BIBLE TASK GROUP

Task Group on the Understanding and Use of the Bible

1. THE FORMATION OF THE TASK GROUP

1.1 Arising from its consideration of the report of the task Group on Sexuality, the Eighth Assembly of the Uniting Church, which met in Perth in July 1997, resolved :

"To request the Standing Committee, following consultation with the Commission on Doctrine, to appoint a group, representative of the different perspectives in the Uniting Church in Australia, to prepare and make available material on ways in which the Church understands and uses the Bible in seeking to live in faithfulness to the Gospel."

(Assembly minute 97.31.14)

1.2 At the same Assembly, three former Presidents, Ron Wilson, D’Arcy Wood and Jill Tabart were asked to consider how the Assembly might deal with the outstanding issues relating to sexuality following the close of Assembly and report, with recommendations, to the Standing Committee.

1.3 That report was delivered to the March 1998 meeting of the Standing Committee. Inter alia, the three former presidents reported :

"(Understanding Scripture) is a crucial matter for the Church and must be addressed urgently. Part of the problem is the decline in systematic teaching about our life in Christ, as a central ministry in each congregation’s life..... There is a plea from the Multicultural Committee of the Synod of Victoria that wider than Western Christianity Biblical perspectives should be considered in addressing this issue in the Church.."

(December 1997)

1.4 The Assembly Standing Committee met in March 1998, received the above report, and considered how it might best follow the dictates of the Assembly and the advice of the former presidents. On March 15, 1998, it resolved to:

"Focus the urgent and necessary work on understanding the Bible through the Task Group on the Understanding and Use of the Bible, and encourage that Task Group to :

(a) identify the wide range of approaches to the Bible and emphasise the importance of respecting differences of approach both to the Bible and to theological issues generally;

(b) highlight the ways in which various ethnic and cultural contexts shape understandings of the Bible, with particular reference to the Asian, Pacific and indigenous contexts;

(c) encourage spiritual and scholarly study of the Bible (cf. Basis of Union, paragraphs 5 and 11), and to make clear the range of questions with which people legitimately approach the Bible in seeking to hear the gospel truth and know the mind of God;

(d) consult with the Task Group on the teaching Ministry and Mission of the Church in order to bring recommendations to the Assembly Standing Committee about implementing in congregations the results of their work."

1.5 Meanwhile, the Standing Committee had authorised a sub-group to appoint the Task Group and membership (see below for details), was, with three exceptions, finalised in April, 1998. A small budget was negotiated and Gregor Henderson arranged to be at the first meeting of the Task Group on May 13-14, 1998.

1.6 Attendance at gatherings of the Task Group has, with the exception of the November 1999 meeting when sickness took its toll, been very satisfactory. Jwee Teo and Howard Wallace were added to the group only after its first meeting. Deidre Palmer was also absent since, at that point, she had not returned from the U.S.A. to take up her teaching appointment at Parkin-Wesley Theological College.

1.7 The Group met on seven occasions. Its last meeting was on February 23-24, 2000 at the Adelaide College of Divinity.

2. MEMBERSHIP

2.1 The membership of the Task Group represents both the diversity of theological approaches within the Uniting Church, and the Group’s location in South Australia.

Chairperson Dr Don Hopgood, Past - Moderator, SA Synod

Rev Dr Robert Iles, Minister of the Word in the Golden Grove Parish, SA

Rev Dr Bill Loader, Associate Professor in New Testament and Head of School of Social Inquiry, Murdoch University, Lecturer in the Perth Theological Hall

Rev Hohaia Haami Matthews, Minister of the Word at Beulah in Victoria’s Wimmera. Hohaia is of Maori extraction

Rev Christine Ostle, Consultant for Solidarity and Justice to SA Synod

Dr Deidre Palmer, Lecturer in Christian Education, Parkin-Wesley College

Ms Irene Parker, Secretary, Presbyteries Commission, SA Synod

Ms Julia Pitman, reading for a Doctorate in history, Adelaide University, worships at Pilgrim Church, Adelaide

Rev Dr Keith Rowe, Chairperson, Doctrine Work Group, Minister of the Word, Auburn Parish, New South Wales

Rev Dr Benyamin Susilo, Minister of the Word to the Indonesian Congregation, in Melbourne

Rev Jane Tiller, Minister of the Word at Kimba, South Australia

Rev Jwee Teo, Minister of the Word in the Gilles Parish, Adelaide

Rev Prof Howard Wallace, Professor of Old Testament, Queen’s College, Parkville, Victoria

3. INTRODUCTION

3.1 The Group assumed from the outset that its procedures should be reasonably transparent, and that, given that our task had the blessing of the Uniting Church, we should be persistent in winning over, to the process at least, any pockets of suspicion or mistrust. With this in mind, some of our first meeting was devoted to the production of the June 1998 statement which appears as Appendix A to this report. We used the various Synod journals for its dissemination. In addition, we resolved, at our second meeting, to take whatever opportunities arose, as individual members of the Group, to visit presbyteries in an endeavour to explain our origins and methodology. We saw our role in the very positive light of producing outcomes that would bless the Church.

3.2 Appendix B is a list of resources which we see as relevant to the task of producing a Church which is more biblically informed and which seeks to place the reading and study of Scripture at the centre of its communal life. This report is to be supplemented by a series of Bible Studies designed to help our people better understand how the Bible "works", how it understands itself. At a later date, we also plan to have published a series of papers on the same theme.

