Free Methodists seek to live according to scriptural principles expressed in the membership covenant (Paragraphs 160-185), and applied to life by the following statements:

325 As Regards God

1.1 False Worship

1.1 Jesus Christ affirmed the Old Testament commandment, “Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength” (Mark 12:29‑30; Deuteronomy 6:4-5, NIV). The worship of any other person, spirit, or thing is idolatry.

1.2 We abstain from all practices which lead to idolatry. Occult practices, such as spiritism, witchcraft, and astrology must be avoided. Moreover, Christians are to be on guard against the idolatries of the heart¾the worship of things, pleasures, and self (I John 2:16).

2 Secret Societies

2.1 The Christian’s supreme loyalty is to Jesus Christ who is Lord (Romans 14:9; Acts 2:36). In every association Christians must keep themselves free to follow Christ and obey the will of God (II Corinthians 6:14-18). Therefore, we abstain from solemn oaths of secrecy shared with unbelievers which may cloud our witness.

2.2 Those voluntary associations which demand an oath, affirmation, promise of secrecy, or a secret password as conditions of membership are to be considered secret societies. In contradiction to the teaching of Christ and the New Testament, these societies require pledges and vows which bind the future actions of those who join (Matthew 5:34-37). the Christian, therefore, who swears unreserved loyalty to any secret society is in direct conflict with unconditional surrender to Jesus Christ as Lord. Christians must keep themselves free to follow the will of the Lord in all things.

2.3 Most secret societies are religious in nature. Prayers are offered, hymns are sung, and members engage in acts of worship before an altar. Chaplains are chosen to lead in worship and to conduct funerals. But the worship of these societies is unitarian, not Christian; the religion is moralistic, not redemptive; and the ends are humanistic, not evangelical (Acts 4:12). We refrain, therefore, from membership in all secret societies and when we unite with the church we resign from active membership in any lodge or secret order previously joined.

2.4 We do not require those who become members of the church to cease all payments necessary to keep in force insurance benefits previously contracted through lodge membership.

3 The Lord’s Day

3.1 God makes clear in Scripture by both example and command that one day in seven is to be devoted to worship and rest (Genesis 2:2-3; Exodus 20:8-11). Jesus declared, “The sabbath was made for man, not man for the sabbath” (Mark 2:27). We need a special day in which we turn from our daily work to worship God and to renew body, mind, and spirit. the New Testament reveals that the early church moved from observing the last day of the week--the Jewish sabbath--to worshipping God in Christ on the first day of the week--the Lord’s day, the day of His resurrection.

3.2 In keeping the sabbath principle in a Lord’s day setting, we urge our people to make corporate worship with the Christian community the essential activity of Sunday (Hebrews 10:25). They refrain on that day from unnecessary labours and commerce, and recognize that salvation comes not from our own strivings but by grace as we rest in God (Isaiah 58:13-14; Hebrews 4:9). Pastors and others who must be involved in necessary work on Sunday are encouraged to observe the sabbath principle on another day.

330 As Regards Myself and Others

1 Human Rights

1.1 We are committed to the worth of all persons regardless of sex, race, colour, or other distinctions (Acts 10:34-35) and will respect their inherent rights.

1.2 This commitment is based on the conviction that all persons are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26). The Old Testament law commands such respect (Deuteronomy 5:11-21). Jesus summarized this law as love for God and neighbour (Matthew 22:36-40). He ministered to all without distinction and His death on the cross was for all (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).

1.3 We are therefore pledged to active concern whenever human beings are demeaned, abused, depersonalized, or subjected to demonic forces in the world, whether by individuals or institutions (Galatians 3:28; Mark 2:27). We are committed to give meaning and significance to every person by God’s help.

1.4 Remembering our tendency to be prejudicial, as Christians we must grow in awareness of the rights and needs of others.

2 Abortion

2.1 Induced abortion is the intentional destruction of human life by surgical or other means.

2.2 The decision to terminate a pregnancy involves religious and moral values, as well as medical and legal realities. Therefore, Christians may not determine their rights and privileges only by the extent of the permissiveness of civil laws or the possibilities of safe medical procedures. Christian morality demands that we consider both the Biblical commandment and the human situation in which the law must be applied. To Christians, human life, whether nascent, mature or senile, is sacred because life exists in relation to God.

2.3 The intentional destruction of human life is murder when any degree of malice or selfishness accompanies the decision and act. Therefore, induced abortion is morally unjustifiable except when the act has been decided upon by responsible and competent persons, including Christian professional counsel, for the purpose of saving the life of a pregnant woman. Abortion, when it serves the ends of population or birth control, personal preference or convenience, and social or economic security, must be considered as selfish and malicious. Therefore, the intentional abortion of nascent life from conception on, except when extreme circumstances requires termination of a pregnancy to save the life of the pregnant woman, must be judged to be a violation of God’s command, “You shall not commit murder.”

2.4 Compassionate alternative and long-term care should be offered to women considering abortion.

2.5 Physicians and parents are advised that the moral commandment and the law of love are transgressed when human life is destroyed for selfish or malicious ends.

3 War and Peace

3.1 We recognize the sovereign authority of government and the duty of Christians to obey the law (Matthew 22:21; Romans 13:1-7). Thus, we bear the responsibilities of good citizenship.

3.2 We believe, however, that military aggression as an instrument of national policy is indefensible (Isaiah 2:3-4). The destruction of life and property, and the deceit and violence necessary to warfare are contrary to the spirit and mind of Jesus Christ (Isaiah 9:6-7; Matthew 5:44-45). It is, therefore, the duty of every Christian to promote peace and goodwill, to foster understanding and mutual trust among all people, and to work with patience for the renunciation of war as a means to settle international disputes (Romans 12:18; 14:19).

3.3 It is our firm conviction that none be required to enter military training or to bear arms except in time of national peril and that the consciences of our members be respected (Acts 4:19-20; 5:29). Therefore, we claim exemption from all military service for those who register officially with the church as conscientious objectors to war.

4 Civil Oaths

Vain and rash swearing is forbidden by our Lord (Matthew 5:34; James 5:12). However, we hold that the Christian religion does not prohibit the taking of an oath when it is required by a public official. In every case, the Christian must speak in justice and truth (Jeremiah 4:1-2; Ephesians 4:25).

5 Education of Children and Youth

5.1 The Free Methodist Church views the education of its children and youth as a parental responsibility (Deuteronomy 6:5-9; Ephesians 6:4). Part of that responsibility may be delegated but not relinquished to either public or Christian institutions of education.

5.2 The church wishes to support public schools and recognizes the challenge to Christian teachers, parents and students to be as light in the world. However, we recognize the growing anti-theistic influences developing in the schools of our land. Therefore, when parents turn by conviction to the use of Christian schools or home schooling, we support them in their decision. We reserve the right of children and youth who attend public schools to be exempted from assignments and activities which conflict with the values held by the denomination. When conflicts arise, we ask that the student’s academic standing not be jeopardized, and when necessary, other assignments be given.

5.3 The church is concerned that concepts of first origins shall have completely fair consideration in our public schools. Instructional materials are available that permit a scientific treatment of the several concepts of origin, including special creation (that all basic life forms and life processes were created by a supernatural Creator). We, therefore, urge that the concept of special creation will be presented in, or along with, all courses, textbooks, library materials, and teaching aids dealing any way with the subject of first origins.

6 Discipline of the Body

6.1 The Scriptures instruct us to honour the body as the temple of the Holy Spirit (I Corinthian 6:19-20). When we do so, one attribute of the Spirit’s indwelling presence is self-control (Galatians 5:23).

6.2 Christians should be characterized by balance and moderation. Extreme patterns of conduct must be avoided. They are also to keep themselves free from addictions or compulsions.

6.3 Christians are to be characterized by a disciplined style of life. They should not indulge selfishly in the pleasures of this world. To the contrary, they are to live simply in service to others, and practice stewardship of health, time, and other God-given resources.

6.4 The Free Methodist Church is committed to help every Christian attain such a disciplined life. Although unhealthy habits are not easily broken, believers need not live in such bondage. They find help through the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit, prayer, and the counsel and support of other Christians.

7 Entertainment

7.1 In a culture where pleasure is ardently pursued, Christians must exercise care regarding their recreational activities. They face a multitude of entertainment forms¾television, videos, movies, recorded music, dances, magazines, novels, etc. Since many of these are pursued in the home, Christians cannot be legislated into wise choices; they must make them from a renewed heart. In the case of children and young people still at home, however, the convictions of Christian parents should prevail.

7.2 Christian choices regarding entertainment must reckon with the fact that some modern diversions enflame the sinful nature rather than ministering to the life of the Spirit. Some images or words promote violence, excite sexual desire or awaken greed. Some styles of music arouse fleshly impulses. Certain atmospheres encourage the use of alcohol or illegal drugs.

7.3 The Scriptures say, “...we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body you will live” (Romans 8:12,13 NIV).

7.4 Believers are called upon to be moderate in their pursuit of entertainment, regarding carefully the wise use of time and money and the stewardship of the body so as to avoid evil of every kind and honour Christ in everything.

7.5 Therefore when making choices with regard to entertainment, before the Lord Christians should forthrightly answer such questions as: Does this activity enhance or reduce my witness as a Christian? Does it contradict the teachings of Scripture? Is my conscience clear? Will participation expose me to unnecessary temptation? Is this activity in any sense enslaving?

7.6 We evaluate all forms of entertainment in the light of Biblical standards for holy living, and abstain from whatever falls short of these standards.

8 Misuse of Drugs

8.1 Christians find that life is full, abundant, and free in Jesus Christ (John 8:35; 10:10). Therefore, we abstain from whatever damages, destroys, or distorts His life in us. Illicit drugs are prime offenders. Marijuana, cocaine, and heroin, widely used in our time, cause untold damage to people and relationships. Such drugs restrict personal development, damage the body, and reinforce an unrealistic view of life.

8.2 Because Christ admonishes us to love God with all our being and our neighbour as ourselves, we abstain from the use of alcoholic beverages (Mark 12:30-31). Alcohol, a legalized drug, is damaging to individuals, families, and society. It is unpredictably addictive and its destructive effects cannot be fully measured. Its widespread use leaves a trail of broken marriages, family violence, crime, industrial loss, ill health, injury, and death. As concerned Christians, we practice abstinence for the sake of health, family, and neighbours. Moreover, we see the adverse social consequences as so pervasive that we seek by abstaining to make a united social witness to the freedom Christ gives.

8.3 Because Christians are to treat their bodies as sacred trusts, we refrain from the use of tobacco. It is a major cause of a variety of cancers and other diseases, as well as an expensive and socially offensive addiction. Free Methodists take seriously the words of Paul, the apostle, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your body” (I Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV).

8.4 Because drug dependency of any kind inhibits fullness of life in Christ, we guard against the indiscriminate use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Though the therapeutic value of such substances may be great, their potency, proliferation, and easy accessibility require that Christians be vigilant against their misuse.

8.5 We endeavour by God’s help to be understanding and supportive toward those who come to Christ with problems of addition. We believe in Christ’s power to deliver (Romans 6:13; Galatians 6:2). But we recognize fully the addictive power of alcohol, tobacco, and other drugs, and give whatever helps and support are needed while new Christians seek full deliverance.

8.6 As a further evidence of an awakened conscience, we refrain from the cultivation, manufacture, or promotion of these harmful substances.

9 Stewardship of Possessions

9.1 The Scriptures teach the privilege of private ownership. Christians hold title to possessions under civil law, but they regard all they have as the property of God entrusted to them as stewards. Although Christians may accumulate goods, they do not make this an end in itself (Matthew 6:19-20; Luke 12:16-21). Rather, as stewards, they give generously to meet the needs of others and to support the ministries of the church (II Corinthians 8:1-5; 9:6-13).

9.2 Gambling

Gambling contradicts faith in God who rules all the affairs of His world not by chance but by His providential care. Gambling lacks both the dignity of wages earned and the honour of a gift. It takes substance from the pocket of a neighbour without yielding a fair exchange. Because it excites greed, it destroys the initiative of honest toil, and often results in addiction. Government sponsorship of lotteries only enlarges the problem. Because of the evils it encourages, we refrain from gambling in all its forms for conscience’ sake, and as a witness to the freedom we have in Christ.

9.3 Pornography

9.3.1 Pornography excites lust, the debasement of a gift of God. It depicts and encourages indecent and deviant sexual conduct such as fornication, incest, rape, sodomy, child molestation and bestiality. It effects a progressive decay of moral values, beginning with addiction, followed by a desensitizing of conscience, and tending toward the wanton acting out of perverted sexual conduct. It often victimizes the innocent and unsuspecting.

9.3.2 For society, pornography is a rampant degenerative force. It damages and destroys. For Christians, pornography is an abomination which must be opposed by every legitimate means.

10 Simplicity of Life

10.1 While customs and human-made standards change there are changeless scriptural principles which govern Christians in their attitudes and conduct.

10.2 Whatever we buy, use, or wear reflects our commitment to Christ and our witness in the world (I Corinthians 10:31-33).

10.3 Christians avoid extravagance (I Timothy 2:8-10; I Peter 3:1-5).

10.4 They apply the principles of simplicity of life when purchasing, building or furnishing a home, buying a car, selecting clothes, shopping for food, and such.

11 Employer and Employee

11.1 All persons have the right to gainful employment irrespective of sex, race, colour, national origin, or creed (Romans 10:12).

11.2 We recognize the right of employees to organize for their betterment. Oath‑bound secret pacts or acts of violence designed to violate or defend their rights cannot be condoned. We also recognize the right of employees to remain independent of such organizations.

11.3 The Christian concern for justice is primarily a concern to do justice and only secondarily a concern to obtain justice. This norm is equally applicable to employer and employee (Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians 3:22-4:1).

11.4 Christians do not view management and labour as necessarily hostile to each other. They need not bring distrust and hostility to their place of work or the negotiating table. Christian managers do not exploit people or see them merely as economic units. They discourage rigid confrontation and favour a problem‑solving approach to disagreements.

11.5 We should endeavour to make our witness effective where we work, remembering that Christian employees are responsible first to God and then to their employer and the organization (Matthew 7:12; Colossians 3:17).

335 As Regards the Institutions of God

1 Christian Citizenship

Christians are citizens of the kingdom of God and of this world. They receive benefits from and bear responsibilities to both relationships. Their first allegiance is to God, but that does not release them from responsibilities to their own country if such relationships do not conflict with the clear teachings of the Scriptures (Romans 13:1-7). They pray for “all who are in high positions” (I Timothy 2:2) and are “subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution” (I Peter 2:13). They actively participate in civic life by involvement in efforts for the improvement of social, cultural, and educational conditions (Matthew 5:13‑16). They oppose degrading influences (II Peter 2:4-10). They exercise the right to vote.

2 Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage

2.1 Nature of Marriage

At creation God instituted marriage for the well-being of humanity (Genesis 2:20‑24; Mark 10:6-9). Marriage is the joining of one man and one woman into a lifelong relationship which the Scriptures call “one flesh.” In this union the two retain their individual identities, but subordinate them to the larger relationship of marriage.

Sexual intercourse is God’s gift to humanity, for the intimate union of a man and woman within marriage. In this relationship, it is to be celebrative (Hebrews 13:4). Marriage is therefore the only proper setting for sexual intimacy. Scripture requires purity before and faithfulness within marriage. Likewise, it condemns all unnatural sexual behaviour such as incestuous abuse, child molestation, homosexual activity and prostitution (I Corinthians 6:9; Romans 1:26‑27).

Marriage, therefore, should be safeguarded and supported by both church and society. This calls for public vows. It is not enough for a couple to live together in private commitment; they are to covenant before God and state.

2.2 Nurturing Healthy Marriages

The Free Methodist Church urges its people to enter the covenant of marriage prayerfully. In accordance with the Apostle’s command (II Corinthians 6:14), we expect them to marry only believers. Ministers are required to use diligent care when being requested to solemnize a marriage. Those who unite believers to unbelievers go contrary to the explicit teachings of the Scriptures. Before entering into marriage, our people should counsel with their Christian leaders. Young people contemplating marriage should seek parental consent. Our ministers shall not officiate at the marriage of any person under age, unless parents or guardians are present or have given written consent, and unless two witnesses are present who know the couple.

We require our churches to provide graded materials for instruction in sex education and preparation for marriage. Pastors shall see that all candidates for marriage have received premarital guidance, using materials consistent with denominational teaching. We further encourage local churches and conferences to provide resources such as seminars and retreats to strengthen marriages and build Christian homes.

2.3 Healing Troubled Marriages

The church which is alive to God has spiritual resources for marriages in trouble. The chief resources are the renewing power of the Holy Spirit and the Word, prayer and the sacraments, counsel and support. Through the church’s ministry, God can bring healing and reconciliation.

Therefore, if members find their marriages in crisis, they should seek the counsel of the pastor and submit to the guidance of the church. Professional counsel may be necessary.

For example, domestic violence, either emotional or physical, increases with the decadence of society and does occur in church-related families. It often jeopardizes the safety of a spouse or children and may threaten life itself. Family members need both spiritual and emotional healing (Malachi 2:13-16).

When an impossible situation is destroying the home, Christians may separate. In such cases, the way to reconciliation must be kept open (I Corinthians 7:10-11).

2.4 Divorce

When marriages break down completely, we recognize that, in the words of Jesus, “hardness of heart” is implicit (Matthew 19:3-8; Mark 10:5-9).

Regarding divorce, the following Scriptural principles apply:

2.4.1 When one marriage partner is a Christian and the other a nonbeliever, the Christian may not for that reason divorce the unchristian mate (I Corinthians 7:12-13), because Christian love may redeem the unbeliever and unite the home in Christ (I Corinthians 7:16).

2.4.2 Desertion is the abandoning of a marriage without just cause. A person denies the faith who deserts a spouse deliberately and for an extended period of time. When the desertion leads subsequently to divorce, the deserted partner is no longer bound by the marriage (I Corinthians 7:15).

2.4.3 Even when a marriage is violated by sexual infidelity, the partners are encouraged to work for restoration of the union. Where reconciliation is impossible, divorce may be unavoidable (Matthew 5:32; 19:9).

2.5 Recovery after Divorce

Divorce always produces trauma. It is a breaking of covenant, thus violating God’s intention for faithfulness in marriage (Malachi 2:13-16). For this reason divorced persons should be helped to understand and remedy the causes for the divorce. They should seek pastoral counsel. Professional counsel may be necessary. If unhealthy patterns of relating exist, they must be replaced by new attitudes and behaviours which are Christlike (Colossians 3:1-15). Where hardness of heart is present repentance and forgiveness are required. The goals of the process are personal healing and restoration to ministry within the church. The church must extend its concern to family and others affected by the divorce.

Leaders who minister to the divorced must be persons of integrity who are mature in faith and in control of their own sexuality.

2.6 Remarriage

A divorced member or one who is considering marriage to a divorcee shall submit to and follow the counsel and guidance of the church.

Persons who have been involved in divorce while in a state of unbelief shall not for that reason alone be barred from becoming members, even though they remarry. Similarly, believers are not prohibited from marrying a person who was divorced while an unbeliever. A member of the church divorced from an adulterous spouse or, deserted by an unbelieving mate, after attempts at forgiveness and reconciliation have been rejected, may remarry (Matthew 5:31‑32; 19:3‑11; I Corinthians 7:15).

2.7 Refusal of Counsel

When a member divorces a spouse in violation of the Scriptures, or remarries without seeking the counsel or following the guidance of the pastor or the Membership Care Committee, the committee shall review the case and recommend appropriate action to the Official Board. Corrective action may include removal from leadership, suspension, or expulsion from membership.

2.8 Exceptional Cases

Cases may arise for which the pastor or the Membership Care Committee can find no explicit direction in the Book of Discipline. In such cases, the pastor, after consultation with the committee, shall confer with the conference superintendent.

To meet the needs of conferences in countries where civil law makes the application of the prior sections of this paragraph impossible, the bishop of the conference is authorized to work with the conference and to implement solutions compatible with the law of the country, consistent with Scripture, and in line with our purpose to be redemptive.

3. Homosexual Behaviour

3.1 Homosexual behaviour is regarded by the Scriptures as immoral because it is a perversion of God’s created order, a practice contrary to nature. The sanctity of marriage and the family is to be protected against all manner of immoral conduct (Exodus 22:16-17; Deuteronomy 22:23-28); Leviticus 20:10-16). The Scriptures speak explicitly against homosexual practice (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:26,27; I Corinthians 6:9,10; I Timothy 1:8-10).

3.2 Persons with homosexual inclinations are accountable to God for their behaviour (Romans 14:12). For those who have fallen into the practice, the grace of God is available and completely adequate to forgive and deliver (I John 1:9; Hebrews 7:25; Luke 4:18; I Corinthians 6:9-11). However, because the practice is a perversion of nature, therapy and healing will be necessary. The church has a corporate responsibility to be God’s agent of healing, ministering love to homosexuals and giving them support as they learn to live a Christian life that is wholesome and pure (I Corinthians 2:7,8).

3.3 The church opposes legislation which makes homosexual conduct no more than an alternate lifestyle.

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MANUAL OF THE FREE METHODIST CHURCH IN CANADA, 2002

630.2. AS REGARDS MYSELF AND OTHERS

630.2.1 Worth Of Persons

We are committed to the worth of all humans regardless of sex, race, colour, or any other distinctions (Acts 10:34-35) and will respect them as persons made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27) and redeemed by Christ’s death and resurrection. The Old Testament law commands such respect (Deuteronomy 5:11-21). Jesus summarized this law as love for God and neighbour (Matthew 22:36-40). He ministered to all without distinction and His death on the cross was for all (John 3:16; Romans 5:8).

We are therefore pledged to active concern whenever human beings are demeaned, abused, depersonalized, or subjected to demonic forces in the world, whether by individuals or institutions (Galatians 3:28; Mark 2:27). We are committed to give meaning and significance to every person by God’s help.

