Church Board votes unanimously to end support to the World Council of Churches (WCC)

 

Dear Members of the PEC,

During the past several years, our Church and our Joint Boards have struggled with the issue of providing financial support to the World Council of Churches. The issue first arose during our November 9, 2003 Church Council. A motion was presented during this Church Council meeting that we not include the requested budget line that went to the World Council of Churches. The motion did not carry. Again, in 2004, the issue of supporting the WCC came up during our November 14 Church Council. A motion was presented and passed that the Joint Boards would give a report to the congregation about the WCC.

We requested a meeting with the PEC to discuss issues involving the Moravian Church. These issues included our relationship with the WCC. This meeting took place on August 8, 2004. There were many issues discussed during this meeting. After this meeting, we were still unsure as to whether or not we agreed with supporting the WCC.

Our 2005 Joint Board retreat took place on January 7-8,2005. Before this meeting, Pastor Doug Rights gave each Board member a copy of a document titled, "Towards a Common Understanding and Vision of the World Council of Churches". We were tasked with being prepared to discuss this document.

Soon into our discussion, it became clear that there were many different opinions as to why we should not support the WCC. The document we had reviewed raised many concerns. Among these concerns were the many years it took the WCC to define itself, the affiliation of the WCC with non-Christian faiths, and the numerous contradictions and vague statements throughout the document. We were deeply troubled by the inclusiveness of the document, particularly "macro-ecumenism" that opens the WCC to "religious and cultural traditions beyond the Christian community." (paragraph 2.6) 2 Corinthians 6:14-16 warns us not to be yoked with unbelievers, so we cannot agree with that inclusion. Other points of concern were shared regarding the WCC's political ties, involvement in political matters, the Baar Statement, and ecumenicism vs. evangelism. Although no two people shared identical thoughts, it became clear that we could agree on one thing: that the Olivet board could not support the WCC in good conscience.

So, after much discussion, a motion was brought forward that we vote to either support or not support the WCC. The Joint Boards unanimously voted to not support the WCC. A second motion was then made to send a letter to the PEC advising that Olivet Moravian Church does not support the WCC. This motion also carried. Therefore, the purpose of this letter is to advise the PEC that Olivet Moravian Church does not support the WCC. We also hope that you will also see through this correspondence that much prayer, discussion, and deliberation went into this decision and that our decision was Spirit-led.

Respectfully Submitted,

The Olivet Moravian Church Joint Boards. (all should sign)