3.3 Those who were looking for the one simple answer to the dilemmas that led to our formation, will be disappointed. The Group itself does not have complete consensus on the use and understanding of Scripture. Standing Commit-tee’s March 1998 resolution referred, inter alia, to the "wide range of approaches to the Bible" and asked that we "emphasise the importance of respecting differences of approach both to the Bible and to theological issues generally". We have had the privilege of journeying together and learning from each other. We ask the Uniting Church to do the same. This Report suggests some ways and means in what can only be a continuing process.

3.4 I thank my colleagues for the enthusiasm and energy they have brought to our common task.

4. REPORT

4.1.1 This report invites the church to reaffirm the indispensable and central place of the Bible in the life of the church and to embark on a shared journey of exploration and study of the books it contains. For the Church, the Bible is a point of entry into the mystery of God’s purposes for humanity and a place of encounter with the living Christ.

4.1.2 The task group grew out of the debate on sexuality at the 1997 Assembly and was seen by many as a way of resolving differences of Biblical interpretation present in that debate. The group, however, made an early decision not to be controlled by expectations that may have surrounded the decision that brought it into being. In the judgement of the task group differences of interpretation and use of the Bible evident in the sexuality debate relate to a deeper need: to consciously reclaim the Bible as the Church’s book.

4.2.1 Church and Bible

(a) There is no need to argue for the importance of the Bible within the life of the Church. The Word of God coming to us through the words of the Old and New Testaments is the supreme authority for the faith and conduct of the Christian Church as it is led and guided by the Holy Spirit. The Basis of Union (para 5) is quite clear:

"The Uniting Church acknowledges that the Church has received the books of the Old and New Testaments as unique prophetic and apostolic testimony, in which it hears the Word of God and by which its faith and obedience are nourished and regulated. When the Church preaches Jesus Christ, its message is controlled by the Biblical witnesses. The Word of God on whom salvation depends is to be heard and known from scripture appropriated in the worshipping and witnessing life of the Church. The Uniting Church lays upon its members the serious duty of reading the Scriptures, commits its ministers to preach from these and to administer the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper as effective signs of the Gospel set forth in the Scriptures."

(b) The Church is not the Church without the Bible. It is the bearer of the corporate memory of the People of God, our only witness to the saving acts of God in Christ and an ever challenging invitation to serve the purposes of God and to follow the way of truth and love set forth in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Some years ago James Smart in a book of the same title complained of "The strange silence of the Bible in the Church." He went on to suggest that "the fading of the scriptures from the consciousness of the church weakens and then ruptures the continuity of the church of today with the church in which it had its origin, so that it no longer remembers the word that called it into being or the purpose that alone justifies its existence." Texts from the Bible are regularly quoted in the church but in a time of conflict and confusion they are as likely to be used as weapons in a battle as read as gracious invitations to dwell within the purposes and grace of God. The transforming power of Scripture, enlightened by the Spirit, is lost, as biblical verses are used to silence those with whom one disagrees. The Scriptures are easily misused in a time of church conflict and the life of the church is diminished as the Scriptures are set aside by those who have grown weary of its apparently conflicting messages. When genuine debate occurs there is, for many, a helpful sharpening of viewpoints. The Task Group is of the opinion that the church must not become totally preoccupied with the debate over homosexuality and Ministry. We live in a needy and spiritually impoverished world for which the good news of Christ can again become life giving. In a book addressing a similar situation within the Presbyterian Church in the USA John P. Burgess sums up the convictions of our Task Group.

"…In a time in which we are all too aware of the church’s divisions and crisis of faith, we need to recover a confidence that Scripture has a life beyond us – that it retains a capacity to break forth with new power and to stir the church to new life. We need to recover a sense of awe and reverence before Scripture, a sense that it is strange to us and not under our control, and yet it exercises a claim on us…. We must become much more intentional about opening ourselves to Scripture, so that we may receive it as God’s Word, a Word that is not under human control, a Word that offers us grace and judgement, surprise and dismay, hope and terror. We must become much more intentional about resisting the temptation to wield Scripture simply as a weapon – to lift up and wave at our opponents – and more intentional about learning instead how to open Scripture as we would a good gift, standing before it together and in anticipation of hearing God’s voice. We must cultivate a piety of the Word that respects Scripture more as a source of life than as a set of right answers to be applied to whatever problem we choose."

(c) Many of the differences present within the church were also present within the task group. There were times in the life of the group when members struggled to be understood by others and when impatience and frustration surfaced. Without exception, members of the group all value the Scriptures, describe it as word of God and as indispensable to the life of the church and to their own personal life. Finding words to convey this to others in the group was sometimes difficult. Words carried different meanings, years of distrust and mis-understanding, political debates in the church and caricatures of others all conspired to make communication and sharing of one’s deepest convictions difficult. Perhaps the group was a microcosm of the church at large. As the group matured, as friendship was allowed to flourish ,earlier suspicions were sometimes dissolved – though their capacity to reappear in a new guise could not be denied. It was often hard going trying to explain what one believed theoretically about the Bible. When the group engaged in shared exploration of a Biblical passage, open to receiving its truth into our lives, when we relaxed and shared our hopes and fears as well as our assertions the Bible became a book of life. The toughest times in the group were when one or more members felt compelled to defend a "position." Our best times were when, as followers of Christ, open to the work of the Spirit and seeking the courage to serve the purposes of God, we became a community of explorers that was open to a truth that lay beyond our present experience.

