“Can any thing good come out of Nazareth?” — Nathanael asked Philip, to which Philip replied, “Come and see.” (John 1:46)
In the past couple of years, our Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) has approved two confessional documents, the Belhar Confession and an updated version of the Heidelberg Catechism. Both make an appropriate addition to our Reformed faith affirmations. I’d like to suggest another rather little-known document I believe to have genuine historical value. It comes from “way down south in Dixie.” It is called “A Declaration of Faith,” and was generated out of Southern Presbyterian cultural struggles with, among other things, racial segregation and ordination of women.
It is my understanding that, as a result of a resolution adopted by the 109th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (US), an ad-interim committee was approved to prepare either a new Confession of Faith or a Book of Confessions. A key in the development of the new confessional statement was a Mission Conference held at Montreat, N.C., to which missionaries, foreign nationals, minority persons and other representatives of minority and Third World concerns were invited. The confessional statement that was developed by the ad-interim committee represents an attempt to “listen” to those present at the conference and theologize in response.
The ad-interim committee consisted of Albert C. Winn, chairman, Isaac Crosby, Neil O. Davis, Shirley C. Guthrie, Wellford Hobbie, R. T. L. Liston, Patricia McClurg, Patrick D. Miller, Jr., James A. Wharton and Paul D. Williams. They represented some of the finest theological, practical and creative minds in the Presbyterian Church (US). They developed a remarkable document.
Having been initiated in 1969, the circulated initial version of the proposed declaration of faith elicited voluminous response from the church at large, with the greatest objection being that it was “a liberation theology.” An involved process of submission, review and General Assembly action involving several contentious years ensued. The net result was that the proposed document was never accorded confessional status. However, in 1977 The PCUS General Assembly voted that “A Declaration of Faith be adopted as a contemporary statement of faith, a reliable aid for Christian study, liturgy, and inspiration, with a clear understanding that the Westminster Standards are constitutional.”
“A Declaration of Faith” truly is a remarkable document. It lends itself to liturgical use. The format chosen has become a model for subsequent Statements of Faith, as for example, the PC(USA)’s present “A Brief Statement of Faith.” The Book of Confessions, in which the Declaration was originally printed, includes an excellent Study Guide. By reading that, one can get the mind of those who framed the document — choices they made and why. Compared with the Great Confessions, The Declaration is relatively brief, has a story form, and uses “we” terminology as a means of confessing the shared aspect of Christian faith. In the same manner that Arnold Rhodes, in The Mighty Acts of God, related the “one story of the Bible,” the Declaration begins with creation and concludes with the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God in eternity.
The section on justice is illustrative regarding the Declaration:
“(3) God sends us to strive for justice.
God has reached out to those who suffer injustice
and defended the excluded, the poor, and the hungry.
The Lord is moving toward the time
when justice will roll down like waters
and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
We are persuaded God is at work here and now
when people deal fairly with each other
and labor to change customs and structures
that enslave and oppress human beings.
We believe God sends us to work with others
to correct the growing disparity
between rich and poor nations,
to achieve fair legislation justly administered and enforced,
to make the operation of courts and penal institutions
more just and humane.
We are charged to root out prejudice and racism
from our hearts and institutions.
We are commissioned to stand with women and men
of all ages, races, and classes
as they struggle for dignity and respect
and the chance to exercise power for the common good.
We must not countenance in the church and its institutions
the inequities we seek to correct in the world.
We must be willing to make amends as we can
for centuries of injustice which the church condoned.”
There may possibly be other confessional statements developed by what Third World Christians would call “oppressive societies.” However, the PCUS “A Declaration of Faith” is the only example I have seen that was written in response to having listened to Third World constituencies and developing such a document. The charge that “A Declaration of Faith” is a “liberation theology” is true in the best sense of the word — as a First World response to the cries of Third World people, especially oppressed African-Americans in the American South. As such, I believe it is a historical document that deserves more than being simply and quietly archived. I would encourage any interested person to look it up, read it thoughtfully, and see!
JAMES K. THOMPSON is a retired minister who earned a doctor of the science of theology degree from San Francisco Presbyterian Theological Seminary.