Remembering our tendency to be prejudicial, as Christians we must grow in awareness of the worth, rights and needs of others.

630.2.2 Self Discipline

One attribute of the Spirit’s indwelling presence is self-control (Galatians 5:23). The Scriptures instruct us to honour the body as the temple of the Holy Spirit (I Corinthians 6:19-20).

As Christians we desire to be characterized by balance and moderation. We seek to avoid extreme patterns of conduct. We also seek to keep ourselves free from addictions or compulsions.

Since Christians are to be characterized by a disciplined style of life, we attempt to avoid selfish indulgence in the pleasures of this world. It is our wish to live simply in service to others, and to practice stewardship of health, time, and other God-given resources.

We are committed to help every Christian attain such a disciplined life. Although unhealthy habits are not easily broken, believers need not live in such bondage. We find help through the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit, prayer, and the counsel and support of other Christians.

630.2.3 Stewardship Of Possessions

Although as Christians we accumulate goods, we should not make possessions or wealth the goal of our lives (Matthew 6:19-20; Luke 12:16-21). Rather, as stewards we are people who give generously to meet the needs of others and to support ministry (II Corinthians 8:1-5; 9:6-13).

The Scriptures allow the privilege of private ownership. Though we hold title to possessions under civil law, we regard all we have as the property of God entrusted to us as stewards.

Gambling contradicts faith in God who rules all the affairs of His world, not by chance but by His providential care. Gambling lacks both the dignity of wages earned and the honour of a gift. It takes substance from the pocket of a neighbour without yielding a fair exchange. Because it excites greed, it destroys the initiative of honest toil, and often results in addiction. Government sponsorship of lotteries only enlarges the problem. Because of the evils it encourages, we refrain from gambling in all its forms for conscience’ sake, and as a witness to the faith we have in Christ.

While customs and community standards change, there are changeless scriptural principles that govern us as Christians in our attitudes and conduct. Whatever we buy, use, or wear reflects our commitment to Christ and our witness in the world (I Corinthians 10:31-33). We therefore avoid extravagance and apply principles of simplicity of life when we make choices as to the image that we project through our possessions.

630.2.4 Life In The Workplace

As Christians we are called to be servants of all. This norm is equally applicable to employer and employee (Ephesians 6:5-9; Colossians 3:22-41). Our concern for justice is primarily a concern to do justice and only secondarily a concern to obtain justice.

We believe that all persons have the privilege to be gainfully employed irrespective of sex, race, colour, national origin, or creed (Romans 10:12).

We recognize the privilege of employees to organize for their betterment. Oath-bound secret pacts or acts of violence designed to violate or defend their rights cannot be condoned. We also recognize the right of employees to remain independent of such organizations.

As Christians we do not view management and labour as necessarily hostile to each other. They need not bring distrust and hostility to their place of work or the negotiating table. We resist the exploiting of people or seeing them merely as economic units. We discourage rigid confrontation and favour a problem-solving approach to disagreements.

We endeavour to make our witness effective where we work, remembering that as Christian employees we are responsible first to God and then to our employer and the organization. As Christian employers we have a responsibility to deal fairly and kindly with our employees, preserving the witness of Christian character in both word and deed (Matthew 7:12; Colossians 3:17).

630.2.5 Entertainment

We evaluate all forms of entertainment in the light of Biblical standards for holy living, and recognize that we must govern ourselves according to these standards. The Scriptures say, “we have an obligation - but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body you will live” (Romans 8:12,13 NIV).

In a culture where pleasure is ardently pursued, we must exercise care regarding our recreational activities. We face a multitude of entertainment media - television, videos, movies, recorded music, the internet, dances, magazines, novels, etc. Since many of these are pursued in the home, we cannot be legislated into wise choices; we must make them from a renewed heart. In the case of children and young people living at home, however, our convictions as Christian parents should prevail.

Our choices regarding entertainment must recognize some modem diversions promote violence, excite sexual desire or awaken greed, and certain atmospheres encourage and promote tolerance of vice and vulgarity.

We commit ourselves to be moderate in our pursuit of entertainment, regarding carefully the wise use of time and money and the stewardship of the body so as to avoid evil of every kind and honour Christ in everything.

Therefore when making choices with regard to entertainment, before the Lord we should forthrightly answer such questions as: Does this activity enhance or reduce my witness as a Christian? Does it contradict the teachings of Scripture? Is my conscience clear? Will participation expose me to unnecessary temptation? Is this activity in any sense enslaving?

630.2.6 Misuse of Substances

As Christians we believe that life is full, abundant, and free in Jesus Christ (John 8:35; 10:10). Therefore, we commit ourselves to be free from whatever damages, destroys, or distorts His life in us.

Illicit drugs are prime offenders. Because various forms of narcotics cause untold damage to people and relationships and such drugs restrict personal development, damage the body, and reinforce an unrealistic view of life, we avoid their use.

Because Christ admonishes us to love God with all our being and our neighbour as ourselves, we advocate abstaining from the use of alcoholic beverages (Mark 12:30-31). The abuse of alcohol, a legalized drug, is damaging to individuals, families, and society. It is unpredictably addictive and its destructive effects cannot be fully measured. Its abuse leaves a trail of broken marriages, family violence, crime, industrial loss, ill health, injury, and death. As concerned Christians, we advocate abstinence for the sake of health, family, and neighbours. Moreover, we see the adverse social consequences as so pervasive that we seek by advocating abstinence to make a united social witness to the freedom Christ gives.

Because we believe Christians are to treat their bodies as sacred trusts, we advocate abstaining from the use of tobacco. It is a major cause of a variety of cancers and other diseases, as well as being an expensive and socially offensive addiction. We take seriously the words of Paul, the apostle, “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honour God with your body” (I Corinthians 6:19-20 NIV).

Because drug dependency of any kind inhibits fullness of life in Christ, we guard against the indiscriminate use of prescription and over-the-counter drugs. Though the therapeutic value of such substances may be great, their potency, proliferation, and easy accessibility require that as Christians we be vigilant against their misuse.

We believe that the intemperate consumption of food is a form of abusing the body which may result in illness and obesity. We eat healthily so as to preserve the strength of our bodies and so extend our years of usefulness as servants of Christ.

We endeavour by God’s help to be understanding and supportive toward those who come to Christ with problems of addiction. We believe in Christ’s power to deliver (Romans 6:13; Galatians 6:2). But we acknowledge the difficulties of overcoming the bondage of addictions, and desire to give whatever help and support are needed while fellow Christians seek full deliverance.

As a further evidence of an awakened conscience, we advocate refraining from the cultivation, manufacture, or promotion of these substances which are harmful to health.

630.2.7 Pornography

The Scriptures warn that those who participate in sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery “will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21). Therefore as Christians we avoid participation in these evils or in the glorification of these evils that is found in the many forms of pornography.

Pornography excites sexual lust, which is the debasement of a gift of God. It depicts and may encourage indecent and deviant sexual conduct such as fornication, incest, rape, sodomy, child molestation and bestiality. It may cause a progressive decay of moral values, beginning with addiction, followed by a desensitizing of conscience, and tending toward the wanton acting out of perverted sexual conduct. It often victimizes the innocent and unsuspecting.

For society, pornography is a rampant degenerative force. It damages and destroys. As Christians, pornography is an abomination which we oppose by every legitimate means.

630.2.8 Homosexual Behaviour

Homosexual behaviour is regarded by the Scriptures as immoral because it is a distortion of God’s created order, a practice contrary to nature. The sanctity of marriage and the family is to be protected against all manner of immoral conduct (Exodus 22:16-17; Deuteronomy 22:23-28; Leviticus 20:10-16). The Scriptures speak explicitly against homosexual practice (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:26,27, I Corinthians 6:9,10; I Timothy 1:8-10). Therefore, as Christians, we regard homosexual behaviour as contrary to God’s creation plan.

Persons with homosexual inclinations are accountable to God for their behaviour (Romans 14:12). For those who have fallen into the practice, the grace of God is available and completely adequate to forgive and deliver (I John 1:9; Hebrews 7:25; Luke 4:18; I Corinthians 6:9-11). Because the practice is a distortion of nature, therapy may be necessary for healing to take place.

The church has a corporate responsibility to be God’s agent of healing, ministering in love to homosexuals those involved in homosexual behaviour and giving them support as they learn to live a Christian life that is wholesome and pure (I Corinthians 2:7,8).

630.2.9 Abortion

The intentional abortion of a person’s life, from conception on, must be judged to be a violation of God’s command, “You shall not commit murder,” except when extreme circumstances require the termination of a pregnancy to save the life of the pregnant woman. Induced abortion is the intentional destruction of a person after conception and before delivery by surgical or other means. Therefore, induced abortion is morally unjustifiable except when the act has been decided upon by responsible and competent persons, including Christian professional counsel, for the purpose of saving the life of a pregnant woman. Abortion, when it serves the ends of population or birth control, personal preference or convenience, and social or economic security, must be considered as selfish and malicious.

The decision to terminate a pregnancy involves religious and moral values, as well as medical and legal realities. Therefore, as Christians we do not make our decisions only by the extent of the permissiveness of civil laws or the possibilities of safe medical procedures. Christian morality demands that we consider both the Biblical commandment and the human situation in which the law must be applied. As Christians, we believe that human life, whether in vitro, mature or senile, is sacred because life exists in relation to God.

Compassionate alternatives and long-term care should be offered to women considering abortion.

We counsel physicians and parents to understand that the moral commandment and the law of love are transgressed when human life is destroyed for selfish or malicious ends.

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630.3 AS REGARDS DIVINELY APPOINTED INSTITUTIONS

There are at least three divinely appointed, earthly institutions. One of these is marriage and the family. A second is the church. A third is the secular government. Only the church, among these institutions, will last in eternity. Nevertheless, the Scriptures have clearly placed a great deal of importance on how we act with respect to each of these institutions, before the return of Christ.

This section is intended to describe a Christian point of view on these important institutions. Important principles are the focus: there is no attempt to be comprehensive. Principle statements, represent what we believe are the central, clear teaching of scripture on these institutions. We also believe that the application statements that accompany the principle statements are clear inferences from the Scriptures, but they are presented here to assist our churches and members in applying scriptural principles.

630.3.1 The Christian and Marriage

630.3.1.1 Principles Regarding Marriage

Nature of Marriage: At creation God instituted marriage for the well being of humanity (Genesis 2:20-24; Mark 10:6-9). Marriage is the joining of one man and one woman into a lifelong relationship which the Scriptures call “oneflesh.”

We believe therefore that marriage should be safeguarded and supported by both the church and society and should be formalized with public vows. It is not enough for a couple to live together in private commitment; we believe that they are to covenant before God and the state.

630.3.1.2 Nurturing Healthy Marriages

The Free Methodist Church urges its people to enter the covenant of marriage prayerfully. In accordance with the apostle’s command (II Corinthians 6:14), we expect them to marry only believers. Ministers are required to use diligent care when being requested to solemnize a marriage. Those who unite believers to unbelievers go contrary to the explicit teachings of the Scriptures. Before entering into marriage, our people should counsel with their Christian leaders. Young people contemplating marriage should seek parental consent. Our ministers shall not officiate at the marriage of any person under age, unless parents or guardians are present or have given written consent, and unless two witnesses are present who know the couple.

We desire that our churches provide instruction in sex education and preparation for marriage. Pastors shall see that all candidates for marriage have received premarital guidance, using materials consistent with denominational teaching. We further encourage local churches to provide resources such as seminars and retreats to strengthen marriages and build Christian homes.

630.3.1.3 Healing Troubled Marriages

Therefore, if our members find their marriage in crisis, we encourage them to seek the counsel of the pastor and submit to the guidance of the church. Professional counsel may be necessary.

We recognize that domestic violence, emotional and/or physical, does occur in church-related families. It often jeopardizes the safety of a spouse or children and may threaten life itself. These family members need both spiritual and emotional healing (Malachi 2:13-16).

When an impossible situation is destroying the home, we advise that Christians may separate. In such cases, the way to reconciliation must be kept open (I Corinthians 7:10-11). Even when a marriage is violated by sexual infidelity, the partners are encouraged to work for restoration of the union.

630.3.1.4 Principles Regarding Divorce

When one marriage partner is a Christian and the other a nonbeliever, we believe that the Christian may not for that reason divorce the unchristian mate (I Corinthians 7:12-13), because Christian love may redeem the unbeliever and unite the home in Christ (I Corinthians 7:16).

When a marriage is violated by sexual infidelity, the partners are encouraged to work for restoration of the union. Where reconciliation is impossible, a divorce may be allowed. (Matthew 5:32; 19:9)

Desertion is the abandoning of a marriage without just cause. We believe that a person denies the faith that deserts a spouse deliberately and for an extended period of time. When the desertion leads subsequently to divorce, the deserted partner is no longer bound by the marriage (I Corinthians 7:15).

Where reconciliation is impossible in a troubled marriage, we acknowledge that divorce may be unavoidable (Matthew 5:32; 19:9). When marriages break down completely, we recognize that, in the words of Jesus, “hardness of heart” is implicit on one or both sides of the union (Matthew 19:3-8; Mark 10:5-9).

Though the Scriptures allow divorce on the grounds of adultery (Matthew 5:32) and desertion (I Corinthians 7:10-16), it does not mandate divorce and we advise counsel with church leaders to seek other alternatives. One of these may be for both to live celibately.

630.3.1.5 Recovery After Divorce

Divorce always produces trauma. It is the breaking of a covenant, thus violating God’s intention for faithfulness in marriage (Malachi 2:13-16). For this reason divorced persons should be helped to understand and remedy the causes for the divorce. They should seek pastoral counsel. Professional counsel may also be necessary. If unhealthy patterns of relating exist, they must be helped to replace them with new attitudes and behaviours that are Christlike (Colossians 3:1-15). Repentance and forgiveness are crucial to recovery. The goals of the process are personal healing and restoration to wholesome participation within the church. The church must extend its concern to family and others affected by the divorce.

630.3.1.6 Remarriage After a Divorce

A divorced member or one who is considering marriage to a divorced person must come under the authority, counsel and guidance of the church.

630.3.1. 7 Refusal of Counsel

When a member divorces a spouse in violation of the Scriptures, or remarries without seeking the counselor following the guidance of the pastor or the membership care committee, the committee shall review the case and recommend appropriate action to the official board. Corrective action shall include removal from leadership, and may include suspension, or expulsion from membership.

630.3.1.8 Exceptional Cases

Cases may arise for which the pastor or the membership care committee can find no explicit direction in this Manual. In such cases, the pastor, after consultation with the committee, shall confer with the bishop.

630.3.2 Education of Children

The Free Methodist Church views the education of its children as a parental responsibility (Deuteronomy 6:5-9, Ephesians 6:4). Part of that responsibility may be delegated but not relinquished to public, private or Christian institutions of education.

The church wishes to support public schools and recognizes the challenge to Christian teachers, parents and students to be as lights in the world. When parents choose to use Christian schools or home schooling, we also support them in their decision. We request that our children be excused from assignments and activities which conflict with the values held by the denomination. When conflicts arise, we request of the school that the student’s academic standing not be jeopardized, and when necessary, other assignments be given.

The church is concerned that concepts of first origins shall have fair consideration in our public schools. Instructional materials are available that permit a scientific treatment of the several concepts of origin, including special creation (that all basic life forms and life processes were created by a supernatural Creator). We therefore urge that the concept of special creation be presented in, or along with, courses, textbooks, library materials, and teaching aids dealing with the subject of first origins.

630.3.3 The Christian and the Church

The church is part of God’s eternal plan to make a people for himself who would be “holy and blameless before him.” It was instituted by Christ during his ministry when he commissioned the church to be his unique representative in the world. Therefore, the Scriptures speak of the church as the Body of Christ. The church has been empowered for its ministry by the active, ongoing work of the Holy Spirit since Pentecost. Just as New Testament letters were written to churches in particular places, made up of particular people, the church is not only universal, but also must be visible and local.

The church is also the people of God in the world. In both Old and New Testaments this fact is amply illustrated. The Lord of the church gives gifts to His people to serve one another and to minister in the world. Christians who live in independence from the church may not forfeit their faith but will deprive themselves of the spiritual resources and opportunities God Himself has ordained. Consistent with the Scriptures, we affirm membership in the church.

Membership in the church is a Biblical reality noted from the earliest days after Pentecost (Acts 2:47). When the Holy Spirit gives new life in Christ, at the same time He effects our spiritual entrance into the church (I Corinthians 12:13). The Free Methodist Church in Canada is one denomination among the many other legitimate visible churches in Canada and the world. Entrance into the membership of one of our churches is a visible and local sign of entrance into the universal church.

630.3.3.1 Membership in the Church

In accordance with this, our church provides means by which persons who are born of the Spirit may enter into a Membership Covenant (156-160) and register their membership in a local church in a public way. We provide categories for believers under sixteen years of age and adults. As an aid to Christian development we provide membership instruction, which may be followed by entrance into membership. For further information on the requirements and rituals for membership, see Chapter One, 150-164.

630.3.3.2 Leadership in the Church

Leadership in the church is an honour that has accompanying responsibilities and sacrifices. The Scriptures provide descriptions of the qualities of leaders in such passages as: Exodus 18:21, Acts 6:3, 1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9. Those who are chosen to lead in the church do so in a spirit of humility and dependence upon God. They must be spiritually mature individuals whose lifestyle shall be in harmony with the Scriptures, the doctrine of The Free Methodist Church in Canada (100-131), the principles of the Membership Covenant (156-160) and of 620, 630. They must live personal and public lives that clearly exemplify these principles.

630.3.4 The Christian and the State

As Christians, we are citizens of the kingdom of God and of this world. We receive benefits from and bear responsibilities to both relationships. Our first allegiance is to God, but that does not release us from responsibilities to our own country if such relationships do not conflict with the clear teachings of the Scriptures (Romans 13:1-7). We recognize the sovereign authority of government and our duty to obey the law (Matthew 22:21; Romans 13:1-7). Thus, we bear the responsibilities of good citizenship.

630.3.4.1 Civic Participation

As Christians we pray for “all who are in high positions” (I Timothy 2:2) and are “subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution.” (I Peter 2:13). We actively participate in civic life by involvement in efforts for the improvement of social, cultural, and educational conditions (Matthew 5:13-16). We oppose degrading cultural influences (II Peter 2:4-10). We exercise the responsibility to vote.

630.3.4.2 War and Military Enlistment

We believe, however, that military aggression, as an instrument of national policy is indefensible (Isaiah 2:3-4). The destruction of life and property, and the deceit and violence necessary to warfare are contrary to the spirit and mind of Jesus Christ (Isaiah 9:6-7; Matthew 5:44-45). It is, therefore, our duty as Christians to promote peace and goodwill, to foster understanding and mutual trust among all people, and to work with patience for the renunciation of war as a means to settle international disputes (Romans 12:18; 14:19).

It is our firm conviction that none be required to enter military training or to bear arms except in time of national peril and that the consciences of our members be respected (Acts 4:19-20; 5:29). Therefore, we claim exemption from all military service for those who register officially with the church as conscientious objectors to war.

630.3.4.3 Swearing Oaths

Vain and rash swearing is forbidden by our Lord (Matthew 5:34; James 5:12). We hold that the Christian religion does not prohibit the taking of an oath when it is required by a public official. In every case, the Christian must speak in justice and truth (Jeremiah 4:1-2; Ephesians 4:25).

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Free Methodist Church of Canada – Positional Papers

The following two articles were previously published in the Canadian Free Methodist Herald and are being prepared to be published in a book. They point us to the question of how do we speak to others about Christ in a pluralistic context. I hope that you find them stimulating.

-Rob Clements

Moving Beyond Moralism

“Well, that maybe true for you -but it’s not true for me.”

“I can’t believe you are so ignorant that you believe Jesus is the only way to God.”

How do you respond when people say things like this? Many Christians in Canada aren’t sure what to say. For more than a thousand years the Christian church has dominated Western culture. But Christians today increasingly find themselves excluded from the public discourse, just another minority among a growing number of special-interest groups. The result is that pluralism- “the belief in many” - is one of the greatest challenges facing the church today.

Which pluralism?

The challenge of pluralism confronts the church on many levels. There is political pluralism which allows us to express our own opinions. There is also cultural pluralism, which describes a country like Canada where people are encouraged to celebrate their cultural heritage. These forms of pluralism are not unChristian, though they may force us to think harder about how we reach out to different cultural groups and respect the political beliefs of people who disagree with us. It is interesting to note that some historians suggest that Canada’s tolerance for cultural and political diversity has actually emerged from its Christian heritage; many Muslim countries, they point out, have little tolerance for those who think differently. Some even see “secularism” as a Christian invention!

It is important, however, to distinguish cultural pluralism and political tolerance from religious pluralism. Religious pluralism asserts that all religions are equal, and that it is wrong to assert any idea to the contrary. Cultural pluralism--the idea that cultural expressions are all relative--has grounding in Scripture (read Acts 15, for example), but religious pluralism is incongruent with everything the Bible teaches about who Jesus is and what Jesus did. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father except by me” (John 10:14). He did not claim to be a saviour among many; he declared himself the saviour.

But if Scripture is so clear on this, why is pluralist thinking so common nowadays? How has it infiltrated the church?

I believe that the contributing factor is religious moralism. Webster’s dictionary defines moralism as an “often exaggerated emphasis on morality.” Christians, of course, believe that people ought to strive to be moral in God’s grace. But religious moralism goes further.

Moralists believe that Christianity is only about human decisions, only about being moral. Moralists make it seem as if you earn your salvation by your good actions or decisions for God. Yes, they might admit, we’re all sinners, but everyone has the power inside them to change, to turn away from their sin and follow God. All people are created equal, they say, but some choose to follow God and others reject him. God rejects those who don’t choose him. God rewards those who help themselves.