(d) In inviting the church to "reclaim the Bible" we envisage the church collectively involved in deliberate attempts to increase Biblical literacy among both lay and ordained members. While this will involve an increase in knowledge of the contents and background of the various biblical books, even more importantly it will involve us in a more appreciate reading of the Book which in the words of Martin Luther is "the cradle in which Christ is found." We have not seen it as our task to a write a scholarly work on theological hermeneutics.

(e) The group was aware of cynicism within the church as to the value of the task group. We were told that ours was a task doomed to failure. Others expressed a wish that their convictions be affirmed rather than those of others.

4.2.2 A changed and changing world

We live in an era when the significance of the Bible in the wider community can no longer be taken for granted. It no longer provides the conscious underlying framework of truth and of morality in western societies. In the community at large it is often seen as a moralistic book used selectively to justify the interests of the Church or of the powerful. In a world growing increasingly distrustful of external authority it is felt by many to be a relic of a bygone authoritarian age. No longer a book claimed as its own by the community at large the church is free to reclaim the Bible as the church’s book and to define its authority in ways consistent with Christian belief.

4.2.3 Diverse approaches to the Bible

(a) There is an impasse in the church over biblical interpretation. What is commonly described as the "Fundamentalist/ Liberal" split over biblical interpretation represents what is arguably the most significant division within contemporary Protestantism. It is as though there are two different "religious cultures" existing within most "main stream" denominations. Each "culture" has its own language, primary theological emphases, social attitudes and even music. The differing theological emphases emerge from different life questions. Different streams within the biblical traditions are given primacy when these different questions are addressed. In times of disagreement these differences become exaggerated and may even obscure our primary and shared allegiance to Christ. We cannot ignore this division in the life of the church but nor should we be overwhelmed by it. It does create strains within the church, particularly when decisions must be made about ethical standards, mission strategy and forms of belief. It is however a difference between people who are Christians, who owe allegiance to Christ, who are serious about their desire to embody the way of Christ in their individual and shared lives, who belong to the same family. Discussion about how we might interpret the Scriptures faithfully will only be fruitful in an atmosphere of trust, a quality easily lost in times of conflict. There has never been uniformity in the Church regarding the right interpretation of the Bible. Dr. Ian Breward reminded the task group in a paper on ‘The Use of the Bible from 500 – 1600’ that "Differences in biblical interpretation are as old as Christianity. There has never been a period when everything was really settled. Schism, excommunications and anathemas partly solved the problems in different regions, but that set of solutions is not desirable or practicable in our world where contested ideas cannot be excluded. We are challenged to find unity within diversity. Finding the wisdom to discern where diversity destroys catholicity is a pressing task, which cannot simply be achieved by invoking past solutions."

(b) The task group was specifically asked to "identify the wide range of approaches to the Bible and emphasize the importance of respecting differences of approach both to the Bible and to theological issues generally." Respect for difference within the Christian community is part of what it means to be a community bound together by Christ. Yet we do not underestimate the depth of the differences that sometimes divide us nor the difficulty in maintaining respect and friendship for those who believe differently. In a world of human division the church is called to demonstrate another way of living together. It is an ongoing task and we often fall short of our aspirations.

(c) Any attempt to categorize people as belonging to different schools of thought regarding use of the Bible is likely to misrepresent some one or group. Commonly used descriptions like liberal, fundamentalist, radical, evangelical, no longer carry precise and agreed upon meaning. A 1998 report presented to the British Methodist Conference (A Lamp to my Feet and a Light to my Path) identified seven broad perspectives on biblical authority held within that church. This may be helpful to members of the Uniting Church and does give a sense of the breadth of views found within a church like ours.

The Bible is the Word of God and is therefore inerrant (free of all error and entirely trustworthy in everything which it records) and has complete authority in all matters of theology and behaviour. It is "God- breathed" and its human authors were channels of the divine Word. The Christian’s task is to discern accurately what the Bible teaches and then to believe and obey it. Reason, experience and tradition should be judged in the light of the Bible, not the other way round. (This view seeks to safeguard the conviction that the Bible has its origin in God by claiming the Bible cannot contain error.)

The Bible’s teaching about God, salvation and Christian living is entirely trustworthy. It cannot be expected however, to provide entirely accurate scientific or historical information since this is not its purpose. Nevertheless, it provides the supreme rule for faith and conduct, to which other ways of ‘knowing’ , while important, should be subordinate. (The Bible’s divine origin is asserted but reliable information on historical or scientific matters may not fall within God’s purposes in giving the Bible.)

The Bible is the essential foundation on which Christian faith and life are built. However, its teachings were formed in particular historical and cultural contexts, and must therefore be read in that light. The way to apply Biblical teaching in today’s very different context is not always obvious or straightforward. Reason is an important (God given) gift, which must be used to the full in this process of interpretation. (Books written in times and places different from our own cannot simply be read as a message for our times without using our reason to apply their words to our times.)

The Bible’s teaching, while foundational and authoritative for Christians, needs to be interpreted by the Church. In practice it is the interpretation and guidance offered by church leaders and preachers which provides authoritative teaching. Church tradition is therefore of high importance as a practical source of authority. (The Bible does not exist independently of the church and interpretation is a matter for the church community rather than for private individuals.)

