To this end they declare their readiness to go forward together in sole loyalty to Christ the living Head of the Church; they remain open to constant reform under his Word; and they seek a wider unity in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paragraph 1, Basis of Union
A note to the 17th Assembly Members
This chapter includes all the proposals of the Act2 Project, approved by the ASC, for the discernment of the 17th Assembly.
That the Assembly:
In response to the Act2: The Gift of the Spirit report:
We open ourselves to the gift of the Spirit, given in order that we may not lose the way. With thanksgiving for the past 47 years of our life, and after taking a long, loving look at the reality of our present, and with hope in God’s faithfulness for our future, we commit to continue our journey together. We believe now is the time to reshape our life so we may better live into God’s call in our time and place. By centring life-giving communities of discipleship and mission, cultivating a flourishing theological culture and deeply sharing in our common life and common wealth we will treasure Christ’s gift of abundant grace, share this gift with our world and pass it to future generations.
Stream A. Life-giving Communities of Discipleship and Mission
- Adopt a vision for local communities of faith:
Communities of faith will sustain a life of worship, build one another up in love, grow disciples of Jesus and participate in God’s mission. These diverse communities of faith will shape their life in response to God’s call in their context and deepen their relationship with God, one another, the wider church and the world.
- Call on the Church to orient its life towards life-giving communities of discipleship and mission including:
a) Our communities of faith58 orienting their lives towards intentional, consistent, relational and contextual approaches to making and growing disciples;
b) Our various expressions of the Uniting Church within local communities (e.g. communities of faith, agencies and schools) to seek structural and relational ways to deepen connections to be more intentional about participating in shared mission;
c) The wider Church to orienting resources (financial, personnel, property) towards resourcing and supporting communities of faith towards that task.
- Establish the principle that any communities which exhibit the marks of a Congregation as described in the Basis of Union59 may be recognised as a Congregation. Invite all communities of faith and councils of the Church to reflect on this principle and its implications for our life as a Church and the fulfillment of their responsibilities.
- Amend Constitution to read60:
24. For the effective exercise of their responsibilities and for the better ordering of the life of the Congregations, bodies and agencies:
(a) each
Congregation shall form a Church Council shall be formed to have oversight over:
(i) a Congregation by the Congregation; or
(b) (ii) a group of more than
one Congregation, body or agency by agreement amongst them and each relevant Presbytery;
where authorised by the Presbytery, more than one Congregation may form a joint Church
Council;and
(cb) one, or more than
one, Congregation any Church Council may form such other committees or agencies as may be
necessary or desirable.
The Church Councils and other committees or agencies shall have such membership, responsibilities and relationships to one another as may be prescribed.”
3. Church Council means the body
established in each Congregation to have oversight of its the total life and
mission of:
(a) a Congregation; or
(b) a group of more than one Congregation, body or agency.
10(b) . Church Council shall be responsible for the maintenance and review of the rolls of members of each Congregation, body and agency for which it is has oversight.
19. Unless the Presbytery
shall authorise otherwise:-
(a) eachA
Congregation which is under the oversight of a Church Council shall recognise and
appoint confirmed members or members in association of the Congregation as Elders.
(b) A group of more than one Congregation, body or agency under the oversight of a Church Council, shall by agreement determine how to recognise and appoint relevant representatives and how many such representatives would be recognised and determined from each Congregation, body or agency in the group as Elders, provided that in the case of each Congregation in such a group, each of its representative must be a confirmed member or member in association of the Congregation.
(c) The Elders
areto share with the each leaders (including Minister
where relevant) of each Congregation, body or agency Minister of a Congregation
(as relevant) and each other in oversight and building up the Congregation in faith
and love, sustaining it’s the members of each relevant Congregation, body or agency
(as relevant) , in hope and leading them into a full participation in Christ’s mission in
the world.
(bd) The
Elders shall be members of the Church Council and shall comprise
at least one half of its membership.
(ce) Elders may be called ‘Elders’ or ‘Leaders’.