There are many problems with moralism, but here are three of the biggest ones:

#1) Moralism is contrary to Scripture

Jesus said, “You did not choose me, but I chose you” (John 15:16). The Bible teaches that we are saved by grace through faith. We do not earn our salvation by our actions, not even by our ability to choose. Jesus said that no one comes to him unless the Father draws him or her first (John 6:44). This gets at the heart of what theologians call “the doctrine of election.” Election is the belief that, contrary to our human-centred sensibilities, God chooses some people to accomplish his purposes - and not others - at least not for now.

God’s calling of us is not based on our response to him, it is “previent”; that is, the Holy Spirit works ahead of our response preparing us, drawing us into his plans. In other words, we are not saved by our own decision to follow God; we are saved by God when we awaken and respond in faith to God’s prior choosing of us.

Many people are uncomfortable with the word election because some theologians have said that election means that God determines that some people go to heaven and others to go hell; God in effect decrees some people to condemnation and others to heaven.

Free Methodists reject that understanding of election, often called the “unconditional” view of election. Instead, John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, argued for conditional election. Sadly, not everyone that the Spirit draws will respond. Some people resist the Holy Spirit, reject Christ, and are condemned. “This is the verdict,” said Jesus, “Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light” (John 3:19). Scripture teaches that people can separate themselves from God. Hell is what Christians call the ultimate and final separation.

Election is a powerful and undeniable biblical truth. It is wrong to deny it. At the same time, it is not our job to determine who is elect and who is not--as some Christians have done historically. It is far more important for us to ask ourselves what we have been elected to do, understanding that God’s purpose in electing us is to bring “salvation to the ends of the earth.”

It may be helpful at this point to make a distinction between a “theological mystery” and “theological problem.”

A theological problem is a practical obstacle to living out one’s faith. A problem paralyses the believer so that they cannot act out their faith. A theological problem needs to be resolved in order for a Christians to follow Christ. Martin Luther, for example, encountered a theological problem when he realized his inability to save himself through good works. Luther’s problem was human in origin and the resolution of his dilemma came through a careful examination of God’s word revealed in Scripture. God, he discovered, has clearly revealed to us that salvation is by faith and not good works. There is no ambiguity in the Bible on this matter.

A theological mystery, on the other hand, is something that is beyond our understanding, but something that we do not necessarily need to understand completely in order to function as Christians. The correct response to mystery is trust and faith in the personal character of God as he has revealed himself to us. The incorrect response to a theological mystery is to assert what God has left unspoken. Most Christian heresies have begun as attempts to define what God has left undefined.

Note well that theological mystery lies at the very core of Christianity. How can Jesus be both man and God? (The Trinity) How can the death of one man two thousand years ago take away my sins today? (The Atonement) If God is good, omnipotent and good, why does he allow evil and suffering to exist? (Creation). Most heresies through Christian history have begun as attempts to rationalize what God has left unexplained, or that our finite minds cannot grasp.

Clearly Scripture teaches that God has chosen us in Christ before the beginning of the world. And yet Scripture also asserts that we are responsible for our actions. Moreover, God at times has appeared to change his mind (remember the story of Jonah?). The historical tendency has been for Christians to cling to some passages and reject others, resulting in camps on either end of the continuum--Wesley on one end, Calvin on the other. But this selectiveness should alert us to the fact that Scripture does not claim either predestination or free will, but rather elements of both. Some events have clearly been predestined (Rev. 22), and others appear to be conditional upon human response. Scripture is ambiguous on this matter -- and this is the first clue that we are dealing with an issue that should be categorized as a “theological mystery” beyond our finite human understanding.

#2) Moralism ignores the facts that lead many people to pluralism.

“All people are created equal” is not in the Bible - it is part of the American Constitution, which is designed to protect the legal rights of all human beings. That’s fine in the political arena. But theologically Christians believe a human’s worth is found in our being created in the image of God, not in a legal document. Sadly, the spiritual reality is that some people, due to physical and mental challenges, do not have equal opportunity to accept Christ and live out the gospel. Some people do not even have Bibles in their language. Some people have cognitive problems or mental illnesses which inhibit their decision-making. Millions of people in the world today have not heard the gospel of Jesus Christ simply because they were born in a different culture, and billions more throughout history have died without ever knowing the name of Jesus Christ. Honest seekers want to know how Christianity deals with these issues, and an honest Christian response to pluralism needs to address these realities--which are becoming more and more evident as we learn more about other cultures. Moralism cannot provide such answers. Instead, by idolizing human power to change, it produces a deadly legalism and cultural insensitivity. Worse, by denying our deep-rooted original sin and our helplessness to change ourselves apart from the Holy Spirit, moralists write off everybody who cannot live up to their standards as ignorant or lazy. No wonder people react against it so strongly.

#3) Christian moralism falls apart in a pluralist society

More than any other time in North America, Christians are being exposed to the variety of world religions. As one Christian observer has put it: “The end of the world has come to the end of the block.” The Canadian city of Surrey, British Columbia, now has the second largest population of Sikhs of any city in the world. And statistically most North Americans know at least one person who adheres to a non-Christian religion, or new religion such as Mormonism. As a result, it is more important than ever before for Christians to think clearly about how we view other religions.

On a practical level, Christians with moralist tendencies have no defense against pluralism. If God judges us by our intentions only, then why can’t good Buddhists and Hindus be saved too? What makes Jesus so special in a world full of religions?

The moralist has no response except to concede that all religions are good as long as they produce good, moral people. Soon the Christian moralist ceases to be a Christian.

If we read Scripture carefully, however, we see that moralism does not square with biblical Christianity. There is a choice to be made: either moralism is right and the Bible false, or it is the other way round.

I am committed to the latter: I believe that the Bible reveals God’s plan of salvation for all people everywhere, not just white English-speaking Canadians. But that is not to say there are not important questions that the church needs to ask about other cultures and other beliefs. How do we approach other religions? What happens to people who have never heard of Jesus? To answer these questions we need to go back to Scripture and relearn what it means to be God’s chosen people.

How do we develop a functional faith for a pluralist society? You start reading God’s story, you figure out what “chapter” you’re in, and then you get with the program. Getting with the program means getting a grip on what God was doing with people like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It means drawing lines between David, King of Israel, and Jesus, King of the Jews. It means seeing yourself and your context through the eyes of Scripture. In our day, I think it means reflecting on how biblical characters like Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego worked in their pagan context.

When we do this we begin to see what God cares about, and we begin to see ourselves as participants in God’s story of redemption rather than as people who are responsible for changing the world ourselves. All of us need to be reminded of that occasionally.

For Further Reading

Pinnock, Clark H., WIDENESS IN GOD’S MERCY: THE FINALITY OF JESUS CHRIST IN A WORLD OF RELIGIONS (Grand Rapids: Zondervan: 1992)

Newbigin, Leslie, THE GOSPEL IN A PLURALIST SOCIETY (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1994).

Boyd, Gregory A., GOD OF THE POSSIBLE: A BIBLICAL INTRODUCTION TO THE OPEN VIEW OF GOD, (Grand Rapids: Baker Books: 2000).

Walsh, Brian J.; Middleton, J. Richard, TRUTH IS STRANGER THAN IT USED TO BE : BIBLICAL FAITH IN A POSTMODERN AGE (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1995).

J. N. D. Anderson, CHRISTIANITY AND COMPARATIVE RELIGION (London: Tyndale Press, 1970).

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Two humanisms

Let us make man in our image,

in the image of God he created them;

male and female he created them.

-Genesis 1:27

The word Humanism has become a kind of shorthand for Secular Humanism. That is unfortunate because Christianity has just as much right to the title. Humanism, in its original and most general usage, simply means “a doctrine, attitude or way of life devoted to human interests or value.”

The truest and sturdiest form of humanism is Christian humanism, and its foundation is located in the opening chapter of the Bible when God said, “Let us make man in our image, in our likeness...”

The Jewish and Christian understanding that human beings are created in the image of God, rather than being haphazard accidents of chance in the universe is the lynchpin that has held the social fabric of Western societies together for hundreds of years. Take this belief away, and much of Western civilization comes crashing down, collapsing into a cultural tug of war over “rights.”

That is what we have seen in North America since the cultural revolution of the 1960s: Abortion, euthanasia, doctor-assisted suicide - all have become debates over whose rights are more important. Secular humanists are not interested in values, which they equate with mere personal preference and opinion; only human rights, which they falsely believe can be objectively ascertained without reference to God.

The only issue the secular humanist sees in the abortion debate is whether a woman’s right to control her body is more important than the rights of a “fetus”--which the secular humanist often argues isn’t quite fully human anyway. (No doubt the unborn would answer differently.)

But the Christian humanist, looking at the world through the lens of Scripture, asks a different question: Does the intrinsic value of an unborn human being created in the image of God by God outweigh the value of human freedom? And surely it does. Otherwise one could justify killing any group of people - never mind unborn children - whenever it was convenient and we could get away with it. Bear in mind the memory of Adolph Hitler, who respected the “rights” of Jews, Poles, homosexuals, Jehovah Witness and the disabled only long enough to gain the political power to enslave or incinerate them in giant ovens during World War II. God forbid that such atrocities are ever repeated in another nation that calls itself “Christian.”

There is no indication in Scripture that God removed the image of God from humanity after Adam and Eve were expelled from the garden of Eden. The belief that human beings are created in the image of God must therefore govern how we engage our society; it compels us to respect and tolerate those who think differently from us.

Adherents of other religions, those with no religion, gays and lesbians, doctors who perform abortions--all were created in the image of God, all retain the image of God. As we engage our pluralistic society we must always keep that in mind. Though the image may be distorted we are not at liberty to treat those who oppose God’s will as anything less than people created in the image of God by God. That is why murdering doctors who perform abortions is wrong (Genesis 9:6) That is why “gaybashing” is wrong (James 3:6). That is why Christians should uphold religious freedom and human dignity of other people besides Christians. We must be willing to tolerate and respect the opinions of those who disagree with us. Anything else is hypocrisy.

There is, however, a distinction to be made between tolerance and affirmation. Tolerance means putting up with differences, affirmation means putting away those differences. The church, God’s holy community, must not compromise its own position in the name of tolerance.

Unfortunately in our zeal to uphold truth, Christians have sometimes pushed and manipulated others by political or legal means into our own patterns. The opening chapters of Genesis, however, presents us with a God who intended for us to reflect his image in the world freely, not do what he commands resentfully. It is not God’s normal way to coerce us into his fellowship, to force us into his patterns. We were designed to need him, but he does not manipulate us into something we do not want. He desires us to freely love him, to desire him. Only then can we fully be who we have been created to be: his image-bearers on earth. And if we are going to reflect his image accurately it follows that we will not coerce humans to believe in him either.

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Communion

What is the Free Methodist stance regarding communion?

People are asking for clarification regarding Free Methodism’s stance regarding communion. This document is designed to help. It was requested and then approved by the Study Commission on Doctrine of our denomination in Canada in May of 2002.

In the Manual of the Free Methodist Church in Canada we read:

125 The Lord’s Supper

The Lord’s Supper is a sacrament of our redemption by Christ’s death. To those who rightly, worthily, and with faith receive it, the bread which we break is a partaking of the body of Christ; and likewise the cup of blessing is a partaking of the blood of Christ. The supper is also a sign of the love and unity that Christians have among themselves.

Christ, according to His promise, is really present in the sacrament. But His body is given, taken, and eaten only after a heavenly and spiritual manner. No change is effected in the element; the bread and wine are not literally the body and blood of Christ. Nor is the body and blood of Christ literally present with the elements. The elements are never to be considered objects of worship. The body of Christ is received and eaten in faith.

711 COMMUNION SERVICES

The central act in Christian worship is the Lord’s Supper because it is the one thing Jesus told his followers to do in remembrance of him. In Communion we look in at ourselves and confess the things that have gone wrong. We look back to Calvary and praise Jesus for his death for us. We look up to his risen presence, longing to nourish us through the bread and cup which he said were his body and blood. We look around in love and fellowship with other guests at God’s table. We look forward to his return at the end of all history, the marriage supper of the Lamb, of which every Communion is a foretaste. And then we look out to a needy world; Communion is battle rations for Christian soldiers. [Adapted slightly from Michael Green, One to One (Moorings, 1995) p. 102]

“Christ is really present in the sacrament”

The statements above seem to say less than that the bread and cup actually are changed into the body and blood of Christ, and yet more than that they are simply symbols to help us remember his death for us. Is there biblical foundation for the “Christ is really present in the sacrament” view?

The first piece which follows addresses this fundamental question. The second responds to the fact that in many of our churches the basic tone of communion in the early church (joy, thankfulness -- which would be our experience if we realized that Christ is really present!) has been replaced by a dull, sombre service of remembering and penitence which people approach with some hesitation.

These have been reviewed and approved by the Study Commission on Doctrine and are provided to assist our people in better understanding and practicing the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.

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What’s Going on in Communion?

John W. Vlainic

Paul and a couple of the brothers and sisters from the church had dropped by to see Felix and Diana one night. The people closest to them in the church had sensed that something was pulling them back from the vitality of their walk with Jesus. Now that Paul was back in town, they had agreed they would stop by to do some pastoral care.

“Hey Felix,” Paul said, after the three of them had been warmly ushered into their friends’ home. “We missed you last night. I was back in town, and a couple of us stopped by after supper to see you and Diana, but your kids said you were at a banquet down at the community centre. Did you guys go out for a long-overdue date?”

“Well, sort of, Paul. We went to a banquet with one of the shop-owners down near my store. We really didn’t know what all would be involved, but we’re trying to build a friendship with them. It turned out that it was a banquet for the adherents of that new spirituality group from Outer Slobovia that is just the rage these days.”

“But the food was good, and the idol-worship ceremonies they did were certainly intriguing,” he added.

Paul tried to respond. ‘Felix . . .”

But he quickly continued, “Don’t worry, Paul. We haven’t abandoned our faith. We don’t buy into that stuff. We believe that Jesus is God, not that that piece of wood and stone they had standing there. We just went through the motions with them. Relax, Paul. We ourselves were by no means into what they were doing.”

“You yourself surely remember how you responded when we asked you what Christians are to do when the only meat available has all been ritually sacrificed to pagan gods before it goes on sale. We wanted to be faithful to Jesus, and so we asked you, ‘Is it O.K. to use that meat or not?’ Some of the brothers and sisters were sure it was wrong, but others of us had said to go ahead and eat it by all means -- not a molecule of it has been altered by having been offered to some piece of stone or wood. And you agreed. You said that there has been no transformation in the meat itself: an idol is nothing, and as far as that goes, we are neither better nor worse off for eating the meat . . . right?

Paul piped up, “But what else did I say?”

Diana answered. “You also said that it’s vital that our freedom from superstitious scruples should not be allowed to force the pace of a weaker, newer Christian who might not yet be able to handle the distinction. I think we have been careful there.”

“Good,” Paul said. “But what you’re saying you were involved in last night is more than that —and here’s where I want to help you. I haven’t changed my tune. I still agree with you that the food sacrificed to idols is nothing, and, for that matter, that an idol is just wood and stone. We’re together on that.”

“But here’s where you’re in grave danger. What pagans sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God. The issue is not the food from that pagan meat-shop, or the molecules of the statue, but with the spiritual realities that group was bonding with. I do not want you to be partners with demons.”

Felix wasn’t buying it. “O Paul, you’re just being too much of a purist; you’re getting superstitious! We were just going through the motions of their ritual. That’s all.”

“Think again, Felix,” Paul said. “You’re sensible people. Judge for yourselves what I say. You know that whenever we have communion, we’re not consuming some molecules of wine and bread, are we?”

“That’s true,” Diana said. “The cup of blessing that we bless, it is a participation in the blood of Christ. And the bread that we break, it is a participation in the body of Christ. You taught us that when we first became Christians. We know that when we have the Lord’s Supper, it’s not just about some bread and wine, it’s about Him and communing with Him! Yes, we know that there’s a whole lot more going on than meets the eye when we have communion. . . . . . .”

“ . . . . . . . O my! I see what you’re getting at, Paul,” said her husband. Though we were telling ourselves that we were just going through the motions last night, there was more going on in the unseen spiritual realm. . . . . . . . . I’m ashamed to admit it, but now I can see that we were subtly becoming partners with the evil reality behind their superstitions, weren’t we?”

“Yes,” Paul said. “I’m so grateful that you can see that now. Thank God that you now know why you mustn’t go to pagan feasts that are built around idol worship. We cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. We cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.”

Soon they were praying together, asking forgiveness for being careless, and to be totally freed from any spiritual entanglement they had brought on themselves in that way.

The preceding scenario illustrates the concerns Paul has as he writes I Corinthians 10:14-21 [NRSV]:

Therefore, my dear friends, flee from the worship of idols. I speak as to sensible people; judge for yourselves what I say. The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. Consider the people of Israel; are not those who eat the sacrifices partners in the altar? What do I imply then? That food sacrificed to idols is anything, or that an idol is anything? No, I imply that what pagans sacrifice, they sacrifice to demons and not to God. I do not want you to be partners with demons. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons. You cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons.

In this passage Paul tells us that although the meat is not changed because it is used in the worship of idols, the use of it with a particular intention and in a particular context may and can affect our relationships with the unseen powers of good and evil. The physical material does not change, but spiritual relationships with the unseen world can. “They are partners with demons,” he says in verse 20. Nothing has happened to the meat, but something more has gone on than meets the eye.”

And to prove his point, he refers to the view of the Lord’s Supper he knows they hold in common with him. That’s why verses 16 and 17 are there.

The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Christ? Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread.

That is to say, the use of the bread and wine in the context of Christian worship, in relation to Christ’s death, and in repentance and faith, effects an actual participation in Christ’s sacrificed life. This Paul assumes that his readers know, and he uses the fact that more goes on than meets the eye in Communion as an argument against getting involved in pagan worship services.

He emphasizes that while the materials have not changed (as is believed about the Lord’s Supper in one part of Christendom), the use of them in certain contexts does involve changes in spiritual relationships. Paul speaks of our being actually united with Christ and with one another. So the other extreme view in Christendom (that the bread and cup are only ‘symbols’) misses the point too. More goes on in the Lord’s Supper than meets the eye, when we participate in repentance and faith and openness to the Spirit. Some beautiful things we can’t even begin to grasp are nonetheless happening – in the Spirit of Jesus.

Every time you take communion you are being changed. You’re either becoming more dull spiritually, or more alive in Jesus. But you don’t stay the same. Christ is really present.

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Communion Dread

John W. Vlainic

When it comes time for communion, many Christians feel dread. Their minds play tapes from I Corinthians 11: “eating and drinking in an unworthy manner,” “examine yourselves,” “some have died,” etc. As a result, what should be a joyous celebration of forgiveness and new life together in the presence of Christ, is turned into a moment when people feel they are sitting alone under a 10,000 watt searchlight! Instead, we need to recover communion for what it was in the early days of the church --a feast of thanksgiving and joy!

But someone will say, “I understand your desire for something positive and upbeat, but what about these warnings from Paul?” Here, the background helps us.

Historians tell us about the homes of the well-to-do. The hosts usually seated members of their own high social class in the small first-class room (where they ate what was their equivalent of caviar and steak and lobster --you fill in whatever is sumptuous and first-class for you), while others were often crowded into a clearly inferior room, sometimes in plain sight of the luxury accommodations (eating what amounted to bread and water).

Here is what a satirist from that time says about his experience of this practice1:

Since I am asked to dinner, ...why is not the same dinner served to me as to you? You take oysters fattened in rich sauce, but I suck a mussel through a hole in the shell; you get mushrooms, but I take hog funguses; you tackle turbot, but I brill (a common, bland fish). Golden with fat, a turtledove gorges you with its bloated rump; but there is set before me a magpie that has died in its cage.

The host and his wealthy close friends would gorge themselves on rich food, while other “guests” would eat elsewhere on bits of bland ordinary food. Doesn’t that make you angry?! It should!!

It seems that this outrageous practice sometimes carried over into the life of this church. Communion would be tacked on to one of these feasts of separation and contempt. Thus we read in vv. 18 & 19 about “factions” in the church and hear Paul say in v. 22:

What! Do you not have homes to eat and drink in? Or do you show contempt for the church of God and humiliate those who have nothing? [N.R.S.V.]

So who does Paul have in mind when he writes these warnings that have been used (inadvertently) to turn communion into a sombre penitential service? The person who lost their cool this week, and still feels bad about it? The person who failed to follow through on some promises, and now regrets it? The person who is spiritually numb right now, and hasn’t been reading their Bible and praying as they would like? The person who gave in to some temptation you’re struggling with? No! Paul is not trying to keep such people (or anyone aware of their need) away from the Lord’s table!

Instead, he is trying to get the attention of people who have taken the Lord’s Supper and made it a mockery by tacking it onto a blatantly evil pagan practice that is a total denial of its essence. He does not have in mind people who come to worship aware that they still have problems and needs and growing edges in their lives.

So here’s what, unfortunately, has happened. In failing to note clearly who Paul addresses in this particular passage, the church gradually let these harsh words (needed to address the high-handed sin in Corinth) come to dominate thinking about communion, so that people did not experience it as a joyful celebration of the presence of the one who had died and was now alive and with them! It became more like a funeral!

Yes, of course, we should come to the Lord’s table with a repentant heart, a heart eager to clear up sin. And yes, self-examination is very appropriate.

But in the earliest church (and hopefully again today) our repentance, our self-examination, our desire to clear up sin and be transformed is bathed in joy, deluged with forgiving grace --because our Lord is present with us in love in a special way when we share in his Supper!

So we come in confidence --even with the things that still need the touch of grace --because it is in the death of Christ and in his living presence with us that those needs can be addressed!

These are some of the core reasons why in many churches these days communion practice is evolving away from the solemn, let-me-clear-up-my-sin-by-myself penitential service that arose over time. Many across Christendom are trying to recover two notes from the earliest church the note of oneness, and the note of joy.