The Bible is one of the main ways in which God speaks to the believer. However, the movement of God’s Spirit is free and unpredictable, and it is what the Spirit is doing today that is of the greatest importance. The Bible helps to interpret experience, but much stress is placed on spiritual experience itself, which conveys its own compelling authority. (To give too high a status to the Bible may prevent us from hearing what God is saying to us today through our experience of life and of God.)

The Bible witnesses to God’s revelation of himself through history and supremely through Jesus Christ. However, the Bible is not itself that revelation, but only the witness to it. Christians must therefore discern where and to what extent they perceive the true gospel witness in the various voices of the Bible. Reason, tradition and experience are as important as the biblical witnesses. (The Bible mediates the Word of God but is not identical with the Word of God.)

The Bible comprises a diverse and often contradictory collection of documents, which represent the experiences of various people in various times and places. The Christian’s task is to follow, in some way, the example of Christ. And to the extent that the Bible records evidence of his character and teaching it offers a useful resource. However, in the late 20th century it is simply not possible to obey all its teachings since these stem from very human authors and often represent the ideology of particular groups or classes in an ancient and foreign culture. Reason and experience provide much more important tools for faith and practice. (We must strip away from the Bible all elements that betray vested interests or desire to dominate others before we can discover God’s Word for us through the Bible.)

(d) Many people would locate themselves within more than one of these categories. Rather than trying to pigeonhole others or ourselves into carefully devised "boxes" it may be better to acknowledge that most individuals understand and interpret the Bible in a variety of ways. As one walks on the road of discipleship one’s mode of interpretation and valuation of the Bible may alter, sometimes leaning in this direction, sometimes in that direction, depending on the issues and needs that one addresses. Sometimes a person actively rejects an inherited way of interpreting the Bible and the search for a more intellectually and spiritually satisfying mode of interpretation can be part of a larger crisis of faith. What remains constant is an ongoing awareness that the Bible is indispensable to Christian living and that we must continue to wrestle with it and with the God to whom it bears witness. The danger in identifying ourselves too closely with one perspective is that we may close ourselves to the address of God who is not controlled by our neat human theories.

(e) We might imagine a continuum of views on the Bible along which we live, believe and move. At one end is an extreme literal perspective, denying any significant human participation in the production of the Bible. At the other end is a secular cynical view, denying any significance in the Bible which is not also true of other books describing the human search for meaning. Our impression is that few members of the Uniting Church would fit comfortably at either extreme. The vast majority of our people live along the continuum. Our differences arise from our "leaning" more towards one extreme than towards the other. Those leaning towards the "literal" extreme must guard against an idolatry of the Bible that claims for it a wisdom that belongs within the mystery of God alone. Those leaning toward the more secularized, humanistic end of the spectrum need to guard against a doctrinal relativism that denies revelation. We can assume that Uniting Church members share the conviction of the churches of the reformation that "Holy Scripture contains all things necessary to salvation" (Articles of Religion #6). Many members would find it difficult to accurately identify where they sit along the continuum of biblical interpretation. They simply know they belong to a community for whom the Scriptures are important and within which they have learned to read the Bible with a sense of expectation and seriousness they give to no other book.

4.2.4 The divine and the human in scripture

That the Scriptures contain both the marks of both divine and human presence is almost universally affirmed within the Church. Discussion about the relative weight to be given to each of these dimensions is reminiscent of debates as to how the church might speak of Jesus Christ as both human and divine. The Church confesses Jesus as fully human and fully divine without ever being able, adequately and finally, to explain this mystery at the heart of Christian life and faith. God is present within the fragility of the human and human experience, words and deeds, are bearers of divine grace. God’s revelation through scripture mirrors His supreme revelation in Christ. The Bible is divinely inspired and is also an illustration of how God honours and uses human gifts, reason and experience.

4.2.5 The authority of the Bible

(a) While the Church has never adopted a single authoritative theory of interpretation, the authority of the Bible in the church is a given for Christian existence. The Bible grew out of the life of the early church and the church remains the proper home of the Bible, the "community of interpretation" within which the Scriptures find their proper context. But the church does not "possess" the Scriptures. The church lives under the authority of Scripture and of the risen Christ to whom the Scriptures bear witness.

(b) In an external sense the authority of the Bible is clear. The New Testament books provide our only significant access to the ministry and message of Jesus and the way he was understood and followed by the earliest believers. The Old Testament tells of God’s call to a people and of their attempts to live in covenant partnership with God, embodying his liberating love in their social life and expressing their devotion in prayer, in moral living and in hope. The Hebrew Scriptures are those documents which helped the early church understand Jesus and what God was doing through him.

(c) At a deeper level the authority of the Bible is found in being a catalyst or point of entry into present day encounter with God. As we enter the biblical story, allowing it to become our story, as we open our lives to wisdom and guidance beyond what is in our own minds and experience, over and over we find ourselves addressed, summoned, graced by the same divine presence as is witnessed to in Scripture. It is this continuously experienced capacity within the Scriptures, Old and New Testaments alike, to mediate to the community of faith a fresh grasp of the saving work of God in Christ, which marks them as authoritative. The Scriptures point us to God in Christ who alone has true authority in the church. The Bible is thus, an indispensable means rather than an end.

