In the last few weeks the saga of the Spring Harvest, UCCF and Keswick 'Word Alive' week has been unfolding in the Baptist Times. Now it seems lawyers are involved. I realise I'm in danger of becoming a Biblicist Baptist, but doesn't the Bible say something about avoiding lawyers and courts...?
Perhaps a little less falling out over Steve Chalke (and others') views and a little more Christ-likeness would be helpful?
Or am I just missing the whole point?
Comments
I've spent rather too long in recent weeks reading websites and blogs on this and getting very cross and depressed over people's willingness to take sides over something with only hearsay to go on.
A diplomatic approach had apparently been agreed and then somebody spoke out of turn and the dam burst! G minus to that unwise man. Go away and read James 3 (and then remind me to do the same!)
UCCF seem to have published a semi-conciliatory statement dated 21 May on their website. Hopefully this marks a more measured approach and those of us who still count themselves as evangelical, warts and all, can get on with the business of trying to follow Christ faithfully without the complication of yet more labels and self-description - are you a Word Alive evangelical or a Spring Harvest evangelical? ****@@!!!!****! Unprintable response.
Thanks Andy. I hope I'm not taking sides as I don't know exactly what's been happening and have depended on BT reporting. I'm not blaming people for getting cross either; I'm just really sad that after around two thousand years Christians the world over still seem to be getting into legal squables (how do you spell that word?) rather than getting on with mission.
I agree. You're not taking sides. It's others who should know better who are and dragging loads of uninformed bloggers (again not you) in their wake. I hope the UCCF statement helps to draw a line under this, but I'm not hopeful as they'll have to calm everyone down again, having first wound them up! (thinks: if a butterfly flapping its wings in the Amazon can start a storm on the other side of the world, how many butterflies flapping their wings does it take - and where - to restore order?)
All very depressing, particularly as the theme for the week at Skegness - very well set out in the programme and sensitively explored on the ground - was One People! Ho hum.
Butterflies in China and the Amazon are obviously busy this week (see Jim Gordon's blog, Living Wittily) along with the Outer Mongolian ones I always refer too in this context. Jim comes up with the lovely typo of 'nutterfly" - wish I'd thought of it first!