- Authorise the ASC to review and amend the regulations to:
a) Align the regulations with the principle established in A.3
b) Increase the flexibility for communities of faith to be governed by fit-for-purpose governance arrangements. Include in the review the fulfillment of the following principles:
(i) Moving away from the normative structure being one Congregation with one Church Council;
(ii) Enabling various types of communities of faith to be governed by a single Church Council;
(iii) Providing for effective structures under a Church Council to support local ministry and mission overseen by the Church Council;
(iv) Encouraging clustering of communities of faith under a single Church Council;
(v) Encouraging Presbyteries to ensure alignment between local ministry arrangements and local governance arrangements;
(vi) Providing mechanisms by which Presbyteries can assure themselves that local governance arrangements are adequate to fulfil the responsibilities of a Church Council;
(vii) Providing flexibility to new and emerging communities to evolve their governance as their life matures over time;
(viii) Seeking to consolidate Regulations 3.9 (Alternative Local Church Structures) into revised Regulations for Congregations and Church Councils;
c) Provide for a Presbytery to vary the responsibilities of a Congregation and/or a Church Council;
d) Provide for Presbyteries, with appropriate safeguards and limits, to appoint people from the wider Church to be members of a Church Council.61
- Urge Synods and Presbyteries to simplify pathways for communities of faith such as new and emerging communities,CALD communities, church plants and fresh expression to belong to andparticipate in the life of the Church including:
a) Ensuring fit-for-purpose governance arrangements;
b) Using the ability to vary responsibilities of Congregations and Church Councils to align responsibilities with the capacity, capability and needs of a community;
c) Ensuring access to and participation in the wider councils of the Church;
d) Providing opportunities for two-way learning between communities.
- Urge Synods and Presbyteries to exercise their responsibilities pastorally and effectively regarding the dissolution and/or amalgamation of Congregations, including:
a) Timely intervention when a Congregation or Faith Community is reaching the end of their current form;
b) Provision of resources to manage any transition;
c) Exploring the application of any financial resources from the dissolution or amalgamation of Congregations to areas of ministry and mission across the life of the Church based on need, opportunity and responsibility.
- Requestthe ASC provide guidance to the Church on the recognition of Congregations and local fit-for-purpose governance arrangements consistent with any amended Regulations and continue to monitor implementation, reflect on and refine guidance and Regulations.
- Request the ASC review and bring a report and proposals to the 18th Assembly (including any changes to the Constitution and Regulations) required to implement a simplified approach to church membership.
Stream B. A Network for a Flourishing Theological Culture
- Adopt the vision for a National Network for Theology, Formation and Leadership:
A visible and accessible network of intentional communities engaged in life-long learning to equip people to courageously follow Jesus and participate in God’s mission in contemporary Australia.
- Establish a Commission for Theology, Formation and Leadership to progress implementation of the vision and authorise the ASC to finalise the terms of reference, including if necessary assigning responsibilities to the Commission currently fulfilled by other bodies in the Church if necessary.
- Adopt the following principles to guide the Commission for Theology, Formation and Leadership:
a) The purpose for which the Uniting Church constitutes and resources intentional theological communities62 is to equip the whole people of God to participate in the prophetic, disruptive, healing and reconciling reign of God in the church and the world;
b) These communities will manifest the cultural, geographic and theological diversity of the Church in their people, programs and processes.
c) Christian theological education for discipleship, mission and ministry is a gift and responsibility of the church for the whole people of God;
d) As an expression of our Covenant with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress and in response to the Preamble, Indigenous theology needs to be a core part of theological education and formation;
e) As an expression of our commitment to be a multicultural, cross-cultural and intercultural Church, our theological education and formation needs to be cross-cultural, inter-cultural and multilingual;
f) As an expression of our global and ecumenical scholarly commitments, our communities of theological education will draw upon and contribute to local, global and ecumenical scholarship and research;
g) National collaboration in theological education and ministry formation will enable more effective, equitable and adaptive education of the people of God for discipleship, mission and ministry;
h) National collaboration in theological education and ministry formation will occur most effectively if structural change is made to establish a governing body for integrated national oversight, leadership and accountability;
i) National unity in the oversight of theological education and ministry formation does not mean national uniformity. Diversity and contextuality are of fundamental value to theological education and ministry formation. A new national governance body will be responsible for preserving those values;
j) The Church is committed to high quality and accessible theological education and formation in a variety of modes and locations, including in person, online and by distance. Formation for discipleship and ministry is most effective within a formation community.
