Episcopal Press and News

Report of Committee on Theological Freedom and Social Responsibility Released

Diocesan Press Service. September 14, 1967 [57-7]

A rejection of the concept of heresy as "anachronistic" and a conviction that the Episcopal Church "not only should tolerate but should actively encourage free and vigorous theological debate..." are set forth by the Committee on Theological Freedom and Social Responsibilities in its report released by the Rt. Rev. Stephen F. Bayne, Jr., committee chairman, Aug. 14.

In the report to Presiding Bishop John E. Hines, the 11-member committee says the great need of the Church today is not to hunt out heretics but to "encourage free and vigorous theological debate, application of the Gospel to social wrongs, restatement of Christian doctrines to make them more intelligible to contemporary minds, and experimentation with new forms of worship and service."

While strongly supporting freedom of theological thought and debate, the committee report makes clear that it is not suggesting that doctrine is unimportant or that it doesn't really matter what a person believes.

The report reaffirms the duty of the Church to maintain its distinctive identity and continuity as a "community of faith centered around the historic revelation of God in Christ." Therefore, the committee finds that "without censuring or condemning any individual for his ideas, the Church may find it necessary on occasion to "disassociate" itself from theological views which it believes to be subversive of essential Christian truths. But this should be done "positively and constructively" by explaining what the Church does believe.

Concerning the responsibility of the individual, the committee said:

"...we certainly do not uphold a narrow verbal orthodoxy which requires a person to give literal assent to some particular formulation of doctrine, yet we do believe that if an individual finds himself unable, in good conscience, to identify with the living tradition of the Church, reflected in the Bible, the Creeds, and, especially for Anglicans, in the liturgy of the Book of Common Prayer, he should as a matter of personal integrity voluntarily remove himself from any position in which he may be taken to be an official spokesman for the whole community."

The committee report declares that heresy trials have no place in modern Church life. Deviant belief is a matter of pastoral rather than legal concern, according to the committee. The committee's recommendations include "drastic revision" of canon law to make sure that the Church never again can be plunged into the "anachronistic" spectacle of a heresy trial by the action of a small number of bishops.

The committee also recommends the establishment of certain Institutes and seminars and provisions for new training which will enable both laity and the clergy to participate more actively and meaningfully in theological discourse. The committee further recommends the formation of a standing commission on the teaching of the Church, as well as "a new design for meetings of the bishops to give more opportunity for theological discussion."

The report will be submitted for approval to the Church's General Convention - the legislative body of the Church - at its triennial meeting to be held in Seattle on September 17 through 27.