Riley B. Case
A General Conference petition to expand the mission of the church would add the words for the transformation of the world so that the mission statement would read: The purpose of the annual conference is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
The petition comes from the Council of Bishops with the rationale that it reflects more adequately our understanding of the mission of the church. The bishops also link this expanded definition with mission initiatives adopted by the Connectional Table. The initiatives are leadership development, congregational development, ministry with the poor, and global health.
One certainly cannot speak against the idea of transforming the world but one might raise the question as to how the world is to be transformed. One hundred years ago the church spoke about the conversion of the world and the salvation of the human race. A few years later the language shifted so that instead of seeking the conversion of the world we were working for the bringing of Gods kingdom on the earth. This reflected a theological shift away from evangelism toward social justice.
Either way our sights were high. A couple of world wars and the rise (and fall) of communism tempered our vision. Never mind. Were back again with a big vision, a vision of transformation. But the question still remains: Are we about social betterment or conversion?
The Africans might come to our rescue. There is evidently a petition coming from one of the African conferences (this material is not in the Advanced Christian Advocate) to insert a phrase something like for the conversion of eternal souls to the transformation phrase. The Africans have the most to gain by an emphasis on leadership development, work with the poor, and dealing with global health. But they are also very much aware that these emphases must not be considered separately from the salvation of souls.
It will be interesting to see how General Conference deals with these proposals.
Riley B. Case is a retired member of the North Indiana Conference, assistant executive director of the Confessing Movement, and a lifetime member of the Good News Board of Directors. He is also the author of Evangelical and Methodist: A Popular History (Abingdon).