- Authorise the Commission to work with Ministerial Education Boards to establish a national, multi-campus theological college as part of implementing the vision of a Network for Theology, Formation and Leadership outlined in B.1.
- Request the ASC establish a more visible, accessible and resourced structure for the Assembly to exercise its responsibilities in relation to the Church’s theological culture as part of implementing the vision of a National Network for Theology, Formation and Leadership outlined in B1.
- Request the ASC provide theological guidance and reflection to the Church:
a) Exploring our understanding of ‘mission’, ‘evangelism’ and ‘discipleship’ and implications for our life;
b) Exploring the possibility of recognising contexts and communities as an expression of a diaconal ministry of the church, particularly through our community service agencies.
Stream C. Sharing Our Life and Our Common Wealth
1.Adopt the vision for the ordering and resourcing of the wider Church:
A network of deeply connected councils responding to God’s call to enter more fully into mission through healthy oversight of ministry and mission, celebrating our diverse and shared identity and being faithful stewards of our common wealth.
2. Call to the Church, in living out the vision for sharing our life and common wealth, to prioritise sharing our resources with one another for the benefit of the whole Church.
3. Acknowledge that through the changes of history the shape of our life means we need to continually seek new ways of serving the gospel. As we look to the future with hope, we recognise that our reality is a source of grief for many in our Church which will require us to be united in love, service, suffering and joy.
4. Establish a Commission for Governance, Resourcing and Administration to lead the work of implementing the Vision and authorise the ASC to finalise the terms of reference including a reporting framework to councils of the Church.
5. Adopt the following principles to guide the Commission for Governance, Resourcing and Administration:
a) The purpose of our ordering is in response to God’s call to enter more fully into mission and therefore we do so in a way that lives out our unity in mutual submission in service of the Gospel;
b) Christ alone is the supreme head of the Church, and we are entrusted with responsibilities to serve Christ by virtue of our gifts and graces through the councils of the Church in relation to the Church and the world;
c) The responsibilities, authorities and powers of the respective councils should be clearly defined, balanced across the respective councils and avoid confusion and ambiguity so that all councils can be accountable for the exercise of those responsibilities;
d) Councils should have the ability to establish bodies for the fulfillment of their responsibilities with limited prescription from the regulations;
e) Resources should be allocated to the respective councils so that they can fulfil their responsibilities. There will need to be some financial redistribution between the councils of the Church to ensure all councils have the resources they need to fulfil their responsibilities. This may include the adoption of minimum resource standards for respective councils;
f) Efficient and accessible shared administrative functions across the Church on the principle of ‘only doing separately what we cannot do together’ should be established to unlock more resources for ministry and mission.
- Noting that in Act 2: The Gift of theSpirit there is a preference to explore implementation of a three-council model, request the Commission for Governance, Resourcing and Administration to:
a) Investigate the feasibility, consequences, risks, opportunities and possible roadmap to implement:
(i) A three-council model consistent with the vision and principles;
(ii) A four-council model consistent with the existing Constitution of the Uniting Church, the vision and principles;
b) That investigation of both models include collaboration with leaders from Church Councils, Presbyteries, Synods, the Assembly, the Congress and agencies of the Church, and bring a report, proposals and any roadmap to implement to the 18th Assembly;
c) Identify ways to implement other actions to make progress towards the vision consistent with the principles between the 17th and 18th Assembly
d) Request the ASC to establish a process to draw the membership of the Commission from the Assembly, Synods, Presbyteries, agencies and Congress.
Schedule of Constitutional Amendments
Amended form
Clause 24
Council of the Congregation
Amend to align with the Vision and Principles for Stream A: Life Giving Communities of Faith:
24. For the effective exercise of their responsibilities and for the better ordering of the life of the Congregations, bodies and agencies:
(a) each
Congregation shall form a Church Council shall be formed to have oversight over:
(i) a Congregation by the Congregation; or
(b) (ii) a group of more than
one Congregation, body or agency by agreement amongst them and each relevant Presbytery;
where authorised by the Presbytery, more than one Congregation may form a joint Church
Council;and
(cb) one, or more than
one, Congregation any Church Council may form such other committees or agencies as may be
necessary or desirable.