One way to do this is to use a range of music during communion -- a mixture of music that celebrates the death and the resurrection and the living presence of Christ. Think of the overwhelming joy that the disciples who recognized Jesus after the Emmaus Road journey felt, or the experience of the discouraged disciples when the suddenly saw their Lord with them -- alive!

Many churches are also attempting to recover the warm spirit of the early church regarding communion by using the common cup and the common loaf (in most cases, through intinction -- dipping a piece of bread in a common cup) to enact the fundamental oneness of the body of Christ that we celebrate in the face of all our differences (this conviction was central in the earliest church, and blatantly denied in the Corinthian abuse). In so doing we cut against the grain of the radical individualism of modern western culture, in which spirituality is a private thing between “me and the Lord”. Through common loaf and cup Christians can visibly declare that we are one!

Whenever you are able to be in a communion service, I urge you: come in joy; come in confidence, come in gratitude -- even if there are challenges for which you are still asking God’s help, even if everything is not yet what it should be. There, at Christ’s table, in his living presence with your brothers and sisters, experience afresh his forgiving, transforming grace. Lay all your burdens before him, and find his power to forgive you and set you free.

1cf. Gordon Fee, The First Epistle to the Corinthians (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1987), p. 542.

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For further reading:

Robert E. Webber, ed., The Complete Library of Christian Worship – Volume 6, The Sacred Actions of Christian Worship (Nashville: Starsong, 1994).

Webber’s work contains materials on the history of the Lord’s Supper, theologies of the Lord’s Supper (from various traditions), and the practice of the Lord’s Supper. Included is a brief article on “A Wesleyan Theology of the Lord’s Supper,” by Rob L. Staples. Staples has written a very helpful book: Outward Sign And Inward Grace: The Place of Sacraments in Wesleyan Spirituality (Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press, 2002).

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Entire Sanctification

(An Essay by John Vlainic prepared for the course “Heart of Free Methodism”)

Doctrinal statements evolve over time (as the church wrestles to find adequate language -- usually to respond to issues where the church senses the need for clarification).

In 1947, the “Article of Religion” on Entire Sanctification reads as follows [how much earlier I do not know]:

Justified persons, while they do not outwardly commit sin, are nevertheless conscious of sin still remaining in the heart. They feel a natural tendency to evil, a proneness to depart from God and cleave to the things of earth. Those who are sanctified wholly are saved from all inward sin – from evil thoughts and evil tempers. No wrong temper, none contrary to love, remains in the soul. All their thoughts, word, and actions are governed by pure love.

Entire sanctification takes place subsequently to justification, and is the work of God wrought instantaneously upon the consecrated, believing soul. After a soul is cleansed from all sin, it is then fully prepared to grow in grace.

By 1960 it had evolved to:

Entire sanctification is that work of the Holy Spirit, subsequent to regeneration, by which fully consecrated believers, upon exercise of faith in the atoning blood of Christ, are cleansed in that moment from all inward sin and empowered for service. The resulting relationship is attested by the witness of the Holy Spirit and is maintained by obedience and faith. Entire sanctification enables the believer to love God with all his heart, soul, strength, and mind, and his neighbor as himself, and prepares him for greater growth in grace.

Subsequently, wording changes were made to put “faith” before “obedience” and to remove masculine pronouns for believers, so that the Article now reads:

Entire sanctification is that work of the Holy Spirit, subsequent to regeneration, by which fully consecrated believers, upon exercise of faith in the atoning blood of Christ, are cleansed in that moment from all inward sin and empowered for service. The resulting relationship is attested by the witness of the Holy Spirit and is maintained by faith and obedience. Entire sanctification enables believers to love God with all their hearts, souls, strength, and minds, and their neighbors as themselves, and it prepares them for greater growth in grace.

In the years before the 1985 General Conference, various Free Methodist leaders were arguing that the Article was unduly shaped by the emphases on one particular, identifiable “crisis” rather than on a more historic balancing of process and crisis. The Study Commission on Doctrine tried to discern whether the best answer for the church would be to recommend changing the Article which, because it is in the Constitution would then have had to be presented to all the Annual Conferences and General Conferences around the world.

The Study Commission on Doctrine’s sense was that it would be wiser to leave the Article as is and to ask the North American General Conference to adopt an interpretive statement which would help to clarify the trajectories along which the Article ought to be understood. That

recommendation was adopted by the 1985 North American General Conference (thus making it the approved way of understanding the Article). [Note at that time, the Canadian Conferences were part of the North American General Conference.]

Thus the ‘approved’ or ‘official’ way of understanding the Article of Religion on Entire Sanctification became (in 1985):

Some persons err in their interpretation of this doctrine. We counsel the avoidance of the following emphases:

1. Presenting holiness as a sectarian distinctive rather than God’s grand design for every Christian.

2. Describing entire sanctification as static (a state of religious achievement) rather than as dynamic (a living relationship with God), through Christ, by the aid of the Holy Spirit.)

3. Viewing the experience of entire sanctification as an end in itself rather than as a means to a greater end, namely, a living holy walk with God.

4. Conceiving entire sanctification as a single dramatic emotional event rather than a continuing experience.

5. Defining holiness in terms of rules (“holiness standards”) rather than heart attitudes (love, faith, joy, and obedience).

6. Claiming holiness as a private experience or blessing without reference to either the body of believers or the non-Christian world.

7. Placing emphasis on human achievement (which leads to the sin of legalism) rather than on the grace of God.

Article XIII specifically describes entire sanctification. This needs to be understood against the broader doctrine of sanctification. The following points therefore should always be kept in view:

1. All of the life-changing aspects of growth into Christlikeness are part of the divine process of sanctification in the believer’s life.

2. Entire sanctification is a significant event in this process.

3. 3. Subsequent to entire sanctification, the process of sanctification continues, enhanced by new dimensions of holy love in our relationship with God and our fellow men. The ultimate evidence of the sanctified life is the quality of the believer’s present relationships with God and men.

After this report was adopted, the Free Methodist Church in Canada became its own General Conference. No subsequent action has been taken to adopt any new statements or interpretations.

However, the Free Methodist Church in the United States has continued to wrestle with how to present this great truth in ways that are faithful to Scripture and our Wesleyan heritage. In 1999, their Study Commission on Doctrine presented the following report, which is helpful in understanding a more contemporary explanation of the doctrine.

HOLINESS

Every faith community, sustained by a living tradition, must periodically reformulate that tradition for the sake of its members. New generations and changed circumstances call for a fresh articulation of the community’s core values. The Free Methodist Church (FMC) now finds itself in need of reformulating its understanding of, and passion for, holiness.

How to understand and promote holy living has been a recurring concern of the church at all levels. Between the General Conferences of 1979 and 1989 the Study Commission on Doctrine initiated a fresh inquiry into holiness. More than forty papers were received and discussed from scholars within the FMC as well as the larger Wesleyan movement. These papers covered a range of concerns including: the biblical and theological meaning of key holiness terms (e.g., to sanctify or make holy and related terms, sin, perfection); the exegesis of traditional holiness texts; the implications of developmental theory for holiness theology and experience; the preaching of holiness in non-Western cultures; and John Wesley’s view of holiness and its development in the American holiness movement.

The Study Commission on Doctrine (SCOD) considered these papers and, in the course of time, commissioned Bishop Emeritus Elmer Parsons to prepare the paper “Living the Holy Life Today.” This paper became a part of SCOD’s report to the 1989 General Conference, was warmly received, and subsequently published in pamphlet form for distribution throughout the church. Living the Holy Life Today provides an excellent account of our holiness heritage and continues to serve the church well. Yet the passage of time suggests the appropriateness of another treatment of this theme.

Since the publication of Living the Holy Life Today, SCOD has proposed, and the General Conference of 1995 has adopted, a different approach to membership in the FMC. This new approach to membership also signals the advisability of a fresh articulation of our holiness message, for several reasons.

First, we have identified holiness as “the great commandment of our community” and we urge our members to “call on God for a renewed and clear vision of holiness that brings the presence of God near to the people of our time” (U.S. Book Discipline, 352.1).

While this “call” assumes the form of a petition anticipating God’s response, SCOD rightly views its service to the church as one of the ways God may answer this petition.

Second, we have formulated our membership procedures with a view to a Wesleyan Ordo Salutis or process of God’s saving work in human life. We seek to encourage people to join us on “the way of holiness.” Some guidance for the journey, describing the way and resourcing the journey, would seem a natural and helpful next step.

Third, our membership procedures envision a corporate ethos that welcomes sinners and embraces them in redemptive and transforming fellowship, leading to a holy life. The change of ethos we envision will be clarified and encouraged by revisiting and reformulating our holiness teaching.

Thus, our newly revised membership procedures suggest a fresh articulation. The current state of holiness theology and experience among our people suggest it as well. Our traditional approaches, as popularly understood, have focused too much on human experience, especially on issues of life style and conduct that have been historically and culturally important to us, and not enough on Scriptural portrayals of holiness. Consequently, in some quarters holiness teaching has contributed to a legalistic view of Christian life, precisely the view we hope to correct by a different approach to membership. In addition, we have also focused too much on the mechanics of holiness (i.e., our two step formula, placing most of the emphasis on moving toward and experiencing “the second definite work”) and not enough on the meaning of holiness. Consequently, holiness teaching has contributed to a mechanical and static view of Christian life, which is another view we hope to correct through revised membership procedures.

Regrettably, perceptions of our holiness message have made holiness out of favor among us. Many -- pastors and lay people -- will say they don’t understand it, our explanations don’t make sense, or it doesn’t work. David McKenna notes, “In an unpublished study reported at the 1984 annual convention of the Christian Holiness Association, the survey results showed that a high percentage of people in holiness churches did not understand or experience the flagship doctrine of entire sanctification. Another high percentage of colleges in the holiness tradition did not teach the doctrine and a still higher percentage of the young did not understand, experience or accept the doctrine” (A Future With A History, Light and Life Communications, 1997, pp. 64-65).

All of these factors -- the passing of time, new membership procedures, the current state of holiness understanding and practice among us, and the tragic presence of unholiness all around us -- call us to help our people understand the heart of Scripture’s call to the holy life and give guidance along the way on which we expect them to walk.

Therefore, we offer the church the following essay, “The Holiness We Pursue,” written for SCOD by David Kendall. In offering this essay to the church we draw particular attention to four features of our holiness message……..

“First, we seek to give a simple and straightforward account of the essence of holiness which Free Methodists pursue. In providing an account of our “vision,” we encourage our people to affirm the biblical character of holiness and to make this vision the basis for their everyday lives. In doing so our confidence is this: As we seek the God who shares this vision with us, He will do His gracious work in our lives.

Second, we present the pursuit of holiness within a Wesleyan understanding of the process of salvation. In that understanding, holiness is not an “add-on” to our faith, an option we may choose to supplement “the basic package.” Rather, from the very beginning, our spiritual awakening, God works to make us holy. We are drawn to participate in a relationship that is dynamic, not to reach a “state” or even to climb a spiritual ladder from one stage to another.

Third, we affirm that the nature of Wesleyan theology and the biblical vision of holy living make process the primary or foundational reality of Christian living. Crisis, though indispensable, is subordinate to process. The Ordo makes this clear -- it begins not simply with crisis, but with the initiation of a process -- awakening and movement toward God. Within the Ordo, in fact, even the crisis of conversion (justification, regeneration, initial sanctification), though absolutely essential, is subordinate to the process. Grace is not irresistible, and human responsibility continues throughout the believer’s life. Conversion therefore leads to dynamic relationship, or it is not true conversion. If conversion as a crisis is subordinate to an overall process, then certainly the crisis of entire sanctification is as well.

To assert the primacy of process over crisis does not minimize the significance of crisis. Rather, it clarifies its context and guards us against a static, and non-Wesleyan view of Christian life. Crisis experiences can be found everywhere throughout the Bible and are therefore to be expected. Furthermore, human nature is such that moral and spiritual

development almost always requires crisis. The biblical record and human experience therefore alert us to anticipate the key role of crisis within the life-long process of developing and deepening a holy character and lifestyle.

Fourth, we underscore the comprehensive nature of holy living. Our pursuit and experience of holiness relates to all facets of biblical Christianity. Two of these facets merit particular concern. The first is the connection between holy living and the church as the community of God’s people. Only when the community of faith serves individual Christians as a lively and powerful resource may we expect holy living to thrive. The Wesleyan affirmation that there is no holiness other than social holiness leads us to conclude that people do not and cannot become biblically holy as mere individuals. The community helps inform our understanding of holiness and supports us on the way of holiness. Likewise, the community must hold us accountable to our aspirations for holiness. We have succumbed to the individualism of our culture at this point, to the peril of our souls. A second crucial connection is that between holiness and mission or ministry. The Spirit of God indwells the holy people of God and empowers them both to be like Jesus and to do the work of Jesus. Our aspirations for holiness must lead us to join together in loving God and neighbor and in fulfilling the Great Commission.”

Here is David Kendall’s summary “vision” of what the holy life would look like today (from God’s Call to Be Like Jesus: Living a Holy Life in an Unholy World (Light and Life Communications, 1999), pp. 188-189.

“God is at work to create the community we need . . . a new generation of Christians:

-people overwhelmed by who God shows Himself to be in Jesus, barely able to believe how deeply God loves them and unable to help but love him in return;

-people whose sense of God’s undeserved forgiveness prompts a reflex response back to God and to others who deserve God’s love no more than they do and to whom it is no less offered;

-people who, therefore, hunger and thirst for more of God and whose appetite God satisfies;

-people who find themselves by losing themselves in Jesus, who now find themselves oriented to God, others, and self the way Jesus was;

-people whose dependence on God leads them to value and depend on the family God gives them in Jesus, who discover how deeply they need this family to continue following Jesus--even when it means costly sacrifice, service, and suffering in order to do what Jesus would do;

-people who know they could never be or do as God calls them, and yet they are and they do, because God empowers them by his Spirit;

-people whose former brokenness is clearly on the mend, whose relationships reveal a beauty and attractiveness that many of the love-starved and sin-stained folk around them will find irresistible.

It seems right to think that among such people as these, consumer-oriented Christians stand a good chance of seeing how trivial their pursuits are when compared to following Jesus.

Some of them may grow passionate about being all God calls them to be, and begin having the time of their lives.

It also seems right to think that among such holy people, the broken, addicted, and deceived of our world will see the true way of life with its promise of healing, freedom, and peace. And, no doubt, some of them will become brand new persons!

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Compassion And The Poor

Submitted by Keith Schnell and Lee Barbour

Preface

John Wesley taught that a means of grace available to us is serving the needy. Methodists have strong emphasis on worship and the sacraments but our heritage is the work of holiness and ministry to the poor. These are essentials in the teachings of Christ. His followers work to be faithful to them.

This brief report is an attempt to assemble resources we can use to shape our church’s response to ‘Compassion and the Poor’. Some bibliographic resources have been reviewed and a short bibliography has been developed

Resources List

In present day Canadian society, government agencies and professional organisations have taken up the responsibility for the poor often leaving Christians perplexed as to what to do. Following are a number of resources that give insight and guidance to pastors and local congregations. This is not an attempt to present quick “how to” methods but to give insight into the theology and practise of ministry to the needy through the local church. This list will be updated as other materials are researched and become available.

Baptism And Dedication

People coming to the Free Methodist Church from other Christian traditions are often surprised to find that babies can be dedicated or baptized. Most church families in Christendom have chosen only one of these. Why does the Free Methodist Church make provision for people to do either?

To clarify this matter we will ask, first, about the origins of baptism. Then we will ask what it means. This is done in the awareness that people in Christian circles range from seeing baptism somewhat “magical” to seeing it as “merely symbolic.” Free Methodists believe that the truth lies between these extremes.

What are the Origins of Baptism?

Baptism, and religious rites involving the use of water, have been around a good deal longer than the Christian Church. At least three practices involving water were in use among groups who had contact with the early church.

1The Old Testament law contained regulations requiring washings. It would probably be wise not to call them “ceremonial,” because that word implies a distinction the Jews could not make. External religious actions were seen as having spiritual implications for the whole person. Jesus, Paul, and the writers of Scripture were not rationalistic 20th century North Americans who find it easy to separate external actions from internal personal implications. Various kinds of “uncleanness” were to be cleansed by washings with water.

2One group among the Jews performed a rite in which participants daily went down into a pool of water to experience cleansing and commit themselves to goodness, truth, and righteousness. This community withdrew from normal Jewish life in the second century before Christ and set up a separatist commune at Qumran near the Dead Sea. The famous Dead Sea Scrolls discovered in the desert of that region tell us these practices.

3Furthermore, at the time of Jesus, a practice was taking shape for the initiation of Gentiles into the Jewish community of faith. Gentiles, were, of course, seen as “unclean,” and so, a ceremony of purification and initiation, not unlike baptism as we know it, became a part of their “conversion” to Judaism. In Judaism, then, baptism became the sign of that change in which an “outsider” became a member of the family of faith. It was the mark of entry.

What about the New Testament itself? The Gospels tell us that before the ministry of Jesus, a man named John was in the desert preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. In fact, the fourth Gospel tell us that some of Jesus’ disciples were initially disciples of this John the baptizer. The religious authorities were outraged by John’s baptism. They saw baptism as something for the unclean, “something for ‘outsiders’, who need to get ‘in’.” By calling Jews to be baptized, John was asking those who required outsiders to be baptized to consider themselves as outsiders in need of God’s forgiving grace. The Jewish leaders were scandalized because John was asking them to engage in a practice that implied that they too needed cleansing and forgiveness!

But John insisted that his baptism was only a preparatory rite. The water baptism he administered was only preparing people for the decisive ministry of the One who was yet to come. The Messiah would baptize with the Holy Spirit.

On the day of Pentecost He did. And from that day to this, the message for everyone who hears the Word of Christ’s death for sins is as Peter preached in Acts 2:38: “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” In the era of the church, the characteristic baptism which Jesus does is in the Holy Spirit, the visible expression of which is baptism with water.

What does Baptism Mean?

Given the fact that there were a number of kinds of baptism in the world of the early church (see Hebrews 6:2), we need to ask, “What specific meanings does Christian baptism have?”

1Christian baptism has always been a visible

way of identifying with the Christian community, of saying that a person now takes his or her official stand with the fellowship of believers. This was a very strong note in the Jewish baptism of non-Jews.

Baptism does not seem scandalous to most of us. For many it is an acceptable social convention, the proper thing to do. But not so for those who came to Christ in the New Testament era, and for many today, especially in other cultures.

Baptism means abandoning all your former first allegiances. It often mean becoming an outcast in your own family and among your friends. You could attend Christian gatherings and still not abandon all your former allegiances. You would still not be regarded for certain as a Christian. But once you submitted to baptism, you were burning all your bridges behind you. You irrevocably identified yourself with that strange little band of people who followed and worshipped as alive from the dead a man who had been executed as a criminal, a man named Jesus. You might toy with the Christian way up until baptism, but in that culture (and in some places today), you were “taking the plunge” when you submitted to baptism. Baptism mean forsaking all and identifying with Jesus Christ and His body, the church.

2Baptism is an enactment of death and new life. This is the distinctive contribution of Paul to our understanding. In his writings he repeatedly connects baptism with a person’s participation in the death and resurrection of Christ. In Romans chapter 6, he is concerned to articulate the inner change (with outer consequences) that has taken place in those who have become Christians. Paul alludes to what he know his readers believe about baptism. He reminds them that when they came to faith in Christ they became personal participants in his death to sin, and in his resurrection to new life. That is, when they came to Christ in faith (which in the earliest church was accompanied by baptism), the death of Christ became theirs, too, as did his resurrection. No longer were these events limited to Jesus and to the early 30’s A.D., but they became real and effective in the lives of those who trusted him. In a way we can only hint at, believers have been joined to Christ and become a part of him. Paul’s oft-used phrase “in Christ” refers to this. In the earliest days of the church, baptism was closely associated with this dying and rising with Christ through which a person came to be “in Christ.”

3Finally, the true baptism, the effective baptism that washes away sin and imparts new life, is not what is done in water (whatever the mode). What the church does in those instances is the outward expression of that inward baptism in which the Holy Spirit washes away the sins of those who trust Christ, and renews them from the inside out. There is only one Christian baptism (Ephesians 4:5), but it has an outward side (water baptism) and an inward (baptism by the Spirit into Christ).

Many Christians use the term “Spirit baptism” to refer to subsequent experiences of the Spirit in the Christian life. However, that is not our focus here. We are using the words in the basic sense of what the Holy Spirit does when we all become Christians. I Corinthians 12:13 says, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body - whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free - and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.”

So how did we get more than one view?

The foregoing helps us realize that there are many dimensions to baptism (just as there are many dimensions to coming to Christ). Like the other sacrament (the Lord’s Supper), baptism defies total grasp by mere humans, especially fallen ones. However, let us attempt to outline what seems to have happened.

In the earliest days of the church, the good news about new life in Jesus was first preached principally to adults who made public confession, by means of the act of baptism, that they had joined themselves to Jesus in repentance and trust and had died to sin and risen to newness of life along with him. From these early precedents the church has continued to baptize adult converts. But what then becomes of the children of believers?

Two streams of interpretation have emerged over twenty centuries, both of which find some support in the New Testament texts. Though sharp battles have been fought between proponents of the two traditions, the Free Methodist position is that they are intrinsically complementary. Each needs the other for theological completeness.

The tradition practicing infant baptism has pointed to the priority of grace over faith. That is to say, this tradition stresses God’s initiative in our coming to Christ. It also affirms that the little children of Christian parents have a right to “belong” in the community of faith.

The tradition espousing believers’ baptism in which adults are baptized and infants are “blessed” or “dedicated” has placed emphasis on the importance of the believer’s response to God’s grace.

