Conversations between Christians with diverse theologies and political circumstance have never been easy.
"The mystery of peace is located in the nature and quality of relationship developed with those most feared."
-- John Paul Lederach
The Moral Imagination
Conversations between Christians with diverse theologies and political circumstance have never been easy. Last year, for example, the Southern Baptist Convention decided to quit the Baptist World Alliance because its theologies were "too liberal" and its criticisms of the United States too many.
A different crisis of ecumenical relations occurred last October in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). With help from its world mission headquarters in Louisville and the participation of its Advisory Committee on Social Witness Policy, it sent a fact-finding delegation to the Middle East. Among other local hosts in visits to six countries were the Middle East Council of Churches and the Synod of Lebanon, Syria. Leaders of the latter asked the delegation to undertake a conversation with representatives of the militant Muslim group Hezbollah. Back in Louisville, denominational executives had advised "caution" about having such a meeting, but they never forbade the delegation to undertake it. The upshot of the event was the firing of two General Assembly staff members for incompetence in permitting that meeting to take place and for failing to protect the church against negative media publicity.
As a longtime student of the ethics of forgiveness and repentance, I have had to ponder the complexity of Jesus' word to disciples that they are to "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44). That word applies as much to conflicts inside the church as outside. As a Presbyterian, I am proud of its ecumenical and social justice traditions; and I believe that this internal denominational controversy needs to be judged against the background of twentieth century ecumenical history. Many issues in the incident transcend this one denomination.