The Church Councils and other committees or agencies shall have such membership, responsibilities responsibilities and relationships to one another as may be prescribed.
Final form
Clause 24
Council of the Congregation
Amend to align with the Vision and Principles for Stream A: Life Giving Communities of Faith:
24. For the effective exercise of their responsibilities and for the better ordering of the life of the Congregations, bodies and agencies:
(a) a Church Council shall be formed to have oversight over:
(i) a Congregation by the Congregation; or
(ii) a group of more than
one Congregation, body or agency by agreement amongst them and each relevant Presbytery;
where authorised by the Presbytery, more than one Congregation may form a joint Church
Council;and
(b) any Church Council may form such other committees or agencies as may be necessary or desirable.
The Church Councils and other committees or agencies shall have such membership, responsibilities responsibilities and relationships to one another as may be prescribed.”
24. For the effective exercise of their responsibilities and for the better ordering of the life of the Congregations, bodies and agencies:
(a) a Church Council shall be formed to have oversight over:
(i) a Congregation by the Congregation; or
(ii) a group of more than one Congregation, body or agency by agreement amongst them and each relevant Presbytery; and
(b) any Church Council may form such other committees or agencies as may be necessary or desirable.
The Church Councils and other committees or agencies shall have such membership, responsibilities responsibilities and relationships to one another as may be prescribed.
| Amended form: | Final Form |
| Clause 24: Council of the Congregation | |
| Amend to align with the Vision and Principles for Stream A: Life Giving Communities of Faith: For the effective exercise of their responsibilities and for the better ordering of the life of the Congregations, bodies and agencies: | For the effective exercise of their responsibilities and for the better ordering of the life of the Congregations, bodies and agencies: |
| Clause 3: definition of “Church Council” | |
| Amend to make clear that a Church Council may have oversight of more than one Congregation. Amended clause: Church Council means the body established | Church Council means the body established to have oversight of the total life and mission of: (a) a Congregation; or (b) a group of more than one Congregation, body or agency. |
| Clause 10(b): responsibility of Church Council for rolls | |
| Amend to make clear that a Church Council can be responsible for the rolls of one or more Congregations, bodies and agencies. Amended clause: Church Council shall be responsible for the maintenance and review of the rolls of members of each Congregation, body and agency for which it is has oversight. | Church Council shall be responsible for the maintenance and review of the rolls of members of each Congregation, body and agency for which it is has oversight. |
| Clause 19: Elders of a Congregation being members of the Church Councila1 | |
| This clause can be retained in its current form for situations where the Church Council only has oversight of one Congregation but should be expanded accordingly once membership of a Church Council for more than one Congregation, body and/or agency over which the Church Council will have oversight is decided upon. Amended clause: | (a) A Congregation which is under the oversight of a Church Council shall recognise and appoint confirmed members or members in association of the Congregation as Elders. (b) A group of more than one Congregation, body or agency under the oversight of a Church Council, shall by agreement determine how to recognise and appoint relevant representatives and how many such representatives would be recognised and determined from each Congregation, body or agency in the group as Elders, provided that in the case of each Congregation in such a group, each of its representative must be a confirmed member or member in association of the Congregation. (c) The Elders are to share with the leaders (including Minister where relevant) of each Congregation, body or agency (as relevant) and each other in oversight and building up in faith and love, sustaining |
Rationale
The way forward we have offered is shaped by three visions for:
- Life-giving communities of discipleship and mission deepening their relationship with God, one another, the wider Church and the world.
- A network for theology, formation and leadership that sustains a flourishing theological culture.
- Sharing of our common life and our common wealth so we can enter more fully into mission.
We have proposed a set of concrete steps to bring these visions to reality.
A. Life-giving Communities of Discipleship and Mission
This is the most urgent task and asks all parts of the Church to orient themselves towards this vision. It also requires work to overhaul the constitutional and regulatory toolkit available to the Church to lift the burdens faced by communities of faith so they can refocus on discipleship and mission. The timeline for this work is the first 12 to 18 months of the next triennium. It is designed to make our regulatory framework more flexible and responsive to the reality of our life. It seeks to rely less on prescription and more on guidance. It also anticipates that we will seek to reflect on and refine this work in response to the Church’s experience of the implementation.