Both of these aspects of the drama of salvation need to be held together in tension if we are to have a full-orbed doctrine of coming to Christ. The tradition of baptizing only those who consciously repent and trust in Christ emphasizes free, adult decision. It stresses personal response to Christ, which presupposes volition, intelligence and accountability. The infant baptism tradition, on the other hand, stresses God’s initiative prior to our human response, pointing out that God is at work in our lives (especially the lives of children with Christian parents) long before we personally respond. It also stresses the “corporate” (more than individual) dimension of life among God’s people.

Acts 16:15 indicates that when Lydia opened her heart in response to Paul’s message, “she and the members of her household were baptized.” Paul wrote in I Corinthians 1:16, “I also baptized the household of Stephanus.” Other similar statements exist. One could reasonably argue that children were likely a part of those households.

Many factors will determine which side of these debates one perceives as holding greater truth. What seems less deniable is that baptism has some relation (though not complete) to the rite of circumcision, an initiatory rite of entry into membership in the Jewish faith. Circumcision was performed on infants. Thus it is often said that as Jews enter the old covenant community through circumcision, Christians enter the community of the new covenant through baptism.

But one cannot press the analogy between circumcision and baptism too far. There are major differences between the two. Circumcision is for males only. But it is clear in the New Testament that Christians joyfully baptized men and women from the very first (Acts 16:15). In addition, the covenant entered into through circumcision involved certain elements of national and racial identity that are not factors in the new community.

The church needs to avoid both extremes. The one extreme (which sees a baptism only as something we do as a testimony to our faith) ignores the work of God in bringing a person to faith in Jesus. The other extreme (in which baptism is sometimes regarded as almost “magical”) ignores human will, personal repentance and trust. God’s initiative (grace) and personal human response (faith) have to be held in tension. Thus Free Methodists use both rites, trying to paint the whole picture. When they baptize babies, pastors should make sure that their prayers include clear requests that God will bring the children to a personal faith that “owns” what the parents are promising at a times when the children (who “belong” from day one) cannot act for themselves. And when they dedicate children, pastors should make sure that their prayers include clear gratitude to God for the fact that he is already at work in the life of that child, who already “belongs” in the Christian community.

Here’s what must be stressed: whether at the time of baptism (in the adult baptism tradition) or at the time of confirmation when the vows made earlier by the parents are personally “owned” (in the infant baptism tradition), it is faith in Jesus (dependent trust, not mere cognitive affirmation) that is crucial. Paul goes so far as to say that without faith and obedience, the old rite of circumcision has no value (Romans 2:25). The same is true of baptism. With either rite, clear evangelistic follow-through is crucial.

So what do Free Methodists do?

We provide a service of either baptism or dedication. In both, we emphasize the grace of God and the necessity of faith. When Christian parents - as a matter of conscience - have a preference for one service or the other, our pastors honour that request. By teaching and follow-up, we emphasize that neither practice has saving virtue and that both are appropriate only for parents who themselves are living the life of faith.

Conclusion

The Free Methodist Church’s roots are clearly in the infant baptism tradition. However, over the years, as the church has incorporated people whose consciences have been shaped by both traditions, it has granted parents the right to choose which service they prefer. The Free Methodist Church attempts to embrace both dimensions of Christian truth.

Select Bibliography

Borgen, Ole “Effective Means of Grace: The Atonement Applied, 2. Baptism “John Wesley on the Sacraments” (Grand Rapids: Francis Asbury Press, 1972) pp 121-182.

Banner, Frederick Dale “A Discussion of the Case for Believers’ Baptism”, Matthew: A Commentary, Volume 1 (Dallas: Word, 1987) pages 94-97.

Dunn, J. D. G. “Baptism,” Unity and Diversity in the New Testament (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1977), pp 152-161.

Oden, T. C. “The Ministry of Baptism and Eucharist,” Pastoral Theology (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1983), pp 105-126.

Odent, T. C. “Pastoral Care Through Baptism: The Ministry of Beginnings,” Ministry Through Word and Sacrament (New York: Crossroad, 1989), pp 107-133.

Turner, George Allen “Infant Baptism in Biblical and Historical Context, “ Wesleyan Theological Journal (5.1, Spring 1970), pp 11-21.

Webber, R. E. ‘The Rite of Initiation,” Celebrating our Faith (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1986), pp 84-98.

Wesley, John “Treatise on Baptism,” The Works of John Wesley, 3rd Edition (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1978), pp 188-201.

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Women In Ministry

The North American General Conference of 1974 (of which Canadian Free Methodists were a part) passed a resolution “giving women equal status with men in the ministry of the church” (General Conference Minutes, p. 388). According to the report of that Conference in Light and Life magazine, the vote was unanimous. That vote, in the minds of many, settled the issue and they turned their attention to other concerns.

During the intervening years, the denomination’s position has not changed. However, outside the denomination, the voices opposing women in ministry and limiting the leadership roles of women in the local church have become more assertive. Some of those voices are respected evangelical leaders (e.g., refer to J.I. Packer below) who seem to be ignorant of Wesleyan/holiness church history, implying that anyone who differs from them is playing fast and loose with Scripture. This is confusing to many.

On the other hand, within the denomination there is growing concern over the fact that, though women officially have access to full ordination and any role in the church, few women are in leadership positions. At a time when women are entering formerly male-dominated professions in increasing numbers, the percentage of women among Free Methodist pastors, especially senior pastors, and in local church and denominational leadership roles, is not growing as would be expected.

Given these concerns, the Study Commission on Doctrine believes it is time to articulate anew the church’s position on women in ministry. In the following pages we will examine the historical support for ordaining women, the appropriate principles of biblical interpretation, and the scriptural bases for releasing the daughters of God in leadership and ministry.

4.1 Our History

Writing in Christianity Today, J.I. Packer claimed that the call for the ordination of women is a modern concern resulting in part from social changes since World War I. He also stated that Bible-based evangelical communities of all denominational stripes within Protestantism agree in opposing this trend” (Packer, p. 18). Packer apparently has no awareness of Wesleyan Holiness history or the status of women within Wesleyan Holiness denominations. The Salvation Army, the Anderson Church of God, and the Church of the Nazarene, all founded in the last decades of the nineteenth century, have ordained women since their beginnings (Dayton, pp. 94, 97-98).

Denominations that emphasize the work of the Holy Spirit have tended to be more open than others to the ministry of women. Believing it is God who must place the call on any minister, they have accepted that God could choose to call women as well as men. Since its founding, women, called and empowered by the Holy Spirit, have ministered in the Free Methodist Church.

As early as 1861, when the Free Methodist Church was just one year old, the minutes of the Genesee Convention report the discussion of women preaching (see Richardson, p. 53). Bishop B.T. Roberts believed strongly in the equality of men and women. He argued that women should be working shoulder to shoulder with men in building the kingdom of God. He tried to lead the denomination toward the ordination of women.

The General Conference of 1874 established a class of ministers called evangelists. They were persons called of God to preach the Gospel and promote revival but not called to a pastoral charge. Both “brothers and sisters” could be licensed as evangelists. Thus, women were licensed and ministered as lay preachers in the church.

To the General Conference of 1890, “B.T. Roberts offered the following Resolution. That the gospel of Jesus Christ, in the provision which it makes, and in the agencies which it employs for the salvation of mankind, knows no distinction of nationality, condition [or] sex: therefore, no person who is called of God, and who is duly qualified, should be refused ordination on account of sex, or race or condition” (1890 General Conference Minutes, p. 131). After much debate, the motion lost by a vote of 37 to 41. Deeply grieved by this action, Roberts took up his pen. In 1891 he published Ordaining Women--Biblical and Historical Insights. In the preface Roberts states the purpose for his writing: “That truth may prevail, Christ be glorified, and His Kingdom be advanced on earth” (Roberts, p. 8). Unfortunately, Roberts died in 1893 without seeing women fully released to build the kingdom of God through the Free Methodist Church.

Although the 1890 General Conference refused to grant ordination to women, a step of progress was made for women. The Free Methodist (the denominational magazine) for October 22, 1890 reported, “Two of the lay delegates having seats in the General Conference [sic] are ladies. ...Both are doing some committee work. Most of our readers will be glad to know that the question of admitting ladies as lay delegates did not in the least disrupt the equanimity of the conference.” Through its history, the Free Methodist Church has not officially limited the role of women in the church except in the case of ordination.

The General Conference of 1894 again addressed the place of women in ministry. It added a paragraph to the section on evangelists. “When women have been licensed by the Annual Conference, and have served two successive years under appointment as pastors, they may ... have a voice and vote in the Annual Conference; and in the transaction of Conference business they shall be counted with the preachers” (see Hogue, Vol. 1, p. 218). Though evangelists were supposed to be lay, non-pastoral preachers, the church acknowledged that women evangelists were pastoring.

Ordination was finally granted to women by the 1911 General Conference. But it was a limited ordination. They could be ordained Deacon, “provided always that this ordination of women shall not be considered a step toward ordination as Elder” (Hogue, Vol. 1, p. 218). Women could preach and pastor, but they were barred from senior leadership in the church until 1974.

In the Foreword to the 1992 reprint of Ordaining Women, John E. Van Valin says, “For the last 132 years, the Free Methodist Church has with honour taken her place among many other groups within the Christian faith who accord to women honour and respect in ministry. For our church this honour is in part symbolized by ... ordination. ...The reprinting of this centenarian volume signals not so much a new era in the life of the church but a presentation of her cherished heritage.”

4.2 Interpreting Scripture

In the search for truth, Free Methodists want to know what the Bible says on any issue. Scripture is the ultimate authority on which we depend. But Scripture must be interpreted to ascertain God’s message for us. How one approaches the task of interpretation makes a great deal of difference in the meanings discovered. Before examining the biblical bases for women in ministry, let us identify the principles that should guide interpretation.

W. Ward Gasque in his article “The Role of Women in the Church, in Society and in the Home” identifies several principles that need to guide our study of biblical texts. First, the contextual principle. What is the author discussing in the surrounding verses? How does the verse under study relate to the theme and logic of the whole passage? The context provides insight on the meaning.

Second, the linguistic principle. The Bible was written in Hebrew or Greek. Translating meaning from language to language is a challenge. Understanding God’s Word for us requires an honest examination of a passage in its original language. What meanings might words have carried? Is that meaning accurately and fully translated in English? Have translators used different English words for the same Greek or Hebrew word in different passages? For example, in Romans 16;1, Phoebe is called a “servant.” The Greek word used here is usually translated “deacon” or “minister” in verses speaking of men. Why is Phoebe not similarly called a “deacon” or “minister”?

Third, the historical principle. Without an understanding of the historical setting in which biblical authors were writing, we often miss the revolutionary nature of Scripture in contrast to pagan ways. Reading Paul’s letters to the churches without knowing the historical setting is like listening to one side of a telephone conversation. Our interpretation may be distorted if we do not seek to understand the heresies being spread in the early church and the lifestyle issues that infant Christians brought into the church.

Fourth, interpret a particular text within the context of an author’s writing as a whole. To discern Paul’s views on women, one must wrestle with all that he said on the subject and make sense of the whole. When there seem to be contradictions, the historical and contextual principles may help unravel the mystery.

Fifth, the principle of the analogy of faith. Christians assume the consistency of Scripture as a whole. Any individual text must therefore be interpreted in the light of the whole. Understanding the flow of Scripture is important in discovering its consistency. Gilbert Bilezikian in Beyond Sex Roles suggest that creation - fall - redemption summarize the flow of Scripture (Bilezikian, pp. 15ff.). In Genesis 1 and 2 we find God’s creation design; Genesis 3 records the Fall and the rest of the Old Testament tells of God’s first covenant with fallen human beings. The New Testament proclaims the story of redemption and the new covenant through which persons can be redeemed and empowered by God’s Spirit to live in accordance with God’s will -- the creation design. When interpreting specific Scripture passages, it is important to distinguish between the creation design, descriptions of God working patiently with fallen humanity under the first covenant, and God’s vision for those who are redeemed.

It is interesting to note that where persons begin their study of what the Bible has to say about women impacts their final conclusions. Some begin with statements from Paul and Peter that seem to limit the role of women in the church and make them subservient to men in the home. They then see the rest of Scripture through these verses. Others begin with Genesis 1-3 and move on through Scripture. They are amazed by Jesus’ treatment of women, thrilled by Acts 2:16 and Galatians 3:28. They celebrate the equality the Bible portrays of women and men. In the light of the whole, they wrestle with the difficult passages and discover the harmony of these verses when sound interpretive principles are used (see Gasque, p. 1).

The last principle mentioned by Gasque is the history of biblical interpretation. For centuries Christians used Scripture to prove the rightness of slavery. Finally, principles similar to those identified above were applied to the verses referring to slaves and 19th century evangelical Christians began to call for the abolition of slavery. Their approach to biblical interpretation also led them to support the ordination of women (see Dayton, p. 90). It is interesting to note that in the first chapter of Ordaining Women, Roberts states, “If those who stood high as interpreters of Reason and Revelation, and who expressed the prevailing sentiments of their day, were so greatly mistaken on [the slavery issue] ... is it not possible that the current sentiment as to the position which WOMAN should be permitted to occupy in the Church of Christ may also be wrong?” (Roberts, p. 11). Sound principles of interpretation are needed to clear up misunderstandings and destructive error.

4.3 Biblical Support for Women in Ministry

In recent years, many excellent books have been written to articulate the biblical perspective on the place of women and men in the church and home. Many of the insights presented by these modern writers had already been anticipated by Roberts in his brief book. Since we are here addressing Free Methodists, we will turn first to Roberts for help in seeing what the Bible says about women in ministry and amplify his work with insights from other scholars. The bibliography at the end of this article provides resources for further study.

4.3.1 Old Testament Insights

Roberts begins his biblical study with Genesis 2:18, “The Lord said, ‘It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.’” Some use this verse to prove that women are simply to “help” men, to serve them. Roberts reads this verse to mean that “woman was created, not as the servant of man, but as his companion, his equal.” Adam Clarke, he notes, understood the Hebrew to imply “that the woman was to be a perfect resemblance of the man, possessing neither inferiority or superiority, but being in all things like and equal to himself.” The word translated “helper” in Genesis 2:18 appears nineteen times in the Old Testament. Fifteen times it refers to God helping needy people. It therefore carries no connotation of inferiority (see Evans, p. 16).

To both man and woman, God gave the order to be fruitful and to take dominion over the world (Genesis 1:28). There is no hint of woman’s subjection before the Fall. Roberts notes that when Jesus was asked about divorce in Matthew 19:3, he based his response on Genesis 2:24, “For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one flesh.” Why did Jesus refer to the time before the Fall? “To reenact the law enacted then. Thus Christ restored the primitive law. He said nothing about the subjection of women--not one word. ...Christ calls redeemed humanity to live out the creation design.

The Old Testament tells of two categories of religious leaders, priests and prophets. All the Hebrew priests were male. With the coming of Christ and our great high priest, the order of priests ended. The prophets are therefore more the Old Testament counterparts of contemporary Christian ministers. And there were women prophets including Miriam (Exodus 15:20), Deborah (Judges 4:4), and Huldah (2 Kings 22:14). The Scripture presents their stories, making no issue of their gender. Women judges and prophets were both recognized.

Roberts concludes his review of the Old Testament by stating, “There is nothing in the creation of woman or in her condition under the law which proves that no woman should be ordained as a minister of the Gospel” (Roberts, p. 37).

4.3.2 New Testament Insights

Jesus shocked his world by the way in which he treated women. He respected them, taking time to talk with them (John 4), heal them (Luke 8:48), forgive them (John 8:11), engage them in theological discussion (John 4:19-26; 11:23-27), and welcome them as disciples, i.e., learners (Luke 10:39, 42). He drew into his teaching parables from their experiences (Luke 15:8-10). No other rabbi of Jesus’ time did such things. Jesus’ treatment of women was revolutionary. He even commanded a woman to be the first witness to the resurrection (John 20:17). Moreover, Jesus made no statements limiting women in their ministry for him.

But, some may say, the twelve apostles were all men. Does that not indicate church leaders should be men? To this objection Roberts responded, “If gentiles are to preach, why did [Jesus] not choose a gentile among the twelve? Why were the twelve Jews, every one of them? The example is as binding in the one case as the other” (Roberts, p. 37).

The key text on women’s ministry for the 19th century holiness movement was Acts 2:16-18, “This is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: ‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy.’” One Methodist woman preacher declared Pentecost as “Woman’s Emancipation Day.” A new age began with Pentecost, an age in which the Holy Spirit anointed daughters as well as sons to preach and prophesy (Malcolm, pp. 120, 127).

For Roberts Galatians 3:28 was the key verse that settled the question of whether or not women could be ministers, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” Some claim that this verse refers only to salvation. To this objection Roberts replied, “If this verse referred only to salvation by faith, the female would not be specified. ...In the many offers of salvation made in the New Testament, woman is not specially mentioned. ...’He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved,’ included woman as well as man. Everyone so understood it. ... We must understand [Galatians 3:28] to teach, as it actually does, the perfect equality of all, under the Gospel, in rights and privileges, without respect of nationality, or condition, or sex. If this gives to men of all nations the right to become ministers of the Gospel, it gives women precisely the same right” (Roberts, pp. 37-39).

But, you may be asking, what about the verses that seem to limit women’s involvement in the church? Are they in conflict with the rest of the Bible, or is there a way of understanding them that is in harmony with the flow of Scripture? Two such passages are 1 Corinthians 14:34-35 and 1 Timothy 2:11-12.

In 1 Corinthians 11:5, Paul talks about women covering their heads when they pray and prophesy. Those instructions would not be needed if all “women should remain silent in the churches” (1 Corinthians 14:34). Paul’s theme in chapter fourteen is orderly worship. Verses 26-35 identify three groups of person who apparently were creating disorder and needed to be silent: persons speaking in tongues when there was no interpreter (v. 28), those who continued to speak when someone else received a revelation (v. 30), and women who were speaking out during worship (v. 34). John Bristow notes that the word translated “speak” in verse 34 is laleo, which of all the verbs that may be translated “speak” is the only one that can simply mean talk to one another (Bristow, p. 63). The Corinthian women were told not to interrupt the church service by conversing together; if they had questions about the topic at hand, they should wait and discuss them at home (v. 35). Probably these women were experiencing new liberties as Christians. They were not accustomed to being in public gatherings. Paul is calling, not for the silencing of women preachers but for the silencing of women who disrupted worship with their conversations and questions, along with the silencing of others whose behaviour detracted from worship (see further, Evans, pp. 95-108).

We have already noted that Free Methodists historically have not silenced women in the church. Women have testified, sung, preached, and taught in the church. But for over one hundred years the leadership and authority of women were limited by denying full ordination. One speaker in the 1890 General Conference debate declared, “We would give her the same educational advantages, and the same property rights as man. We would acknowledge her to be the equal of man in intellect, equal in ability, but not equal in authority (see Gramento, p. 77).

Persons holding such a view would probably quote 1 Timothy 2:12 as their biblical support, “I do not permit a woman to teach or to have authority over a man; she must be silent.” A look at linguistics and the historical context can help shed light on the meaning of this passage. In verse 12 Paul uses the Greek word authentein for authority, rather than the common words he uses in all such cases. Authentein carries the idea of autocratic or totally self-directed behaviour, or usurping authority or domineering. Paul forbids women to usurp authority that is not rightly theirs (Evans, p. 103). The word translated “man” in this verse is the Greek word often translated “husband.” Some scholars believe verse 12 speaks to husbands and wives as they relate to one another in the worshipping community and not to the role of women in general.

Pastor Timothy was dealing with false teaching in Ephesus. Paul was concerned that Timothy not allow men or women to teach false doctrines (1 Timothy 1:3). In the context of this concern, Paul stated that women “should learn in quietness and full submission” (1 Timothy 2:11). The call for an attitude of quiet submission on the part of the learner probably reflected first century education ideas rather than limitations prescribed for women. But the significant point in verse 11 is that Paul wanted women to be learning. In our day of education for all, we miss the radical nature of Paul’s statement (Evans, p. 102).

At the end of her study on 1 Timothy 2:11-12, Mary Evans concludes, “While the prohibition [to teach and have authority] is not absolute, it remains a prohibition. No believer, male or female, has an automatic right to teach. Any, particularly women, who are untaught and easily deceived, must continue to concentrate on learning rather than on usurping an authority which had not been given them” (Evans, p. 106). When viewed in their literary and historical context with insights from the Greek, these passages do not contradict what we find elsewhere in Scripture.

4.4 Conclusion

What does the Free Methodist Church believe the Scriptures teach about the place of women in the church? Bishop Roberts summarized those beliefs well.

Man and woman were created equal, each possessing the same rights and privileges as the other.

At the Fall, woman ... became subject to her husband.

Christ reenacted the primitive law and restored the original relation of equality of the sexes.

The objections to the equality of man and woman in the Christian church, based upon the Bible, rest upon a wrong translation of some passages and a misinterpretation of others.

We come, then, to this final conclusion: The Gospel of Jesus Christ, in the provisions that it makes and in the agencies that it employs for the salvation of humankind, knows no distinction of race, condition, or sex (Roberts, p. 103-104).

With these beliefs, women should be encouraged to take their place in all areas of church leadership and ministry. Jesus calls us all, women and men, to make disciples and build the kingdom of God.

4.5 Response

The Canadian Study Commission on Doctrine wholeheartedly affirms the denomination’s position on women in ministry.

The Commission further recommends that leaders across the denomination explore the barriers that continue to hinder women, and find ways of removing those barriers to release women for more effective leadership and ministry through the Free Methodist Church.

Because God gifts both men and women for ministry and leadership, as stewards of his grace, we recommend the increased involvement of women in all ministries of the church (e.g. pastoral leadership, denominational leadership, worship leadership, governing board membership, small group leadership, etc.).

Select Bibliography

Bilezikian, Gilbert. Beyond Sex Roles: What the Bible Says About a Women’s Place in the Church and Family (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1985).

Bristow, John. What Paul Really Said about Women (San Francisco: Harper, 1988).

Cowles, C.S. A Woman’s Place? Leadership in the Church Kansas City: Beacon Hill, 1993.