(d) It is this lively quality in Scripture, experienced in every age, which leads the church to describe the Bible as being inspired, Spirit breathed. The Spirit who we are told in John’s gospel (16:13) will lead us into all truth was active in the original writing and transmission of Scripture and also in our contemporary reading of the same words. Like the sacraments the Bible may be described as "an outward and visible sign" of God’s presence within the human circle. The description of the scriptures as "sacramental" has much to commend it. As Christ is present in the breaking of the bread and the sharing of the wine so Christ is present in the reading of the Scriptures. At the Eucharist we pray, "Pour out your Spirit on us and on these gifts of bread and wine, that they may be for us the body and blood of Christ." It is appropriate that before the reading of Scripture, in public worship and in private, we should pray that the Spirit may enlighten our mind, quicken our imagination and deepen our faith so that through the reading or hearing of the words we might be met by the risen Christ. (See AHB 334)

4.2.6 Bible and Word of God

To what or to whom do we refer to when we speak of "word of God" or "Word of God?" The Basis of Union is very clear (para 4) that "Christ who is present when he is preached among people is the Word of God who acquits the guilty, who gives life to the dead and who brings into being what otherwise could not exist." The Bible is described in the Basis (para 5) as "unique prophetic and apostolic testimony." This in no way diminishes the significance of the Bible for the church’s preaching of Jesus Christ is "controlled by the Biblical witness" (para 4). Jesus Christ is the Word of God but we have no access to Him without the witness of scripture. It has been the custom of the Church to refer to the Bible as word of God. Jesus as Word of God and Bible as word of God are inextricably bound together. Those set apart to be Ministers of the Word (para 14) are "to help the body of believers to live by the power of the gracious presence of Christ, the living Word of God." When the Basis enjoins "every council to wait upon God’s Word" (para 15) it is an invitation to obedience to Christ. When the gospel is faithfully preached and the testimony of the Biblical witness is faithfully explored in the search for contemporary obedience grace is released afresh into the life of the Church. We recognise Christ to be present among us.

4.2.7 Beyond the impasse

Though we might hope that differing ways of interpreting the Bible within the church might be energizing and helpful the reverse is often true. Debates about biblical interpretation are often divisive and inconclusive. It is time for the church to move on beyond the present impasse towards fresh ways of valuing, using and interpreting the Bible. While scholars have a role to play in this process such a breakthrough must grow organically over many years from within the life of a church reclaiming and befriending the Scriptures as a life-giving, transformative and faith building gift of God to the Church. The remainder of this report suggests some conditions under which the Bible might be creatively reclaimed within the life of the Church.

4.3 Reclaiming the Bible by reading the Bible

4.3.1 The Task Group received an estimate from Uniting Education that "approximately 10% to 12.5% of the UCA members participate in Bible studies per year. That’s about 22,000 to 30,000 people." An NCLS survey indicated UCA Bible use as a significant source of spiritual nurture to be around 11% of respondents. Disappointment at these figures was tempered by awareness that there are people who have decided not to attend Bible study groups (sometimes because of past negative experiences) but whose lives reflect the way of Christ and who "dwell" within the biblical faith. What is important is the mindset and expectation that we bring to our reading and study of the Bible.

4.3.2 Strangely, even those who may make the strongest claims for the Bible may read it sparingly. The question most of us need to face is not "What do you believe about the Bible?" but "How do you use the Bible, when do you read it, what do you expect to receive from your reading, what parts do you return to in your reading?"

4.3.3 Through our reading we will accumulate helpful information about biblical times and the message of each of the books. More importantly, though the Church reads the Bible so that lives might be transformed by the good news of God’s renewing love and that we might serve the same good news. It is this transformative dimension of the biblical witness that is easily lost when the Bible becomes an object of debate. The purpose of our reading is that we might so "dwell" in the Bible that it’s story becomes our story, The Psalms become our prayers, the Prophetic dreams become our hopes, the call of Jesus becomes a call to us, the experiences of the Pauline churches a mirror for our own experience. The fostering of this sense of "dwelling" in the Bible is a pastoral, liturgical and educational question that goes to the heart of Christian spirituality. The truth into which the Spirit leads us is lived life rather than propositions that may be stored in a library.

4.3.4 Reading of the Bible within Sunday worship is a ministry that needs to be fostered and valued. People within the congregation with a special aptitude for reading in a way that conveys deep meaning should be encouraged. The manner in which the Bible is read in worship makes its own statement about how we value this gift. We may also relearn how to read the Scriptures aloud when reading alone thus re establishing an ancient spiritual exercise and reminder that the Bible is a living word, borne by God’s breath, God’s Spirit.

4.3.5 Having experienced a number of Bible study programmes currently available the Task Group recommends that the Uniting Church adopt the DISCIPLE materials produced by the Uniting Methodist Church in the USA as a primary Bible study resource for use within our congregations. In our judgement this is a programme that sits well within the doctrinal understandings of the Uniting Church and is built upon sound educational foundations. There are a variety of resources available but we particularly recommend the 34 session "broad sweep" of the Biblical drama. A youth version is also available. Similarly helpful are excellently prepared studies on individual books of the Bible. Immersion in the Disciple programme would go a long way toward increasing Biblical literacy in the church. We would hope that Presbyteries, with the support of Synod staff, could take a strong initiative in the promotion of this material and provide workshops for leaders where appropriate.

Disciple’s approach to the Bible is described in this way.

Disciple:

Assumes that the Bible is the key to renewal in the church.

Recognises the human-divine nature of the Bible.

