From the Worldwide Faith News archives www.wfn.org
WCRC - A Week of Joy and Struggle
From
Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>
Date
Wed, 30 Jun 2010 11:06:37 -0700
A Week of Joy and Struggle
The World Communion of Reformed Churches began to wrap up its 10-day meeting on
Friday by addressing and adopting a number of priorities on which the new
organization will focus.
Debate occurred on the floor of Van Noord Arena in Grand Rapids, Michigan, over
a number of those priorities, especially how to best deal with the Accra
Confession, a faith-based critique of the free-market economic system in an age
of globalization.
WCRC delegates accepted the recommendation that the new body continue to use
the Accra Confession as a teaching tool on how Christians can view the economy
and that it be considered as an important document to help guide WCRC as it
addresses issues related to the world economy. In addition, after long debate,
the delegates decided to ask the WCRC?s executive committee to seek out ways to
bring other voices and organizations into the discussion involving the
confession.
But debate and disagreement was by no means the theme of the Uniting General
Council, from which WCRC was born on June 18. In fact, the UGC began with high
hopes, smiles and enthusiasm as more than 300 delegates from around the world
agreed to create the new ecumenical body.
Much pomp and ceremony, including a multi-faceted Sunday worship service,
accompanied the merger of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the
Reformed Ecumenical Council into the WCRC, which represents more than 80
million Reformed Christians worldwide.
Symbolic gestures of unification, friendship and identification with Native
Americans in the United States and aboriginal people in Canada took place,
making it clear that a focus of WCRC will be on people who have often been
marginalized and ignored in their native lands.
An emphasis was also placed on youth and including them in the life of WCRC,
especially since the youth are the hope of the future for the ecumenical body.
While there was some debate over how to best balance the new executive
committee of WCRC with women, men and younger persons, the event unfolded
smoothly on the campus of Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
Delegates for the most part resolved that issue and the election of officers
and members of the executive committee came off without much problem. Jerry
Pillay, general secretary of the Uniting Presbyterian Church in Southern
Africa, was elected as the first president of WCRC.
?We have started a new chapter in the history of Reformed and Presbyterian
churches ? We will be engaging the world in the name of Jesus Christ,? he said.
That engagement, in human terms, means debating issues and reaching a consensus
on matters. His priority, he said, will be to keep the churches in the new body
together. ?Issues of disunity and struggle continue to be present in the
world,? he said.
Looking ahead, he said the WCRC will have challenges raising funds to be able
to pay for all of its programmes as well as the priorities adopted at the
meeting which ends on Saturday. In addition, he sees the continuing clash over
what takes precedence ? worship, prayer and Bible study or efforts to help
create social justice.
He said he sees the two as the same. The Bible requires Christians to be
involved in social justice issues.
?Each of us has present before us a multiplicity of pictures in which we see
God,? said Pillay. But in the end, this multiplicity emerges as one ? the
triune God.
?I hope we will be able to journey together joyfully and that the Spirit will
direct us to where God wants us to go. We must discern together what God wants
of us.?
By Chris Meehan, News Editor
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