial synods in 1995-97. It lay behind Resolution 17 of the 1997 General Assembly. Everything which the Core Group has heard since then confirms the view that we need one another in the United Reformed Church.
6.3.4 The call to unity is more than a human wish. The unity of the Church is rooted in the call of God (Basis paragraph 1) and in the redeeming and consecrating action of God (paragraph 2). This is not unity for its own sake, or indeed for the sake of the ecumenical vision which lay behind the formation of the United Reformed Church. The unity of the Church manifests the solidarity of those whom God has redeemed.
6.3.5 In the past, separation from other Christians was justified on the ground that the true church had to be distinguished from the false church. Other churches were accused of following antichrist, of fostering idolatry, of lacking discipline, or of being based upon another foundation than Christ. Today few in the United Reformed Church would regard other churches in this way, even if we disagree with their practice in certain respects. Nevertheless when controversial issues arise, the same tendencies to condemn those who take a different view reappear. History suggests that the tendency to label others as a 'false church' is usually hasty, often mistaken and subsequently regretted; indeed it may sometimes be a sign of the original sin of pride from which we all need to be redeemed. There needs to be a greater readiness to recognise the seriousness of schism.
6.4 Belonging to the redeemed community
6.4.1 As the Core Group has reflected on the ebb and flow of discussion on human sexuality which we have studied, we have become convinced that there is a real danger that sexuality will be regarded as the determining characteristic of a person. As Christians, however, we affirm that our fundamental identity as human beings lies in the fact that we are made in the image of God. This emphasis on creation picks up the theological tradition referred to in 6.1.3. We also affirm that God has redeemed us, that in Christ we are made new, thereby picking up the tradition referred to in 6.1.2. Our sexuality, whilst it is a vital part of our being, can never be the primary characteristic of our identity. Judgements based on our sexuality are always secondary.
6.4.2 Redemption is both individual and corporate. Hence the solidarity of the redeemed community is fundamental. Mutual trust should therefore be a mark of the redeemed community. Actions or statements which imply distrust of what someone says are destructive of community, and a denial of the image of God (the one who can always be trusted) in the other. Thus, to be found unworthy of trust does deep damage to community. This emphasis upon trust reflects the affirmation of inter-dependence above.
6.4.3 Christians find their fulfilment in Christ (Eph 3:14-19). As members of the Body of Christ - the redeemed community - Christians enter into a network of mutual obligations, in which others are as important as themselves. The Christian understanding of self-fulfilment is self-giving, modelled on the pattern of Christ himself. Service in the Christian community is a response to the call of God and the church. It involves putting others before oneself.
6.4.4 A Christian's confidence is based on the God who is revealed in Jesus Christ - the God who can be trusted. That is the basis of Christian faith. Christian humility is based on the recognition that, even with faith, we remain fallible human beings. Our treasure is in earthen vessels. We always have to remember that our judgements are not as trustworthy as God's; so there is always the possibility that we may be wrong, as well as right.
6.5 Marriage and sexual relationships
6.5.1 Self-giving is also the mark of Christian marriage. It involves a commitment to another which carries with it an obligation of mutual faithfulness. Within the context of marriage, sexual intercourse is the deepest expression of mutual self-giving, a self-giving which may result in the creation of new life.
6.5.2 There have been significant changes affecting marriage and sexual relationships in this century. Divorce has become legally accessible for the majority of the population since 1937 and oral contraception has become widely available since the 1960s. Although there were marriage breakdowns and sexual relationships outside marriage in earlier ages, it is clear that the contemporary climate is very different. Is it wrong, people ask, for a couple to live together before getting married, in order to see whether they are really suited for a life-long relationship? Is that more morally reprehensible than the case of someone who marries and divorces several times?
6.5.3 These are real questions but they do not call into question the principles of mutual commitment and mutual faithfulness. Those principles are fundamental to Christian judgements about sexual relationships. Promiscuous sexual relationships (both heterosexual and homosexual), adultery and prostitution are incompatible with a Christian understanding of fidelity. The exploitation of sex, for example in child pornography and paedophilia, is an abuse of power which is unacceptable to Christians. In each case the underlying reason for the Christian view is that such actions reflect a lack of respect either for one's own body or that of others; our bodies belong to God.
6.5.4 The Church recognises that human relationships often fall short of what it believes is God's purpose, and does not on that account cut itself off from ministry to and with persons in such relationships. In the matter of homosexual relationships, we believe that, if the principles of honesty, integrity, faithfulness and trust are to be upheld, it would be necessary for the Church to reflect on whether there should be some form of public recognition of such relationships. We note that some churches in some countries have been prepared to do this officially, though none in the United Kingdom as yet (even though some ministers and congregations may have acted independently in this matter).
6.6 Service in the Christian community
There are varieties of service within the Christian community. Some are marked by the solemn setting apart of the persons concerned, which we call ordination. Ordination makes one more than a private person. In particular it entails the obligation not to be a stumbling block to the faith and life of the Christians whom one is serving. Paul discusses some of the practical problems that this posed for the church in 1 Corinthians. In the course of a complex discussion a principle emerges which echoes the great commandment of Jesus: let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbour (1 Cor 10:24). The same thought occurs in Phil 2:4, immediately before those words which may have been an early Christian hymn about the self-emptying of Christ himself.
6.7 Relations with other churches
A church which is in communion with other churches has an obligation to have regard to the beliefs and practice of those other churches in taking decisions on matters which might injure the communion between them. The churches with which the United Reformed Church is in communion include some which have said that they would never consider the ordination of persons in homosexual relationships, and others which already do so, either nationally or in some areas (see Core10.1). Again, however, no church in the United Kingdom has committed itself knowingly to ordain such persons (apart from the United Reformed Church in the circumstances set out in Resolution 19 of 1997).
6.8 Living with diversity
The diversity of views within the United Reformed Church on this matter is reflected in all four Working Group reports. The question we have had to face is, How may the Church act so that this diversity does not lead to division? Our provisional response is that the Church must seek both to uphold the teaching on marriage, sexual relationships, love and faithfulness expressed in the New Testament, and to respond pastorally to individuals in a way which is faithful to Jesus' manifest concern for those cast out by the society of his day.
6.9 The Church and the wider society
The Church also exists within secular society, and the law of the land may permit activities which Christians find incompatible with their understanding of God's purpose. The Free Churches, whilst seeking through democratic means to influence government to legislate in such a way that the law does express their understanding of God's will, have always recognised the distinction between the Church and government. They have supported the public recognition of human rights and liberties. They have defended the rights of minorities which suffer popular discrimination to equality before the law. In matters where there are conscientious differences of view, the Church is willing to be open to further study and discussion. But ultimately the Church retains the right to determine whom it will baptise, marry, bury, admit to membership and ordain; that these are not determined by the state is the mark of a free church
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