It also flags the need for longer-term work on our theological understanding of mission, evangelism, discipleship and diaconal communities which is taken up in B (see below).
It also points again to the need to reform our practices in relation to church membership. This has been a long-standing issue in our life which has been considered by the Assembly.63 It is not an area which we believe requires extensive work and consultation. We do believe there are points in our life where our current membership arrangements are an unnecessary impediment. A simplified framework consistent with our theology would be helpful. This will likely require constitutional change to achieve.
A collective focus on discipleship and mission along with flexibility to establish fit-for-purpose local governance arrangements which relieve burdens and support healthy ministry and mission is essential to having a Church of life-giving communities of faith.
For more detail see Chapter 4 Building One Another Up in Love: Life-giving Communities of Faith and Discipleship.
B. A Network for a Flourishing Theological Culture
This task is focused on the establishment of a Commission for Theology, Formation and Leadership to oversee, lead and hold accountable our national collaboration. The purpose of this Commission is to establish a National Network for Theology, Formation and Leadership. It includes pursuing the implementation of a national theological college with multiple campuses as part of the National Network.
It also seeks to renew the Assembly’s particular role in relation to the Church’s theological culture through establishing a more visible, accessible and resourced structure for this work. It identifies (as foreshadowed above in A) four areas of immediate focus – our theological understanding of mission, evangelism, discipleship and diaconal communities.
Deeper collaboration in our theological education has been a long-held dream for so many in our Church. This approach is designed to bring that dream to fruition in a way that reflects both the unity and diversity in our life. Our theological culture and our institutions of theological education are essential to our future vision of our Church. Envisaged as a network, we look with hope to the possibility that this will create a vibrant and dynamic web of communities of learning and formation where all in our Church can be caught up in an imaginative engagement with theology.
For more detail see Chapter 5 To Hear Anew: Cultivating Our Theological Culture and Education.
C. Sharing Our Life and Our Common Wealth
This task is focused on collaborating to transition to a more sustainable and effective governance and resourcing model for the wider Church. It includes:
- Assessing the feasibility of both a three-council model and a four-council model consistent with the Vision and Principles;
- Developing proposals and a roadmap for implementation underpinned by a resourcing model;
- Seeking ways to more deeply connect across our councils so we can exercise healthy oversight, celebrate our identity and share our common wealth.
The implementation of this new model is overseen by a Commission for Governance, Resourcing and Administration. The membership for the Commission is drawn from across the life of the Church.
The Vision and Principles will be important anchors for the work of the Commission. The Commission will be responsible for ensuring that any significant change the wider Church makes to its governance and resourcing is done collaboratively and with appropriate due diligence. This is designed to ensure the transition both mitigates the risks of change while moving forward together and seizing opportunities.
This is the most ambitious of the three packages of proposals. To be successful it will require collective dedication and effort from all those impacted by the change. It will not be easy or straightforward but if undertaken in a spirit of unity and collaboration, and focussed on orienting towards better supporting the ministry and mission of the Church, it could make a truly significant contribution to achieving the collective vision to which God is calling us.
For more detail see Chapter 6 In Service of the Gospel: Ordering Our Life.
Footnotes
- Community of faith is defined as including Congregations, Faith Communities, Parish Missions and other communities of disciples within the Uniting Church that exhibit the marks of a Congregation as described in Paragraph 15(a) of the Basis of Union. ↩︎
- “[M]eet regularly to hear God’s Word, to celebrate the sacraments, to build one another up in love, to share in the wider responsibilities of the Church, and to serve the world.” (Basis of Union, Para. 15(a)) ↩︎
- See Schedule of Constitutional Amendments for both the strike through and underline version and the proposed final text version (p.83). ↩︎
- This is an extension of the existing arrangements within Reg. 3.1.3(n) to provide for Presbytery Liaison Person during a placement vacancy and 3.9.1 to provide for the Presbytery and the Synod to appoint people to the Church Council of a Parish Mission. ↩︎
- Theological communities are found throughout the Uniting Church including within theological colleges, Congregations, agencies, schools and other institutions and networks of theology, formation and leadership. ↩︎
- A Church of passionate disciples: rethinking church membership (2007), accessed 14 February 2024, https://illuminate.recollect.net.au/nodes/view/20483. ↩︎