Dayton, Donald W. “The Evangelical Roots of Feminism.” Discovering an Evangelical Heritage (New York: Harper), 1976.

Evans, Mary J. Woman in the Bible. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity), 1983.

Ferder, Fran and John Heagle. Partnership: Women and Men in Ministry (Notre Dame: Ava Maria), 1989.

Gasque, W. Ward. “The Role of Women in the Church, in Society and in the Home.” Priscilla Papers, Vol. 2, No. 2, (Spring 1988).

Gramento, Jean Hall. I. Those Astounding Free Methodist Women” A Biographical History of Free Methodist Women in Ministry. II. Extending Bibliography of Free Methodist Women’s Studies: with Selected Ecumenical Entries (Doctor of Ministries dissertation; United Theological Seminary, October 1992).

Hogue, Wilson Thomas. History of the Free Methodist Church of North America, 2 vols. (Chicago: Free Methodist Publishing House, 1915).

Hull, Gretchen Gaebelein. Equal to Serve: Women and Men in the Church and Home (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1987)

Jewett, Paul. The Ordination of Women (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980).

Kroeger, Catherine and Richard. I Suffer Not a Woman: Rethinking 1 Timothy 2:11-15 in Light of Ancient Evidence (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1980).

Malcolm, Kari Torjesin. Women at the Crossroads: A Path Beyond Feminism and Traditionalism (Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 1982).

Oden, Thomas C. “Women in Pastoral Office.” Pastoral Theology: Essentials for Ministry. (San Francisco: Harper, 1983).

Palmer, Phoebe. “Tongue of Fire on the Daughters of the Lord (1859).” Phoebe Palmer: Selected Writings, edited by Thomas C. Oden (New York: Paulist, 1988).

Richardson, Jack. B.T. Roberts and the Role of Women in Nineteenth Century Free Methodism (Masters of Arts dissertation; Colgate Rochester Divinity School, April 1984).

Roberts, Benjamin Titus. Ordaining Women: Biblical and Historical Insights (Indianapolis: Light and Life, 1992 - first published in 1891).

Stanley, Susie C. compiler. Wesleyan/Holiness Women Clergy: A Preliminary Bibliography (Available from Susie C. Stanley, Western Evangelical Seminary, PO Box 23939, Portland, OR 97281, 1994).

Tucker, Ruth Women in the Maze; Questions and Answers on Biblical Equality (Downers Grove, InterVarsity, 1992).

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AIDS And The Local Church

The Church’s response to AIDS within our society and to those who are affected by it was an item of concern for the CSCOD. AIDS was also an agenda item for the North American SCOD. This latter group produced a paper, entitled “AIDS and the Local Church,” for presentation to the North American General Conference held in Anderson, Indiana, June 29-July 6, 1995. [It begins at the next paragraph of this chapter.] In its review of this paper, the C-SCOD determined it applicable within the Canadian context, and that there was little to be gained in producing its own statement. However, it was recognized that the paper was written for an American audience: there was need to clarify and to provide Canadian information sources. To this end the reader is reminded that the names of government departments and agencies are those of the government of the United States. Canadian sources are listed at the end of this chapter.

Persons living with AIDS are in need of the church’s love and care. Due to a variety of reasons, many Christians withdraw from these hurting people in their moment of greatest need. To help Free Methodists understand both the disease and our own response to it, SCOD presents the following document for use in the local church. It provides prudent guidelines for those working in ministry situations where some one may be infected. It further offers counsel on many social and theological issues involved with the AIDS epidemic.

Originally disseminated through the Department of Christian Education by the Social Action Council, the following document has been reviewed and modified by SCOD. It is designed, not as a definitive statement, but as a practical study for the local church. Those congregations wishing to do further study are given assistance in the select bibliography which follows.

5.1 AIDS and the Free Methodist Church

As Free Methodists, we care deeply about all people. This care for people has caused us to make a commitment to identifying persons in need and making special effort to minister to them. Persons with HIV and the AIDS complex are in need of such ministry. The Free Methodist Church of North America through its Social Action Council presents the following discussion to help provide that ministry. What follows is designed as a guide for pastors, official boards and individual members in understanding and meeting the unique challenges of this ministry. The discussion focuses on three main areas of concern: Biological Realities, Theological Understandings, and Ministry Implications. Following this discussion are some common questions and answers dealing with specific issues.

5.2 Biological Realities

The Department of Health and Human Services explains “AIDS, acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, is a disease in which the body’s immune system breaks down. The immune system fights off infections and certain other diseases. Because the system fails, a person with AIDS develops a variety of life-threatening illnesses.

“AIDS is caused by the virus called the HIV, human immunodeficiency virus. A virus is a small germ that can cause disease. If HIV enters your bloodstream, you may become infected with HIV. A special blood test can detect HIV infection. A person who is infected can infect others, even if no symptoms are present. You cannot tell by looking at someone whether or not he or she is infected with HIV. An infected person can appear completely healthy.”

“You can become infected with HIV/AIDS in two main ways:

* Having sexual intercourse - vaginal, anal or perhaps oral - with an infected person;

* Sharing drug needles or syringes with an infected person.

“Some children have become infected from their HIV positive mothers, either during pregnancy or during breast feeding. Some people have become infected from blood transfusions or contact with the blood of an infected person.

“Anal intercourse with an infected person is one of the ways HIV has been most frequently transmitted.”

“The AIDS virus is fragile and does not live outside the body. Normal room temperatures, germicides and disinfectants like 10% household bleach will kill the virus within a few minutes. Only when the virus enters the blood stream and invades the helper T-cells can it survive.”

5.3 Theological Understandings

The question of disease and its theological meaning has been asked in a variety of ways, but its most basic form is: “Do people get sick as some form of punishment from God for sin in their lives?” A current form of the question runs, “Is HIV/AIDS a punishment from God?”

To answer this question requires a clear understanding both of God’s relationship to human beings and of human responsibility. The central message of the Bible is that God loves all human beings “while we were still sinners” (Romans 5:8). Because of His love God provides all the resources of the Trinity to offer forgiveness, healing, restoration and adoption to all people who respond in repenting faith. It is not God’s desire that any one should perish, and he is actively seeking those who are lost. Although there are instances within Scripture in which disease is a direct action of God, such as in the life of Gehazi, the servant of Elisha (2 Kings 5:27), the teachings of Jesus make it clear that disease ordinarily is not something God directly uses to punish sin, as in the story of the healing of the man born blind (John 9:3).

So the first part of the equation is that God is love. Although sovereign and He could relate to us in any way He chooses, disease in the ordinary sense is a result of original sin and does not represent ‘punishment’ from God in the direct sense of that word.

But that is not the entire issue. The Bible also explains that human beings are responsible for the choices they make in life. These choices are real and carry real consequences, both in this life and in the life to come. Disease is often a consequence of choices people make. People, of course, do not choose to get sick. Choices leading to illness are often made long before when lifestyle decisions are made concerning the care and activities of the body. The Bible explains that there are certain activities which will tend to health and long life. There are also certain decisions which have immediate and long-term negative consequences.

One of these decisions has to do with sexual activity. The Bible explains that sex should be chosen for marriage only. When sexual activity is chosen outside of marriage, then the consequences of that decision are experienced at all levels of a person’s life. At the simple level of physical consequences, the act of sexual intercourse is so intimate that disease is given from body to body. At the levels of emotional bonding and spiritual union, sexual intercourse unites two people in even more profound ways. The powerful purpose of sexual intimacy is designed to share everything we are with another person. This dynamic does not change just because a person chooses to be promiscuous. Instead, it simply multiplies the sharing so that each person with whom someone is intimate shares any disease he or she may have with every other person with whom that person is intimate thereafter. As proverbs 6:32 states it, “A man who commits adultery lacks judgment; whoever does so destroys himself.” The punishment is not necessarily something God actively sends, but rather the consequences of sexual activity outside of marriage carries with it the destruction of communicable diseases.

The fact that AIDS is a weak virus, and takes the intimacy of sexual activities to keep it alive long enough to be passed from person to person, is simply a biological expression of a deeper spiritual principle. Sexual activity is meant to make two people one, at all levels of their lives. If the choice is made to be promiscuous, then the consequence of ‘catching’ what the others have occurs. God simply warns us and tells us to protect ourselves from this by waiting for and confining sexual activity to marriage. Sexual activity is meant to help make two people (husband and wife) one, at all levels of their lives.

The fact that AIDS is spread most often through the anal intercourse of homosexual males may or may not be God’s ‘punishment’ of homosexuality, but certainly is a consequence of the violation of the body that this unnatural activity involves. The promiscuity of homosexual males results in the same consequence as promiscuity of heterosexual persons.

The same understanding is helpful for the second most common way of contracting AIDS, that of intravenous drug use. The risky behaviour of drug use carries with it a host of consequences, none of which is God’s desire for human beings. AIDS is only one of those. As any loving father, our Heavenly Father’s loving heart is hurting when he sees any of his children suffering. It is not His desire that people suffer the consequences inherent within the drug use.

In a very small percentage of cases, HIV/AIDS is contracted through innocent means such as birth, transfusions, kissing. Theologically the understanding is the same as for any other case when an innocent person suffers due to the actions of others. The choices of people around us affect all of us, including the spread of fatal disease. Innocent people are often unfairly hurt by the choices of others, thus loving others is central to the Christian message.

Human choice is responsible for the spread of HIV/AIDS. It is not God’s desire that any should perish. He wants every person to turn to Him and obey His ways so that it will go well with him/her, and they will live long in the land.

5.4 Ministry Implications

Ministry in the age of HIV/AIDS focuses on two areas. The first is prudent precautions that need to be instituted by nursery attendants, youth workers and church members; the second is ministry possibilities which this epidemic affords.

5.4.1 Prudent Precautions

The Center for Disease Control gives what they term “universal precautions” for handling spills of blood or bodily fluids to minimize the risk of spreading communicable diseases. Adapting these precautions to the church, the following guidelines would be prudent for each church to follow.

1. For all situations:

a. GLOVES: Disposable gloves should be worn for handling blood and blood-contaminated bodily fluids and for handling items or surfaces soiled with the same. Change the gloves after each contact. Remove gloves carefully by pulling them off inside out. Hands should be immediately washed after gloves are removed.

b. GERMICIDE: All surfaces which have been contaminated with blood should be cleansed with germicide and disposable paper towels.

c. HAND WASHING: Washing the hands is necessary after contact with urine, stool, vomitus, tears, nasal secretions, oral secretions, and diaper changes. Exposure to these non-blood contaminated fluids does not require gloves unless visible blood is present.

d. OPEN SORES: No person having an open or weeping skin sore should come into contact with any other person’s blood or bodily fluid. All wounds should be covered with medical dressing.

e. DISPOSAL: All cleanup materials should be disposed of in a trash can lined with a disposable liner and discarded safely.

2. Care of infants and children in the church nursery and child-care settings:

(The following are stated in a form which could be posted.)

a. Children with weeping sores or aggressive biting behaviours will be asked to remain with their parents or adult guardian.

b. Nursery attendants will wear disposable gloves when changing a child’s diaper or providing first-aid to bleeding wounds. Nursery attendants with weeping sores or cuts will cover these with medical dressings.

c. Changing tables will be disinfected after each use.

d. Nursery equipment (cribs, swings, walkers, play pens, etc.) will be disinfected weekly. Items which are intended for oral use by a child will not be shared.

e. A sign should be posted in the Nursery or child-care area stating: “ANYONE USING NURSERY FACILITIES AND EQUIPMENT IS REQUIRED TO CLEAN USED EQUIPMENT WITH THE PROVIDED GERMICIDE.”

f. Nursery attendants are responsible to provide prudent protection of all children and take whatever additional precautions are deemed necessary.

3. Care of youth and adults at church events and camps:

a. Bleeding injuries should be treated with utmost care. Gloves should be worn during first-aid treatment and all contamination quickly disinfected. Open sores should be immediately covered with medical dressings.

b. During youth events and camps, guidelines should be given to discourage high-risk behaviours including sexual intercourse and prolonged open-mouth kissing.

c. Youth sponsors and adult coordinators are responsible to provide prudent instructions and program safeguards to lessen any risk of infection.

5.4.2 Ministry Possibilities

Ministry in this time of HIV/AIDS is vital and needs to be approached in two ways. First, helping non-infected persons deal with fear, judgmental attitudes and prejudice; and second, helping infected persons deal with the disease by providing love, dignity and accountability.

Providing Love:

What is most needed in every person’s life is the love of Jesus Christ and His people. When a person has a terminal illness and especially one with the social stigma of HIV/AIDS, this need is intensified. The opportunity to love is abundant and if current predictions hold true, the opportunity is going to expand in the future. The church can respond in a variety of ways and each congregation should choose those responses harmonious with its style of ministry.

The church can begin to pray for persons with AIDS. The church can reach out in purposeful ways. This reaching out might include a ministry to homes where AIDS patients are needing care for their terminal state. This ministry would involve a listening ear and constant prayer. There are as many possibilities as there are local churches. Each church is encouraged to take its place of ministry and share the love of Jesus.

Providing Dignity:

After love, the next most crucial need of persons is for dignity. When a person is stripped of his or her self-esteem, then the overwhelming physical realities destroy the soul as well as the body. Every person has the need to know that God loves them and they have value in our eyes because they have infinite value in God’s. This value provides a dignity which can overcome the physical, social and psychological ravaging of AIDS.

When the church has confessed and repented of its fear, judgmental attitudes and prejudice, the church is ready to provide dignity to HIV/AIDS persons by showing love, honour and respect for them as persons. This respectful guarding of each person’s dignity then sets the stage for the final ministry, that of accountability.

Providing Accountability:

Once a person has experienced the love and dignity of Jesus and His church, the foundation is laid for the offer of forgiveness of sin and the cleansing of all that is not right in the individual’s life. This simple truth is the greatest gift the church has to give any person. Although it is true that HIV/AIDS is not a sin but a disease, it is also true that there MAY be a need for confession, forgiveness and cleansing in the person’s life. The church does a great disservice when we do not address the deeper spiritual truth of the need of forgiveness through Jesus Christ. It is not appropriate for us to assume that the HIV/AIDS person, whether promiscuous, homosexual, or drug-user, will not be open to the good news of Jesus Christ, for this is the only true solution to their eternal need.

The opportunity for persons to receive forgiveness can come through a variety of ministries, including personal one-on-one conversation as well as reaching out to various groups of persons in their time of need. Let us not lose faith that many will respond in faith and find true, eternal healing and life.

Ministering to Fear:

“James Nelson, a Christian ethicist, has noted that AIDS combines two of the most anxiety-ridden dimensions of human life: sexuality and death. It seems that more fear is touched off by these aspects of life than any others.”

Although the research is continually supporting the fact that you cannot contract HIV/AIDS through casual contact such as shaking hands, hugging, sharing pews and toilet facilities, nevertheless, the fear is present any time a person knows an infected person. This fear, if not faced and understood, could lead to either a lack of ministry to these hurting persons, or even to a cruel exclusion of these persons from the vital love of the church.

The fear is not only present in the non-infected persons. The fear is overwhelming when the disease is contracted: fear of death, fear of pain, fear of being ostracized, fear of God, even fear of lie. Since the disease is not a specific illness, but is rather the lack of protection against all illnesses, the fear becomes an overwhelming presence in everything within the person’s life.

Ministering to the fear is a central purpose of the church. Clear discussion of the prudent precautions that need to be taken can begin to calm the fears of the non-infected persons. When these fears are overcome, then an understanding of the infected person’s fears and needs elicits the compassion that Jesus expressed for the diseased persons of his day. This compassion ministry could focus on such areas as: deliberated inclusion of persons with AIDS into church fellowship; providing support groups; reaching out to persons dying of AIDS in local hospitals and facilities.

Ministering to Judgmental Attitudes:

When behaviour choices result in pain and death, some people feel judgmental toward the persons in pain. This judgmental attitude may come from a sense of superiority and can lead to a callous feeling toward the person in pain. Since the behaviour choices which are most common in contacting HIV/AIDS are promiscuity, homosexuality and drug use, it is easy for persons in the church to embrace a judgmental attitude. This is not helpful to the ministry of Jesus Christ’s church.

Jesus teaches humility and compassion as the response toward persons in pain. Although we never excuse the sin, nor want to validate the promiscuity, homosexuality or drug use, the response of the church must be humbly to offer the compassionate forgiveness and healing of Jesus Christ. Creating the opportunity to face judgmental attitudes within the church is as vital a ministry as providing the opportunity for change in the behavioral choices of others.

This ministry can occur within a variety of means from formal sermons and classes looking at our own judgmental attitudes to the informal loving confrontations by which Christians help Christians recognize and ask forgiveness for judgmental comments and viewpoints.

This judgmental attitude also can be practiced by infected persons toward the church. Infected persons will undoubtedly experience some form of fearful rejection or judgmental attitudes by their church family. This experience can shift their own attention to the ‘sins’ of others, and tempt the infected person to then respond in a superior or judgmental way. Therefore, for the sake of everyone, humility, compassion, forgiveness, acceptance need to be taught in formal and informal settings.

Ministering to Prejudice:

Although prejudice is similar to having judgmental attitudes, there is a practical difference: a person’s judgmental attitudes are usually due to verifiable sinful behaviours, while prejudice is a reactionary response based on unverified and assumed beliefs. There are many prejudicial beliefs about HIV/AIDS, homosexual and drug-using persons as well as many prejudicial beliefs held by such persons about church people. These prejudices often cause both church and infected persons to respond in ways that lack understanding and depth.

To minister to the prejudice, the church can provide information and discussion-opportunities concerning the realities of HIV/AIDS. The use of this report can be a good start. There are also other resources which could be helpful including: THE AIDS PREVENTION GUIDE printed by the Center for Disease Control; The American Red Cross has some excellent brochures. (AIDS: The Facts; Children, Parents and AIDS; Drugs, Sex and AIDS; School Systems and AIDS: Information for Teachers and School Officials; Teenagers and AIDS; Women, Sex, and AIDS; Your Job and AIDS: Are There Risks?)

To minister to the prejudice of infected persons, the church can actively seek to include such persons in the life of the church. Such inclusion can be designed to bring people face to face with the love of God’s people and deepen the personal bond needed to minister in a time of such vital need.

5.5 Questions and Answers

1. What can I do to protect myself from getting AIDS?

The American Red Cross published three pamphlets which give excellent answers to this. Some of their counsel includes:

a. “Not having sex and not experimenting with drugs is the best protection against HIV/AIDS.”

b. “Avoiding sex before marriage ... and having sex only with the same person (being faithful) is the best protection against the sexual spread of the AIDS virus (HIV) as long as other risky behaviours have not occurred.”

2. What about SAFE SEX: is a condom effective in protecting me?

The Center for Disease Control is less than convinced, in fact they say, “Far from being foolproof, condoms may break during intercourse. You have to use them properly, and you have to use them every time you have sex - vaginal, anal, and oral. The only sure way to avoid infection through sex is to abstain from sexual intercourse, or engage in sexual intercourse only with someone who is not infected.”

So the answer is NO, research shows that condoms fail about 30% of the time.

3. Can I get HIV/AIDS from only one sexual experience with an infected person?

Yes. HIV/AIDS is a sexually transmitted virus. Any form of sexual contact in which bodily fluids are exchanged can infect you.

4. Doesn’t a person with HIV/AIDS look sick?

No, not necessarily. The incubation period is so long that a person can be a carrier for years before developing the AIDS complex.

5. Can I contract HIV/AIDS from hugging or cuddling?

Not as far as we know now. Although some questions have risen about kissing, the majority of the experts feel that closed-mouth kissing is safe since saliva kills the virus. Prolonged open-mouth kissing is more of a question since the danger is present when bodily fluids are exchanged and if there are sores or cuts in the gums or mouth. A warm embrace is not dangerous even with an infected person.

6. Can I contract HIV/AIDS from an infected person coughing or sneezing on me?

The AMERICAN RED CROSS assures us this has been researched and does not occur. In fact, they state that you also can NOT become infected from touching, spitting, drinking fountains, sweat or tears, mosquitoes and other insects, eating food prepared by someone infected, sharing toilets, or showers, forks, knives, spoons or cups. You also can NOT become infected from sharing clothes, chairs, pencils, desks, or swimming in public swimming pools.

7. Can I get HIV/AIDS from touching the blood of an infected person?

Perhaps. The danger occurs when the blood of the infected person gets into your body through a cut, sore or some other break in the skin. It is wise to not have contact with the blood of another person until you’ve taken common first aid procedures. If you come into contact with someone else’s blood, a thorough washing with soap and water is advised.

8. Do birth control pills protect you?

No. Birth control pills provide no protection against the HIV virus; neither do diaphragms or other forms of birth control.

5.6 Canadian Sources

Information about AIDS can be obtained from the following Canadian sources:

Canadian Human Rights Commission

320 Queen Street

Place de Ville, Tower A

Ottawa, Ontario K1A 1E1

Telephone: (613) 995-1151

Fax: (613) 996-5211

National AIDS Clearinghouse

Canadian Public Health Association

400 - 1565 Carling

Ottawa, Ontario K1Z 8R1

Telephone: (613) 725-3434

Fax: (613) 725-9826

Health Canada

Minister of Supply and Services Canada

Government of Canada

Ottawa, Ontario

Canadian AIDS Society

701 - 100 Sparks Street

Ottawa, Ontario K1P 5B7

Telephone: (613) 230-3580

Other information can be obtained from local health units or community health centres, local AIDS organisations, and local physicians.

Select Bibliography

The following information comes from a variety of sources. Although not all of them agree with Free Methodist theology, they can be helpful in understanding and developing our ministry to persons with AIDS.

Extending A Hand; Soothing A Soul, Catholic AIDS Ministry, Archdiocese of Seattle, 910 Marion Street, Seattle, WA 98104 (206) 382-4885. This 1993 15-page booklet gives excellent guidance for a local church from the Catholic perspective.