Affirms that the canon was formed as it is in order for God to speak to us.

Gives Old and New Testaments equal time, emphasizing the wholeness of the Bible as the revelation of God.

Aims at transformation, not just information.

Calls on persons to submit themselves to examination by scripture and to be changed by God’s word.

Invites persons to bring their experiences and struggles to Scripture.

Uses Biblical languages and images.

Draws upon the work of scholars to aid understanding of the Bible.

Requires reading large portions of scripture each week.

Features group discussion based on careful study and preparation.

Educational assistance includes teacher’s books to accompany student materials and a set of videotapes.

4.4 Reclaiming the Bible in Christian community

4.4.1 The natural and normative setting for reading and studying the Bible is the Christian community. It arose from within the life of communities of faith and its significance is best appreciated from within similar settings in our day. The discovery of cheap printing and distribution of books has made the Bible available to millions of people who might otherwise not have personal access to it. It is important, however, to recognise that while we obviously encourage individual reading,, study and reflection of Scripture, it is necessary to test individual interpretations within the community of faith. The Bible belongs within the Christian community, a body of people sharing in common their faith in Jesus Christ and in worship, mission and friendship,, together facing the questions that life brings and supporting one another in the living of life. Real Bible study requires that we give permission to others to critique our interpretation of what we read and to assist us work out the implications of what is read. In Christian community we learn to read Scripture wisely.

4.4.2 The Christian congregation is called to embody the message of Scripture in its life and ministry. The Spirit is more likely to speak through the Scriptures in a community where the members are learning together how to allow themselves to be shaped by love, forgiveness, hospitality, generosity and are setting up signs of justice in a weary world. Within such a community of embodied grace differences of interpretation are less likely to cause divisions harmful to the progress of the Gospel. Our difficulties in understanding the Bible may have more to do with a reluctance to embody Scripture in our common life than with a shortage of information about the background to biblical books.

4.4.3 A community where people are able to be honest about their hopes, fears, doubts, joys and struggles is the type of community that is appropriate for study of the Bible. Communion in Christ and a willingness to ask how the church may embody the gospel rather than agreement in matters of Biblical scholarship are the proper foundation for a community of biblical exploration. Bible study built upon honest exploration can also be creative of Christian community. Anything that can be done to create caring community within a congregation is creating the conditions for transforming Bible study. Ministers of the Word have a particular responsibility, shared with elders and other designated Ministers, for the development of genuine Christian community.

4.5 Reclaiming the Bible as a conversation partner.

4.5.1 The Bible is better understood as a lively conversation partner than as an inert answer book with instant answers to whatever questions we bring to it. Encounter with the Bible is a lively exercise. The Bible is not static truth imposed upon inert minds and uninvolved people. Authentic encounter between reader and Bible can best be described as a lively conversation between two subjects. The Spirit has been active in the writing of the biblical books and continues to enliven the mind and imagination of readers who are open to the call of God. It is the Spirit who awakens our interest in the Scriptures, draws us into conversation with the text, questions us through what is read and enlivens our imaginations and beckons us into new ways of living.

4.5.2 Reading the Bible as conversation partner is a passionate exercise. Our own values and aspirations are placed under threat as we entertain other possibilities for our living. Conversation with Scripture is rigorous and can be "life threatening." We who come, as individuals or as groups, to question the scriptures and to enquire after their meaning find our own attitudes and beliefs being questioned by the words we seek to study. Meaning "happens" in the interaction between reader and text. As in human conversation each partner in the interaction must be taken seriously and heard in her/his own integrity. Those who enter into living conversation with the Scriptures seek, as far as they are able, to understand the meaning of the words as they were written. They also bring a sensitive and honest awareness of the times in which they live and of the values, fears, hopes and aspirations within their own lives. Biblical conversation is the meeting of these two realities.

4.5.3 We can converse with texts just as we talk with one another. We allow ourselves to be questioned by the possibilities inherent in what we read. We may argue with the text, aware that our world is not identical with the world out of which the text was written. Yet we do not reject the text as irrelevant to our life. Rather we go further into conversation seeking deeper truth within the text. In conversation we "try on" what the world is like from the perspective of the text. We measure our experience against the text and we measure the text against our experience. Sometimes our understandings of life in and with God are confirmed. At other times we are deeply challenged. Through conversation with the Scriptures Christians are helped to discern the presence and purposes of God in their world. There are moments of revelation when it is clear that God speaks. It is in conversation with Scripture that our Christian identity is shaped and nurtured. Authentic human conversation can be life changing. The same is true in Biblical conversation.

4.5.4 In conversation the Bible becomes a contemporary presence mediating the presence of God in Christ. It becomes word of God spoken to us and drawing us into the way of Christ, the true and living Word. There are people who intuitively dwell in conversation with the Bible and through those words with the living Christ. Most of us need to learn the art of biblical conversation and the congregation is ideally a place where people are learning these skills. These include:

the art of listening to the Bible and of appreciating the cultural, historical and theological background to the book or passage being read,

how to "argue honestly" with the Biblical text, disagreeing as part of the ongoing conversation yet without denying there may be truth here we need to hear and remaining in conversation.

how to allow ourselves, with the assistance of friends in faith, to be questioned by the Bible.

4.5.5 One of the unintended results of Bible study is that the Bible may be treated only as an object to be understood, dissected and analyzed. Life in conversation with the Bible accepts the need for scholarly exploration but goes beyond this in regarding the Biblical text as a living and lively subject.

