By Bethany Broadstock
When the National Assembly meets next month, members will be asked to consider the most significant piece of work carried out on the life and future of the Uniting Church since union in 1977.
On May 10, the National Assembly released ‘Act2: The Gift of the Spirit’, the Act2 report to go before the 17th Assembly, Assembly members and the wider Church.
The final Act2 report in the current phase of the project, it includes an integrated set of proposals to be considered across three streams.
The first is focused on a vision for life-giving communities of faith discipleship and mission, the second on a vision for a network for a flourishing theological culture and education, and the third on a vision for sharing our life and common wealth.
“It follows four years of work which began in March 2020 and included an intensive period of exploration and discernment over the past 18 months,” Act2 Project Lead Andrew Johnson says.
“We affirm that over the past 47 years of our life, God has been faithful, and there is so much to celebrate.
“We also know that the ways we currently order and go about our life are not working in many places.
“There remains so much more opportunity for a life-giving future if we can find and commit together to pathways forward.”
For each stream there is a vision, a set of principles, key changes and a proposed oversight mechanism.
All the proposals come with the endorsement of both the Act2 Steering Committee and the Assembly Standing Committee, with both having had the opportunity to consider the implications, opportunities and risks of the proposals.
“Alongside these is the risk of doing nothing,” Andrew says.
The proposals include establishing two new national Commissions.
One would be focused on establishing a National Network for Theology, including a national multi-campus theological college.
The other would be focused on governance, resourcing and administration.
This Commission would also test the feasibility of two options for a governance structure, one with three councils and the other with four councils.
The stream on local communities calls all communities to renew their focus on discipleship and mission, and also includes proposals to renew the toolkit for local governance.
There is a proposal to look again at church membership to align our rules with our reality.
Another proposes that we progress work on our theological understandings of discipleship, evangelism and mission.
“Collectively the three visions offered in the report provide three different windows on our shared identity and life as a Uniting Church,” Andrew says.
“Shaped by the biblical witness, each vision provides fresh framing on life, guided by the Basis of Union.
“The visions and principles also draw on the foundational statements we have made since union.”
The report itself builds on the previous work of the Act2 Project, particularly the interim report released in June 2023, Act2: In Response to God’s Call.
It continues reflection on the diverse and shared identity of the Uniting Church and gives an overview of the workstreams which have shaped the process so far.
National President and Chair of the Act2 Steering Committee, Rev Sharon Hollis, agrees with Andrew says the proposals hold a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
“Through this process we have regularly had to grapple with difficult truths that have emerged from looking closely at the life of the Uniting Church,” Sharon says.
“There is much that people find hard and frustrating as they feel hindered by our current approach.
“The Spirit is calling us in new directions, and this is an opportunity to reorient our life to our very purpose, to serve the Gospel of Jesus Christ and enter more fully into mission.”
Andrew says the Act2 team has continued to be inspired by the challenge posed by inaugural President Rev Dr Davis McCaughey in his sermon at the Uniting Church inauguration.
“He said that union means nothing unless it drives us back to the fundamental questions of where we come from, where we are going, and who we are,” Andrew says.
“He challenged those gathered on the opportunity to find their bearings afresh in Christ.
“Forty-seven years later, as we contemplate our second act as a Church, we are drawn back to these questions.
“The proposals are offered as the next step as a pilgrim people on the way together.
“We offer them to the 17th Assembly in humility and love for the Uniting Church.”
The Assembly meeting will take place in Parramatta from July 11-16.
The ‘Act2: The Gift of the Spirit’ report can be read here
The Act2 Project Unit will be offering Assembly members opportunities to engage with the report ahead of the meeting, and it can be contacted by email at [email protected]