U.S. Public Health Service, Public Affairs Office, Hubert H. Humphrey Building, Room 721-H, 200 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20201 (202) 245-6867. The federal government has various booklets and pamphlets which provide up-to-date information.

National AIDS Network, 729 Eighth Street, SE, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20003 (202 546-2424. This is a national organization which can be of assistance.

National Council of Churches - AIDS Task Force, 475 Riverside Drive, Room 572, New York, NY 10115 (212) 870-2421.

National Conference on HIV/ASAP, P. O. Box 17433, Washington, DC 20041 (703) 471-7350. This conference has 14 tapes available on a variety of subjects including, “The Local Church & the Epidemic,” “Ministry Opportunities Related to AIDS/HIV,” and “HIV & Adolescents: The Clear & Present Danger.”

AIDS Information Ministries, P. O. Box 136116, Fort Worth, TX 76136-6116 (817) 237-0230.

AIDS Resource Ministry (ARM), 12488 Venice Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90066-3804 (213) 572-0140.

The Church’s Response to the Challenge of AIDS/HIV. Americans for a Sound AIDS/HIV Policy, P. O. Box 17433, Washington, DC 20041 (703) 471-7350. This organization has developed some excellent guidelines for churches. This booklet sells for $5.00.

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Divine Healing

630.1.4 Divine Healing

All healing, whether of body, mind, or spirit has its ultimate source in God who is “above all and through all and in all.” God may heal by the mediation of surgery, medication, change of environment, counselling, corrected attitudes, or through the restorative processes of nature itself. God may heal through one or more of the above in combination with prayer, or by direct intervention in response to prayer. The Scriptures report many cases of the latter kind of healing in connection with the life and ministry of Jesus, the apostles and the early church.

A truly Christian perspective on healing reflects the New Testament view of salvation, which holds together God’s sovereignty, God’s loving goodness, and God’s ultimate wisdom. These divine realities reach beyond what humans can fully grasp. We hold together our confidence that salvation is something that has already happened (e.g. Ephesians 2:5-8) and that it is something that is happening right now (e.g. II Corinthians 2:15), and also that it is something that we still await at the final coming of Christ (e.g. Romans 5:9-10). Thus there are two erroneous approaches to healing: One is to stress only healing now (because in Jesus, and through the gift of the Spirit, salvation has indeed fully and powerfully come). The other is to expect healing only in the resurrection (because the final redemption will come only when Jesus returns). Both perspectives alone are distortions which miss the creative “already/not yet” tension of New Testament thought.

Consistent with the Scriptures, therefore, we urge our pastors and group leaders to help people to seek healing of every sort. We make opportunity for the sick, afflicted, and broken to come before God in the fellowship of the body of Christ in confidence that the God and Father of Jesus Christ is both able and willing to heal (James 5:13). We recognize that although God’s sovereign purposes are good and we are sure that He is working toward a final redemption that assures wholeness to all believers, He may not grant physical healing for all or full healing in this life. We believe that in such cases God still receives glory both now and then through the resurrection to life everlasting.

The ministry of healing is not to be ignored in the church. We do not expect that the emphasis on, or means employed in, the varied ministries of healing will be the same in different churches (or in different small groups, or in individual Christians) or in the same church or group or individual believer at different times. We call the church to both examine and prize our differences in this regard, always aware of the ‘already/not yet’ scriptural tension outlined above.

- The Manual of The Free Methodist Church in Canada

Some Resources on Healing

In listing the following resources, we are not claiming that Canadian Free Methodism as a whole agrees with every statement or nuance in these good materials. When specific guidance is needed, there are accountability and support structures in place.

Gary Walsh offers wise counsel to the Christian community regarding healing (March /April 2000 Faith Today):

Healing – ministry and mystery

Christians understand each other on most essential matters of biblical faith. When there is disagreement on doctrines, a competent teacher can usually unpack the contrary but parallel positions with a balanced understanding of the way each party in a debate treats the biblical texts.

The ministry of healing is different. Christians have not found a Bible-based consensus on the details of the ministry of healing. Twenty centuries of Christian life and study have not produced deep streams of Christian thought that tell the story of healing for the church. Single voices can be heard from left and right but this ministry seems to defy calibration.

Maybe God’s Holy Spirit has guided the church away from a comprehensive position on healing. No one has yet proposed the formula that blends God’s sovereignty, God’s loving goodness, and God’s ultimate wisdom. These realities surely defy human understanding.

We do have some common ground. When pain becomes unbearable, we all tend to reach upward for a healing touch. Most of us have a Christian friend whose story includes a healing not easily understood in clinical terms. We all have a Christian friend who waits, even today, both encouraged and confused by the promises and disappointments surrounding the ministry of healing.

The ministry of healing drives us to God. Yet some note that the God who chose to bring Lazarus back from the dead also chose not to take away Paul’s thorn in the flesh – and both Lazarus and Paul eventually died. At the same time, some proponents of healing for all still wear spectacles, and their brilliant smiles are supported by root canals. Meanwhile, healing is more than physical. One of the most whole persons I know is physically blind. And who among us does not read these words, “1 am the Lord who heals you,” with renewed hope of ultimate healing.

We are called to extend the grace of God. Parish nurses, enlightened physicians, pastoral counselors, persuasive preachers and anointing elders will not let us forget that healing is one expression of God’s grace. Although few agree fully on the ministry of healing, together we are challenged, in sickness and in health, to care deeply about God as healer and to pursue the ultimate good – mysterious as it may be.

Gary Walsh is a Free Methodist ordained minister serving as the president of Interdev and is the former president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada.

Fintel, William A. and McDermott, Gerald R. “Dare I Hope for Healing? A Balanced Approach to the Possibility of Getting Well,” Dear God, It’s Cancer: A Medical and Spiritual Guide For Patients and Their Families (Word, 1997), pp. 233-256.

Fintel (an oncologist) and McDermott (a theologian) provide a careful and faith-filled perspective on healing that avoids the extremes at both ends of the spectrum.

Foster, Richard “Healing Prayer,” Prayer: Finding the Heart’s True Home (Harper, 1992), pp. 203-216.

Foster’s approach is thorough. Sections include: “Infinite Variety,” “Small Beginnings,” “The Perplexing Question,” “The Laying on of Hands,” “Straightforward Steps,” Healthy Skepticism and Wholesome Faith.”

Galli, M. and Bell, James S. Jr. “Healing Prayer,” The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Prayer (Macmillan, 1999), pp. 113-119.

Galli and Bell write to clear up misconceptions about healing prayer. Sections include: “Healing Happens,” “Physical Healing,” “Psychological Healing,” “Two Misconceptions: You Have to Have Enough Faith, & You Have to Pray in the Right Way.”

Hiebert, P. G. “Healing and the Kingdom,” Anthropological Reflections on Missiological Issues (Baker, 1994), pp. 217-253.

Informed by global trends and data from many cultures around the world, a Christian anthropologist distinguishes the Biblical worldview from the modern worldview, and then develops a trinitarian theology of God’s work in everyday lives. Sections also include “A Theology of the Kingdom of God,” “A Theology of Power,” “A Theology of Discernment,” “Dangers,” and “Healing Ministries in the Church.”

Hui, Edwin “Healing,” The Complete Book of Everyday Christianity, ed. Banks & Stevens (I.V.P., 1997), pp. 478-481.

A balanced introduction by a professor of medical ethics and spiritual theology. Sections include: “Healing as Curing and Caring,” “Biblical Perspectives on Healing,” “Healing Through Medicine.” “Faith and Healing,” “Miraculous Healing,” “Healing and Redemption.”

Kinghorn, Kenneth “Gifts of Healing,” Gifts of the Spirit (Abingdon, 1976), pp. 67-72.

Kinghorn (a professor of church history), lists many ways God heals: “God heals instantly and directly,” “God heals gradually through the processes of nature,” “God heals through medical science,” “God gives grace to suffer redemptively by healing our attitudes,” “God heals in the resurrection.”

Leadership Forum “The Church: Healing’s Natural Home?” Leadership 6.2 (1985), pp. 116-127.

Four pastors from four different Christian traditions who are practitioners in healing ministries (Alliance, Baptist, Presbyterian and Vineyard) discuss their healing ministries.

Norberg, Tilda and Webber, Robert D. Stretch Out Your Hand: Exploring Healing Prayer (Upper Room, 1998).

Norberg (a pastor and psychotherapist) and Webber (a professor of New Testament) discuss the many questions involved, and explain a variety of models for a range of different kinds of healing ministries in local churches.

Pinnock, Clark and Brow, Robert “Healing: Transforming Love,” Unbounded Love (I.V.P., 1994), pp. 151-159.

Pinnock (professor of theology) and Brow (pastor) provide a balanced theological introduction to healing which begins with the sentence: “Salvation is the healing of persons.”

Putter, A. M. The Memorial Rituals Book for Healing and Hope (Baywood Publishing, 1997).

Putter (a music therapist and grief counselor) provides many brief rituals which can be used for helping people heal after a loss.

Ramshaw, E. “Rites of Healing,” Ritual and Pastoral Care (Fortress, 1987), pp. 64-67.

Ramshaw (professor of Pastoral Care and Counseling) explains and gives guidance for the use of liturgical forms in the healing ministry of the church.

Rediger, E. L. “Healing for Fitness,” Fit to Be a Pastor (Westminster John Knox, 2000), pp. 45-63.

Rediger (a pastor, pastoral counselor, and consultant on spiritual leadership) identifies models of healing (the medical model, the alternative medicine model, the psychological model, the American Dream model, and the Theological-Spiritual model), and talks about levels and stages of healing (healing as recovery, healing as learning, healing as shared condition, healing as stewardship), and explains what he calls “the forgiveness formula” (Step 1: Hearing the Gospel; Step 2: Confessing Our Sin; Step 3: Accepting Forgiveness from God, Each Other, and Creation; Step 4: Doing Penance; Step 5: Pronouncing Absolution).

Wagner, C. Peter “Healing Without Hassle,” Leadership 6.2 (1985), pp. 114-115.

Wagner’s 1985 brief explanation of how his Sunday School class, where a healing ministry was practiced, functioned harmoniously within a church where such a ministry was not highlighted throughout the congregation, functioned in ways aimed at avoiding division of God’s people into “first-class” vs. “second class” Christians – based on how “charismatic” their experience was (“charismatic” was a word Wagner refused to use in that church). More recently Wagner has written many books on healing and spiritual warfare.

Webber, Robert E. “Anointing of the Sick,” The Complete Library of Christian Worship 6: The Sacred Actions of Christian Worship (Star Song / Hendrickson, 1994), pp. 331-340.

Webber (professor of theology and leader in worship renewal) includes materials on history, theology and a variety of liturgical materials for use in anointing sick people for healing.

Webber, Robert E. “A Christian View of Healing,” The Complete Library of Christian Worship 7: The Ministries of Christian Worship (Star Song / Hendrickson, 1994), pp. 239-242.

An introduction to a contemporary Christian theology of healing.

Webber, Robert E. “Worship and Pastoral Care: A Charismatic Approach,” The Complete Library of Christian Worship 7: The Ministries of Christian Worship (Star Song / Hendrickson, 1994), pp. 305-316.

An introduction to healing in the contemporary charismatic tradition. Sections (by charismatic authors) include: “Pastoral Care and Direct Divine Healing,” “Four Basic Types of Healing,” “Healing of Sin,” “Inner Healing of Emotions,” “Physical Healing,” “Deliverance and Exorcism.”

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Homosexual Behaviour

This statement on Homosexual Behavior was approved by the 2002 Canadian General Conference of The Free Methodist Church in Canada and is the official position of the FMCIC.

Homosexual behaviour is regarded by the Scriptures as immoral because it is a distortion of God’s created order, a practice contrary to nature. The sanctity of marriage and the family is to be protected against all manner of immoral conduct (Exodus 22:16-17; Deuteronomy 22:23-28; Leviticus 20:10-16). The Scriptures speak explicitly against homosexual practice (Leviticus 18:22; 20:13; Romans 1:26,27; I Corinthians 6:9,10; I Timothy 1:8-10). Therefore, as Christians, we regard homosexual behaviour as contrary to God’s creation plan.

The church has a corporate responsibility to be God’s agent of healing, ministering in love to those involved in homosexual behaviour and giving them support as they learn to live a Christian life that is wholesome and pure (I Corinthians 2:7,8).”

- The Manual of the Free Methodist Church in Canada

Resources for Responding in a Faithful Christian Fashion to Homosexuals and to the Issue of Homosexual Behaviour

Note: The following resources are samples of the many writers who see the biblical data pointing in the direction reflected in the statement above. However, we are not implying that Free Methodism in Canada would agree with every point or assertion in these good works. In all of them, there is fairness in argumentation, a serious attempt to discern the mind of the whole of the Bible, and a willingness to examine the many dimensions of a phenomenon that is far from simple.

Stanley J. Grenz, Welcoming But Not Affirming: An Evangelical Response to Homosexuality (Westminster John Knox Press, 1998).

Grenz (Professor of Theology and Ethics at Carey/Regent College in Vancouver) makes the distinction between acceptance of the homosexual person and approval of homosexual behaviour with clarity and respect for both biblical authority and the complexity of the subject. Grenz takes pains to be fair to opposing views, and deals not only with the moral reasoning involved, but also with the church’s treatment of homosexuals.

James P. Hanigan, Homosexuality: The Test Case for Christian Sexual Ethics (Paulist Press, 1988).

Hanigan (Professor of Moral Theology at Duquesnes University in Pittsburg) examines with care data from both the human sciences and the biblical tradition. He is particularly strong in untangling the complexities of moral reasoning involved in the issue.

John R. W. Stott, “Homosexual Partnerships?” Involvement: Social and Sexual Relationships in the Modern World, Volume II (Revell, 1985), pp. 215-244.

Stott (rector for 25 years of All Souls Church in London) writes in a less technical fashion than the first two. Nonetheless he is effective in “unpacking” the issues involved.

Jerry Satinover, Homosexuality and the Politics of Truth (Baker, 1996).

Satinover (an M.D.) deals extensively with what scientific research actually says about homosexuality. If you would like access to a summary of some of his research in a simple question and answer format, check his article at this URL on the internet: http://www.anotherway.com/issues/gene.html

Susan Brill, “Showing God’s Love In The Gay Community,” Discipleship Issue 99, p. 78.

In this brief article, Brill points out that the way Christians have sometimes treated homosexuals has given us a serious credibility problem with non-Christians. She suggests principles for showing God’s love to homosexuals and others who are often shunned.

Richard Hays, “Homosexuality,” The Moral Vision of the New Testament (Harper, 1996), pp. 379-406.

Hays (Professor of New Testament at Duke University) wrestles carefully with the texts, and with the larger teaching of the Bible in responding to views from the contemporary culture.

John White, “The World and the Homosexual,” Flirting With the World (Shaw, 1982), pp. 83-94.

White (trained as a medical doctor and psychiatrist, and prolific writer) argues that the church tends to be made up of people with the same three kinds of responses to this issue as in the non-Christian world: those who express scorn, contempt, and hostility toward homosexuality, those who are indifferent to the issue, and those who champion the rights of homosexuals to live according to their orientation. Instead he calls for the Christian community to deal with the issue in a merciful but godly manner. See also his “Two Halves Do Not Make a Whole,” Eros Defiled: The Christian and Sexual Sin (I.V.P., 1977), pp. 105-139 and his “Part II: Men, Women and Sex,” Eros Redeemed: Breaking the Stranglehold of Sexual Sin, (I.V.P., 1993) pp. 101-182.

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Resource - Pastoral Care and Homosexuals

The Banner

Volume 137, Number 12 (July 8, 2002), p. 27 reported the results of a major study on providing pastoral care to homosexual people.

The following is shared with the permission of _ The Banner_, a publication of the Christian Reformed Church. The study paper can be found at http://www.crcna.org/cr/crrs/crrs_art/crrs_synod_pastoralcare2002.pdf

PROVIDING PASTORAL CARE TO HOMOSEXUAL PEOPLE

The following are highlights from the synodical report by the Committee to Give Direction about and for Pastoral Care for Homosexual Members of the CRC:

1. All people, including homosexual people, should be encouraged to seek whatever healing God may provide for them. The report includes guidelines to help individuals and churches determine whether or not specific ministries to homosexual persons are effective.

2. Since how we label or identify people often defines them, Christians should beware of reducing people to some aspect of their identity, which can be dehumanizing. The church ought to enfold homosexual people with the hope of empowering them to live beyond their sexual identity.

3. Self-control is a gift of the Spirit, one of the fruits of the Spirit but also a command to be obeyed (see Titus 2:11-15, 2 Pet. 1:5-6). Homosexual people, like all other Christians, must exercise self control in order to live sexually chaste lives.

4. Christians should use language that describes the church community as the family of God. Because the church is a new community full of people from a variety of backgrounds, it needs to provide a haven for all members.

5. Christians should model and encourage intimate nonsexual relationships with people of the same gender and the opposite gender.

6. Churches should provide an environment for confession of sins and accountability to other Christians, both in small-group settings and public worship. Congregational prayers should include petitions for the health and well-being of single Christians’ relationships.

7. Sermons should refer to a wide variety of sexual sins and give examples of God’s grace and comfort to people who struggle with brokenness.

8. Churches should also offer pastoral care to the extended family of homosexual members.

9. The Christian community should insist on the political, civil, and social rights of all people, including homosexual people, in the larger context of doing justice, loving mercy, and walking humbly with God (Micah 6:8).

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Policy On Child Sexual Abuse

REDUCING THE RISK OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE AND RESPONDING TO ABUSE THAT OCCURS

1 Introduction

Free Methodists value persons deeply. In a society where abuse is reported at alarming levels, we are determined to take every action we can to prevent abuse, especially in the context of the church, and when it does take place, to deal with it responsibly. Protection of children and youth is our paramount concern. It is also important to protect the denomination and our churches from liability prosecution.

The policy is composed of two parts:

I. Reducing the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse

II. When Sexual Abuse Occurs

Reducing the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse

2 Purpose

Sexual abuse is a particularly vicious form of violence against children and youth. It is a violation of the body, of personal boundaries and of trust. It can profoundly hinder emotional and spiritual development. Its effects are immediate and can be long-lasting.

Sexual abuse is prevalent within our society. Studies confirm that more than 40% of Canadians have been victims of sexual abuse, the majority experience their first unwanted sexual act as children or adolescents.

Sadly, the church community has not always been a place of safety. Many victims identify their perpetrators as members of their communities of faith (their parents, siblings, adolescents, children/youth workers, choir masters, youth pastors), and that the abuse occurred on church property or during church sponsored events. The church has a spiritual, moral and legal responsibility to ensure, as much as possible, the safety of children and youth attending its programs.

The purpose of this statement is:

1. to increase the safety of children and youth attending church programs;

2. to provide practice guidelines for church staff/volunteers; and

3. to limit the church’s legal liability.

Church boards are strongly encouraged to review the following guidelines and develop policies and procedures that are applicable to the local situation. Child sexual abuse is not limited by geography, occupation or economic condition. No congregation is immune, regardless of size, from the probability of abuse occurring.

3 Definition

Sexual abuse occurs whenever anyone with less maturity or power is tricked, trapped, coerced or bribed into a sexual experience. It occurs whenever anyone disempowered by handicap, age, or situation is involved in an activity which is sexually stimulating to the perpetrator and which the victim does not fully comprehend or to which he/she is unable to give informed consent. (Heggen, p. 20).

This generic definition can be applied to anyone, regardless of age. It identifies a critical factor in understanding and identifying abuse-the imbalance of power or authority between the abuser and the victim. Imbalance may result from the perpetrator’s great age, size, position, experience or authority.

Sexual abuse against children and youth is also defined in legal terms by both provincial child welfare legislation and by the Criminal Code of Canada. Child welfare legislation is designed to protect children and definitions tend to be open to interpretation. For example, the Alberta Child Welfare Act (1984) states that “a child is sexually abused if the child is inappropriately exposed or subjected to sexual contact, activity or behaviours.” The Criminal Code of Canada is concerned with criminal prosecution and is thus much more specific. It defines 16 different sexual offenses that apply to children and youth.

1. Sexual Interference: anyone who, for a sexual purpose, touches directly or indirectly, with a part of the body or an object, any part of the body of a child under 14 years. Exception: a person under 14 cannot be convicted of this offence, unless the young person is in a position of trust or authority in relation to the child (e.g., baby-sitter, parent), or is in a situation where the child victim is dependent on the young person.

2. Invitation to Sexual Touching: anyone who, for a sexual purpose, invites, counsels or incites a child under 14 to touch directly or indirectly with a part of the body or an object the body of any person, including the child’s own body and the body of the person encouraging the touching. Exception: a young person under 14 cannot be convicted of this offence, unless the young person is in a position of trust or authority in relation to the child (e.g., baby-sitter, parent), or is in a situation where the child victim is dependent on the young person.

3. Sexual Exploitation of a Young Person: “young person” is defined as a child 14 years of age or more but under 18. Every person is in a position of authority or trust towards a child or on whom the young person is dependent, who, for a sexual purpose, touches a young person’s body, or invites, counsels or incites the young person to touch directly or indirectly with a part of the body or an object the body of any person, including the young person’s body and the body of the person encouraging the touching.

4. Anal Intercourse: Acts of anal intercourse are prohibited with children and young people under 18. (Young persons under 18 are deemed unable to consent to anal intercourse unless they are husband and wife.)

5. Bestiality: Every person who has sexual intercourse or other sexual activity with an animal, or who compels someone else to have sexual intercourse or other sexual activity with an animal, or who has sexual intercourse or other sexual activity with an animal in the presence of a child under 14, or who incites a child under 14 to have sexual intercourse or other sexual activity with an animal.

6. Parent or Guardian Procuring Sexual Activity of a Child: Every parent or guardian of a child under 18 who procures (prevails upon or induces) the child to become involved in an illegal sexual activity with any person, other than the parent or guardian.