4.6 Reclaiming the Bible with the help of Biblical scholarship

4.6.1 The Uniting Church values biblical scholarship. The Basis of Union (para 11) includes an acknowledgement that "God has never left the Church without faithful and scholarly interpreters of Scripture, or without those who have reflected deeply upon, and acted trustingly in obedience to God’s living Word. In particular the Uniting Church enters into the inheritance of literary, historical and scientific enquiry which has characterized recent centuries, and gives thanks for the knowledge of God’s ways with humanity which are open to an informed faith." The Basis gives thanks for scholars, who are placed alongside evangelists, prophets and martyrs as among those whose witness and service enrich the Church. The Uniting Church way of being Christian welcomes scholarly study of the faith.

4.6.2 The Task Group recognises that not all people welcome what has come to be called "historical- critical" study of the Bible. For some it is an enterprise destructive of simple faith. The task group invites the Church in its study of the Bible to avail itself of the results of careful study of the Bible, which has been such a feature of the last century. Scholars of all theological persuasions draw upon the results and tools of this study. Scholars of an "Evangelical" perspective draw upon the same pool of Biblical scholarship, as do those of a more "Liberal" persuasion. Within the world of Biblical scholarship there is an ongoing and lively debate as to how literary, archaeological, sociological and historical studies can best contribute to our understanding of the meaning of the Biblical text. Such study has a provisional character and new and helpful insights often emerge from study that in its initial formulation seemed unhelpful. Differing views are held on important questions regarding the authorship of Biblical books, the sociological background of Jesus’ ministry, the historicity of some parts of the Bible. The search for deepening truth in biblical studies, as in other areas of research, proceeds by way of discussion between those whose conclusions differ. The Uniting Church is well served by biblical scholars, of many theological persuasions, who are committed to high standards of scholarship and who make their findings available to the church so that genuine faith may be strengthened. Synods and Presbyteries might consider how they might identify and encourage those in their area who have special expertise in biblical study and a capacity to share their learning with the wider church.

4.6.3 Biblical scholars help the Church understand the original setting of the text, the history of its interpretation and different ways in which the text can be read so that the Church’s ongoing conversation with Scripture may be informed. Their patient work is preparation for informed and transforming encounter with the Bible rather than an end in itself. Ministers of the Word have a responsibility to share the results of scholarly study of the Bible as part of the assistance given to our members as they develop an informed faith. There are people in the Church who regret that the results of careful Biblical scholarship are not shared with them. The Church has nothing to fear from drawing upon the work of biblical scholars, not because they are always right, but because they summon us to love God with head as well as heart.

4.7 Reclaiming the Bible from within our particular cultural setting

4.7.1 Our way of reading the Bible will always be influenced by our particular cultural setting. The self that we bring to our reading of Scripture is our self as shaped by life in a particular cultural, economic, religious and political setting. One of the implications of engaging in conversation with the Bible is that because people stand in different places and read the Bible from out of widely differing experiences, the impact of the text may be different from place to place, culture to culture and nation to nation. Until quite recently churches of the western world sought for a "scientific" reading of the Bible which would lead to the same reading of the text wherever that reading took place. It is increasingly recognised that "social location" affects the way we read the Bible. God speaks a specific word to each human group as they search for obedience within the context of their specific culture and historical circumstances.

4.7.2 This important facet of our reclaiming of the Bible affects all members of the Uniting Church. Our conversation with Scripture will be real only if we know who we are, care deeply about the society and culture which is shaping us and are open to the gospel and to the service of Christ in that place and culture. This insight does not refer only to those of so called "ethnic" backgrounds. Those of English language settler background are under the same need to recognise who they are and by what cultural values they are being shaped as are migrant peoples from Indonesia, China, Samoa, Tonga, Vietnam and other places. An Aboriginal Christian cannot deny his/her identity in reading scripture just as a Western Christian should not deny who he/she is. The earlier goal in biblical study of regarding cultural origin as of no account has denied many people the authentic encounter with God through Scripture that they sought. The outcome of biblical conversation will differ from group to group. Though we read the same text and may use the same scholarly assistance in understanding it the result of our wrestling with God through the text will be a response that is appropriate to life in our particular setting.

4.7.3 Readers of the Bible will identify with different biblical characters, events, books, that speak most clearly to their situation. Black South Africans in the apartheid years identified with the Israelites in Egypt while today many in that nation interpret their present situation as akin to that of the Israelites in the wilderness, marching toward a promised land and ridding themselves of the marks of Pharaoh. Migrant people and refugees may ask with the Israelites in exile how they might sing their songs in a strange land. The poor of Latin America may define themselves as among those welcomed by Jesus into his company and so deny the power of their poverty to destroy their spirits. Many English language Christians in the UK, USA, Australia and Canada understand themselves to be living in a time of spiritual exile, strongly tempted to worship the cultural gods of affluence and power. Feminist interpretation begins with a sharp critique of patriarchal assumptions within the Bible and finds the seeds of Christian and societal renewal in those streams of biblical tradition that point towards a hospitable and gender equal society.

4.7.4 Recognition of the impact of culture upon our reading of the Bible includes both affirmation of that culture as a gift of God and a gospel critique of the same culture inasmuch as it denies the qualities that are seen most clearly in Jesus Christ. Jesus valued the culture into which he was born yet, at the same time sought to renew it so that it might more faithfully reflect the purposes of God. The power of inherited culture to distort our reading of scripture is very great but it is also in the meeting of Biblical and cultural symbols and values that new insights emerge. The sharing of our "cultural" readings of Scripture is among the ways we can assist one another to hear God’s Word as we converse with Scripture. There is ongoing need within the Uniting Church to encourage our members to recognise, to value and to question, their particular cultural inheritance as they engage with the Bible.

4.8 Reclaiming the Bible in ethical decision-making

4.8.1 The discussion on homosexuality within the Western Church demonstrates clearly that there is no agreement as to how the Bible is to be drawn on in the making of ethical decisions. Good and faithful people differ. While for some the biblical prohibition of homosexuality is clear and unequivocal, for others the attitude of Jesus in welcoming the excluded or misunderstood into his company takes precedence. It is not always clear whether the Bible shapes people’s opinions or whether the Bible is being used to support views arrived at on other grounds. The experiences that people bring to the texts seem to play a part in shaping their interpretation. Nevertheless the Church affirms that the Bible is the foundational point of reference in the process of Christian ethical decision making.

4.8.2 The difficulty in discerning rules for living as Christians in a culture quite different from that out of which the books of the Bible grew is clear. Rather than focus on the debate over homosexuality and the Bible it would be instructive for the church to reflect on how the Bible has functioned in ethical decision making on other issues. In the area of political theory it is assumed that Christians support democratic forms of government though this form of political life is not espoused in the Bible which presents theocratic and monarchic forms of political life as well as portraying various forms of life under imperial rule. Until quite recently the church did not tolerate divorce because it is forbidden in the New Testament (though there is not uniformity of understanding in all the texts that might be quoted). Paul commands that women remain silent in church (1 Cor. 14: 13b- 36) and assumes the subordination of women (1 Cor. 11:2- 16) but the church is confident that the ordination of women and the enhancement of their leadership roles in the life of the church is an appropriate response to the gospel in our day. Slavery is assumed as a social and economic institution in both Testaments (Exodus 21, Ephs. 6:5- 9) but no one would want to argue from these texts for the restoration of slavery. In each of these cases other traditions and possibilities within the Scriptures might be quoted to give biblical support to the supposed rejection of Biblical certainties. Why has the Church set aside the Biblical injunctions regarding usury (Lev. 25:36- 37, Deut 23: 19- 20)? We might ask how it is that having been overlooked by the church at large for generations the idea of Jubilee in Leviticus 25 is now being drawn upon as we ask about the ethical consequences of our current economic system. Some suggest that the idea of the ancient Jubilee points us toward possibilities for the renewal of life together in the global village.

4.8.3 There are perfectly good responses that can be given in each of these instances. They are mentioned to simply illustrate that use of the Bible in ethical decision making involves more the judicious use of a concordance. The social and theological background of each biblical text needs to be explored carefully. Differing biblical traditions often need to be held in tension. The type of biblical text (narrative, prophetic oracle, parable, law, apocalyptic) needs to be recognised. Our own individual and shared experience of the issue under discussion clearly comes into play and needs to be shared. We do not come to the Bible without preconceptions. Contemporary information about the issue needs to be recognised and evaluated. The consequences of various courses of action are explored, asking if they lead to an enhancement of human life or to its diminishment. We ask if the action or behaviour leads in the direction of a society where the common life is shaped by the attitudes portrayed in the ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. The example of Jesus is crucial for Christians. His way of forgiveness, generosity, hospitality, along with his desire that people’s lives reflect the truth and goodness of God are the starting point for Christian ethical reflection. We cannot emulate the way of Jesus as though we lived in first century Palestine but we can live in continuity with his way though within the possibilities and constraints of the time and place within which we live. Through reasoned argument and shared prayer the community will decide which enactments of Scripture best demonstrate how Christ is taking form among us. The use of the Bible in ethical decision making is a specific example of living in conversation with the Scriptures and of the need to study them in communities of trust and in the presence of those who keep us honest.

4.8.4 Christian ethical decision making depends largely on what we bring to the activity. The formation of the character and judgement appropriate to disciples of Jesus is the chief quality Christians may bring to ethical decision making. Through reading of the Bible, sharing in Christian fellowship, worship, prayer, meditation and acts of love the mind of Christ grows in us, influencing the way we approach issues that confront us.

4.9 Reclaiming the Bible in spirituality

4.9.1 This has been implicit in all that has been written but it needs to be identified in its own integrity. The ancient arts of spiritual reading of the Scriptures are not well developed in contemporary Protestantism and we can learn from other Christian traditions. In this mode of reading we are receivers rather than seekers after information, we respond with heart and spirit rather than with our rational and cognitive capacities. Through meditation on the Bible we become increasingly sensitive to new ways of being towards which God may be calling us. This is a style of Bible reading that merges naturally into prayer. There are parts of the Bible that belong as naturally in the context of a silent parish retreat as in the classroom.

5. CONCLUSION

Members of the Task Group on the Bible thank the Assembly for the opportunity to serve the Church through membership of this group. We offer this report with the prayer that in reclaiming the Bible and being shaped by Christ the Word the Church may more faithfully embody the love and energy of God.

Dr Don Hopgood

Chairperson

[Note: Appendix A and Appendix B will be in the second mailing of working papers, in late June.]