7. Householder Permitting Sexual Activity: An owner, manager or someone who assists in the management or control of premises who knowingly permits a child under 18 to be in the premises for the purpose of engaging in an illegal sexual activity (any sexual activity prohibited by the Criminal Code).

8. Exposing Genitals to a Child: Every person, in any place, who exposes his or her genitals to a child under 14 for a sexual purpose.

9. Vagrancy: Everyone who has been convicted of sexual assault, one of the secular touching offenses, bestiality or exposure involving a child found loitering in or near a playground, school, public park or bathing area.

10a. Living Off the Avails of Child Prostitution: Every person who lives wholly or in part off the profits of prostitution of a child under 18.

10b. Attempting to Obtain the Sexual Services of a Child: Every person who obtains, or attempts to obtain for consideration, the sexual services of a young person under 18.

11. Incest: Having sexual intercourse with a blood relation (parent, child, brother, sister, half-brother, half-sister, grandparent, grandchild).

12. Corrupting Children: Endangering the morals of children under age 18) or rendering home an unfit place for a child.

13. Indecent Act: Performing an indecent act in a public place in the presence of one or more persons, in any place, with intent to insult or offend any person.

14. Sexual Assault: Applying force to another person, directly or indirectly, without consent, under circumstances of a sexual nature.

15. Sexual Assault with a Weapon, Threats to a Third Party or Causing Bodily Harm: Committing a sexual assault while carrying, using or threatening to use a weapon or imitation of a weapon, or threatening bodily harm to a person other than the victim, or causing bodily harm to the victim, or being party to this offence with someone else.

16. Aggravated Sexual Assault: Wounding, maiming, disfiguring, or endangering the life of the victim while committing the sexual assault. (Wells, pp. 44-59)

4 Personnel Related Guidelines

4.1 Recruitment of Paid Staff and Volunteers

The following guidelines apply to all paid staff and to all volunteers over age 14 years working with children and youth. Documentation of each step is important. Developing a “paper trail” not only ensures that the recruitment process is followed, it also reduces legal risk by providing evidence that the church has taken careful and deliberate action to limit the potential of abuse occurring.

a. Employment / Volunteer Application and Screening Form:

Each individual seeking employment with the church is required to submit a resume of his/her qualifications and experience and complete an application form. In addition, short-listed employees, following the initial interview process are asked to complete a screening form. Volunteers are required to complete screen forms before becoming involved in child/youth related programs.

A sample Screen Form is attached. If a church chooses to develop its own form, at least the following items should be included:

o Applicant’s name (identity should be confirmed by photo identification)

o Address

o Provision for a criminal records check

o Area of work in which the applicant is interested

o Any training or education in child or youth work

o Description of church membership over the past five years, including the names of contact persons

o Description of church volunteer work over the past five years

o Description of any youth work (at churches or any other organization) over the past five years

o Names and addresses of two references

Volunteers will be considered for work with children/youth only after they have been regular attendees of the congregation for six months. This allows the church an opportunity to evaluate character and behaviour and will help to repel persons seeking immediate access to children.

b. Interview:

Each employee or volunteer applicant is interviewed by a committee of at least two members who are familiar with sexual abuse issues, and are comfortable in discussion of the topic. In preparation for interviewing, the selection committee members should determine the questions they wish to ask the applicant. These will be guided by the job description or responsibilities of the position, and the expectations of the individual. The applicant’s resume, and information provided by the application form and/or screen form will be reviewed by the committee prior to the interview to ensure applicable education and experience, and identify any areas of concern that need to be clarified during the interview.

During the interview the applicant will receive a clear and direct statement about the church’s general concern for the safety of children and that policies are in place to this end. Conduct expectations towards children/youth are provided in writing, and reviewed. The applicant is asked if he/she anticipates any difficulty meeting the expectations. Any breach of conduct expectations, including breaches of the Child Abuse Policy, will be grounds for church discipline including dismissal from the office/employment. Such a breach, if leading to a dismissal, will be for cause.

A written summary of the interview is completed.

c. References:

The Screening Form asks for two references who can speak to the applicant’s work/volunteer experience and character, and the names of contact persons from each of the churches with which he/she has been involved over the past five years. Both references and all of the church contact persons are contacted. A written record is made of each contact and the information received. (See attached sample of report form)

d. Criminal Records Check:

The Screening Form asks for the provision of a criminal records search in the event that the position is offered. The applicant can either be requested to provide verification of an up-to-date search, or be asked to cover the church’s cost of having one done. In either case a criminal records search is a necessary part of the recruitment process. In the case of returning volunteers, this would be done at the beginning of their ministry to children/youth and would not be required on an annual basis.

e. Approval Process:

Once all of the above steps have been completed, a decision is made as to the applicant’s suitability for the position. The information obtained through each of the recruitment steps is reviewed by the selection committee (or pastor / department leader in the case of a volunteer), and a recommendation made to the appropriate authority, e.g., the Official Board, the Christian Education Director.

f. Records:

An individual file is established for each applicant. The file contains the complete record of the recruitment process, i.e., resume, application and/or screening form; interview summary; reference and contact check information; and criminal records search. The confidentiality of these records is essential. They are stored in a filing cabinet that can be locked and access is limited and controlled by the pastor, or a designated individual. Access to personnel records is limited to individuals who carry immediate responsibility for the applicable program(s). An oath of confidentiality can be requested to emphasis the importance of keeping confidential personnel related information. (See attached statement)

The church must address the issue of child sexual abuse directly and openly. Although the above procedure may appear overwhelming for congregations who rely on a large number of volunteers, a documented screening process must be followed to safeguard children / youth and to reduce liability. Each part of the procedure should be completed before individuals begin work / involvement in programs. Present employees / volunteers should be required to complete the Screening Form, provide references / contacts, and provide verification of a criminal records search.

Anyone who identify sexual activity with a child/youth, or who have been convicted of any sexual crime is not appropriate candidate for any position of authority or trust, particularly involving children and youth.

Occasionally individuals will freely admit to criminal convictions of sexual abuse, or sexual behaviour involving children and/or youth, but insist that they have since had a conversion experience and no longer present a risk. Anyone with a history of sexual perpetration is not an acceptable candidate for positions of trust involving children and youth. The question is not whether conversion has occurred, but one of accepting responsibility. Not accepting responsibility for their behaviour is one of the characteristics of sexual perpetrators. Claiming conversion can be a method of avoiding responsibility. One of the components of treatment and behaviour control is a relapse prevention program. Perpetrators who are walking with the Lord, and taking responsibility for their past actions, will realize the danger of being involved in situations that increase their risk to re-offend. This condition is similar to that of a reformed alcoholics who recognize that they must avoid all alcohol. A church that permits such an individual to work with children or youth, on the basis of the professed religious conversion, will have a virtually indefensible position should another incident of abuse occur.

4.2 Training

Training will be provided or arranged by the church and required of all paid employees and those volunteers working with children/youth. Training will include the following topics:

* defining sexual abuse;

* the short and long term effects of abuse;

* the disclosure process and how to receive a disclosure;

* the requirement to report abuse;

* the need to work with civic authorities throughout the investigation of the allegation;

* awareness of applicable church policies and procedures. An opportunity will be provided for each volunteer to read these within a designated period of time, e.g., 6 weeks of assuming responsibility. He/she will verify, by way of signature, having read and understood these.

Training sessions will be organised to allow that all new staff members and volunteers have opportunity to attend within two months of assuming their responsibilities. Local and/or denominational resource professions will be accessed to ensure expertise. A record of each individual’s attendance will be kept in his/her personnel file.

4.3 Individual Conduct

It is expected that all paid employees and volunteers will not abuse positions of authority and/or trust to trick, trap, coerce or bribe another individual, regardless of age, into a sexual experience. It is expected that he/she will respect the personal boundaries and dignity of others. It is expected that conduct will not include behaviour and/or activity that are defined by the Criminal Code of Canada as constituting a sexual offence.

It is expected that concern and caring will be conveyed to young children by:

* addressing children at eye level;

* speaking kindly and listening carefully to what the child is saying;

* comforting and quieting by placing an arm around the shoulders;

* affirming by patting the head (if culturally appropriate), hand, shoulder or back;

* holding a child by the shoulders or hand to keep his/her attention, or to direct his/her movements;

* gently hold a child’s chin to help him/her focus on what the adult is saying.

It is expected that the staff member or volunteer will avoid the following behaviours / activities with children and youth:

* kissing, extended frontal hugs and tickling;

* touching of breasts, thighs, buttock, and genital areas (the child’s, youth’s or the adult’s);

* physically carrying older children or having them sit on the adult’s lap;

* discussing personal private matters with a child;

* dating between a youth and a volunteer.

5 Supervision and Staffing Guidelines

Children and youth programming requires staffing in a variety of settings, for a variety of purposes and to accommodate varied developmental competencies of participants. The following guidelines are intended to highlight areas where precautions need to be taken. Implementing these can enhance the quality of programming by ensuring a safe and comfortable environment for all.

5.1 General Guidelines and Precautions

a. Staffing Pattern:

Adopt a two-volunteer staffing pattern, either two adults or one adult and one adolescent. In no circumstances should two adolescents be assigned responsibility for children and/or youth. A team approach allows for flexibility in handling specific situations, and can facilitate the development of leadership and teaching skills.

b. Visibility and Accessibility:

Ensure that there is visibility and easy access to any classroom or group activity area. This may require that windows be installed, doors remain open, or that a supervisor make periodic, unannounced, visits.

c. Registration:

Programs for nurseries and pre-school aged children will provide a sign-in sheet, identifying the child’s name, parent / caregiver’s name and location during the class / activity time, and the names of the volunteers accepting the child. Children are not accepted until they are received by a volunteer and properly registered. A child will be released to a parent or to a representative only on the basis of prior, written notification from the parent and proof of identification.

d. Monitoring:

Regular monitoring of the property / area will be done to ensure that out-of-the-way places, or places that provide a level of privacy are not being accessed by individuals (older children, adolescents, adults) as places to lure and abuse others. Examples of spaces that will be regularly checked include: bathrooms, storage areas, unused rooms, poorly lit areas inside and outside the building.

5.2 Nursery

Nurseries for children under two years will be staffed by two volunteers, one of which must be an adult. The diapering area will be separate, but visible and accessible from the main activity area. This arrangement allows both a level of privacy for the child and openness between team members. Only assigned volunteers (i.e., those who have completed the recruitment process) will work in the nursery.

5.3 School Ages (2-5/6 years)

Volunteer teams working with pre-schoolers will include at least one adult. (To facilitate same-gender bathroom assistance, teams should include both males and females.) Parents will be encouraged to ensure that their children use the bathroom prior to joining the class/activity. If a child requires the bathroom facility during class/activity, one volunteer will advise the team partner that he/she is escorting the child to the bathroom. The child will be escorted to the bathroom door, and asked if he/she needs further assistance. If not, the volunteer will stay outside the door until the child exits. If the child requires assistance in the washroom, a female volunteer will provide this for girls and a male for boys. While the volunteer is in the bathroom with the child, the bathroom door will remain ajar (by propping open if necessary). Encouraging the child to do as much for him/herself as possible and modelling that the bathroom is a “private” place for the child, builds the child’s sense of personal boundaries.

5.4 Elementary Ages (6-12 years)

A volunteer may need to escort a child to the bathroom (depending on location, the child’s familiarity with the facility and the child’s ability), but assistance within the bathroom should not be required and will not be given. If a child requires assistance, the child’s parent will be asked to provide this. If the child is escorted to the bathroom, the volunteer will wait, outside the door, to escort the child back to the group. A volunteer will not be alone with a child in an unsupervised bathroom, and will never enter a stall with a child and close the door.

5.5 Special Day and Overnight Events

Special events that occur on or off church premises will be pre-planned, sanctioned by a designated body / person (e.g., the church board, C.E. Director), and advertised at least one week in advance. Depending upon the activity, written parental consent may be required.

Only assigned volunteers will be involved in these events and will be named in the advance advertising. Functions that include all boys will be staffed by at least two male volunteers. Functions that include all girls will be staffed by at least two females. Co-educational groups require male and female staff members. A participant-to-leader ratio of 10 to two is recommended as a minimum for children under age 12 years.

5.6 Special Areas of Concern

a. Transportation:

Transportation arrangements will be organised so that a driver is not alone with a child/youth. Parents will be requested to bring their children to, and collect them from, the church whenever possible.

b. Counselling:

One-on-one counselling will always be arranged with the knowledge of the parent, or a ministry related third party. The meeting will occur in a public place, or a place that allows for easy visibility and access. The adult will arrange the seating so as to not be between the child/youth and the door. This allows the child/youth freedom to leave the room at any time. The door will always be left ajar.

6 Attitude of Openness

One of the most powerful control mechanisms used by perpetrators against victims is imposed secrecy. Silence is enforced through threat of further harm to the victim, of harm to another person and/or that the victim will not be believed if a disclosure were to be made. If the perpetrator holds a position of social stature or of authority within the congregation, this latter form of intimidation is particularly powerful.

An attitude of openness by church and program leaders about sexual abuse can counteract the intimidation of the abuser and make it easier for victims to disclose any inappropriate behaviour and personal violation. It is important for children/youth to know they can tell someone of the abuse, and that they will be believed.

Openness can be conveyed in a number of ways: sexual abuse can be named from the pulpit as an inappropriate action and one that the church will take action against; training sessions can be advertised and open; children/youth workers can be alert to individual behaviours and emotional states of children and youth, and initiate statements of awareness and concern. Sexual abuse can be discussed as part of the curriculum, thereby letting children and youth know directly that they have access to leaders.

7 Reporting Requirements

It is required by law that disclosures, or awareness, of alleged sexual abuse be reported to designated civic authorities. The identity of the reporter is protected by law.

Reporting requirements are mandated by provincial child welfare legislation. Copies of this legislation can be obtained through local provincial offices. It is recommended that each church obtain a copy of the Act and that leaders familiarize themselves with those section which define child abuse and specify reporting requirements. In addition, church leaders should become aware of the names and phone numbers of the appropriate child welfare and police resources in their community to which reports of abuse can be made.

Child welfare legislation defines circumstances and conditions in addition to sexual abuse that also carry the responsibility to report, e.g., neglect, physical abuse, emotional abuse. These are significant dangers to children and youth. Children’s ministry leaders should be familiar with the definitions and signs of these forms of child maltreatment and be prepared to take appropriate and protective action.

The church will establish procedures for the reporting of any allegations of occurrence or disclosure of abuse to the leadership of the church (e.g., the pastor, the C.E. Director, the Board). If the alleged abuser is a leader in the church, he/she cannot be made aware of the disclosure prior to the investigation beginning. Other leaders must assume responsibility and work with civic and denominational resources in handling the situation.

8 Handling Abuse Disclosures

When a disclosure of abuse is made, it is critical that the church work with the civic authorities. The responsibility to investigate the allegation rests with the civic authorities, not with the church. Sexual abuse is a criminal offence and must be investigated by those who have the appropriate expertise and legal authority.

An employee against whom an allegation of sexual abuse is made will be suspended with pay from all positions of authority and activities that give him/her access to children. However, the timing of the suspension will be arranged in co-ordination with the child welfare / police investigation so as to not jeopardize the investigation or contaminate evidence. See the companion statement on Responding to Abuse Disclosure for a more complete discussion of handling occurrences and disclosures of child sexual abuse.

9 Purpose

The sexual abuse of children and youth not only violates the body, but compromises emotional, social, intellectual and spiritual development. It is a trauma that brings confusion, anger, fear, anxiety and guilt to the victim. It results in a personal sense of worthlessness, rejection and abandonment that continues long after the incidents of abuse have stopped. When the abuse is at the hands of a parent or someone who professes to be a Christian, the experience distorts the victim’s concept of God and creates significant barriers to spiritual growth.

Child sexual abuse is also a criminal offence.

That abuse occurs within our society is a recognised and widely documented fact. That many children and youth are victims is also an established fact. Sadly, being a member of a community of faith does not reduce the risk of being abused. Many victims identify their abusers as members of their own church communities. Abusers may be family members (e.g., parents, siblings); individuals in positions of trust or authority within the congregation (e.g., child or youth workers, leaders, pastors); or they may be members at large who, because of their affiliation, have trusted access to children and youth (e.g., adolescents who baby-sit or assist in programs).

When abuse occurs within the congregation the impact goes beyond the violation experienced by the victim. Trust has been broken with the victim’s family, with members of the abuser’s family, with friends, and with the congregation at large.

The purpose of this document is to provide guidelines for handling abuse situations that occur within the congregation. Specifically it outlines steps for ministry to perpetrators by hold them accountable in order to facilitate repentance, restitution, restoration and reconciliation.

(The reader is referred to the document “Reducing the Risk of Child Sexual Abuse” for guidelines designed to prevent sexual abuse from occurring within the congregation, and for the legal definition of child sexual abuse.)

10 Understanding Abusers

When sexual abuse occurs within the congregation, the church is faced with a problem that requires a multifaceted response. The behaviour signals spiritual and psychological dysfunction on the part of the perpetrator. It is also illegal behaviour. There is need to afford safety and support to the victim(s), and ensure the safety of potential victims. A process needs to be put in place that facilitates healing for those involved and affected. The church’s response can only be effective if it is grounded in an understanding of those who abuse.

The information that follows is intended to provide a cursory review of the demographic, psychological, cognitive and spiritual profile of sexual offenders. The nature of this document does not allow for a more in-depth discussion. The reader is encouraged to do additional reading on this subject. The references in the Bibliography can serve as a helpful beginning point.

10.1 Demographic Profile

Gender: Most sexual abusers are heterosexual males (i.e., 90%). The majority of victims are girls, although it is believed that more boys are victims than is reported.

Age: Sexual abusive behaviour often begins in adolescence and continues throughout adulthood. It is estimated that 25% of sexual abuse in Canada is perpetrated by adolescents. Fourteen percent of those imprisoned for sexual offenses against children are under 21 years of age. On average, a perpetrator is in his mid-30s when his behaviour is reported.

Marital Status: Most adult perpetrators are married with children. Those involved in incest have stable (albeit dysfunctional) and long-term marriages.

Occupation and Education: All occupations, professions (including the clergy), and educational levels are represented.

Religious Affiliation: All faiths and Christian denominations are represented among known offenders. Many who have a church affiliation are members of conservation, fundamental Protestant organizations. In fact, the second highest risk factor for children becoming victims for incest is for their families to belong to a conservative religious group that espouses traditional male-female roles and rigid sexual attitudes (Heggen, p. 73). It is believed that this risk stems from several factors. Sexual offenders are attracted to firm belief systems that identify absolute rights and wrongs. Given their rigid personalities, with little awareness or insight into their own, or others’ emotional states, they find it difficult to make decisions, and to deal with the ambiguities of life that are inherent in a more flexible belief system.

A belief system that holds males as dominant and superior to submissive women and children provides abusers with justification to enforce their control and to see family members more as objects for their gratification than as separate and unique individuals. The family dynamics revolve around the meeting of the husband’s / father’s needs with little open discussion of feelings, attitudes or opinions, including sexual issues. Without open communication and respect for personal integrity within the family, children can become victims and lack the supports needed to seek protection and advocacy.

Occurrence Rates: Numerous studies confirm that child molesters have a high number of victims, and that individual victims are repeatedly abused. Many offenders count their victims in the hundreds.

Risk of Conviction: The risk of the abuse being reported and the offender convicted is minimal. Most abuse incidents are not reported, and of those that are, only a small portion result in convictions. One offender, interviewed recently on the CBC, stated that of his 200 odd victims, only two reported the abuse. Most sexual perpetrators are not in prison - they are living in the community, and may be part of any community of faith.

10.2 Psychological and Spiritual Profile

There are a number of common characteristics that mark the emotional, cognitive and spiritual functioning of sexual perpetrators. These include:

Childhood Trauma: Many share childhood experiences of being victimised themselves through emotional, physical and/or sexual abuse, family violence and emotional deprivation.

Emotional Functioning: These are individuals who experience deep feelings of personal inadequacy, low self-esteem, helplessness and powerlessness. Their acts of abuse often are attempts to gain a sense of control through the exercise of power over someone more vulnerable than themselves. The sexual abuse exhibits limited insight into his own behaviour and feelings, and is insensitive to the needs and feelings of others. He often is unable to recognize the harm - physical, emotional, social and spiritual - he causes his victims.

Defence Patterns: Most perpetrators develop defence mechanisms and patterns of thinking that allow them to justify, and thus continue, their behaviour. Denial is the most prevalent of these defences. When confronted, most perpetrators will either deny that the behaviour occurred or will minimise the severity of it. These patterns are evident even in the face of obvious facts. Typical statements include: the event did not happen; this was the first time; the behaviour was not what it seemed; it was not as severe as reported by the victim.

Another common defence mechanism is to minimise responsibility and project blame onto the victim, e.g., the child consented to the behaviour. (Children under the age of 14 years are considered by law incapable of giving informed consent.) Common statements include: “I didn’t know what I was doing”; “I couldn’t help myself” (claiming the influence of drugs, alcohol or uncontrollable sexual urges).

It is not surprising that, given their restricted emotional development, many perpetrators have difficulty with intimate peer relationship, and with maintaining and enhancing long-term relationships. They are often more comfortable with children than with their peers and begin to view children as their equals. They rationalize that children have sexual knowledge and desires that are, in reality, not consistent with the child’s physical, social, and emotional development. With this rationalisation in place they see children as not only wanting sex, but enjoying it.

Spiritual Functioning: From a spiritual standpoint, perpetrators have not committed an unpardonable sin. On the other hand, they are involved in sin that has been glossed over with self-deception and selfishness. They need help: to come to grips (in confession) with the multidimensional nature of their sin; to develop and exercise self-control (repentance) over their behaviour; and to develop and maintain (discipleship) a new way of life internally and externally.

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