{
  "bookName": "History of Christianity in India: Source Materials",
  "authorName": "M. K. Kuriakose",
  "publisherName": "Indian Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge",
  "publicationYear": 2011,
  "chapterNumber": 146,
  "chapterName": "1909. Report of the Union Committee of the S.I.U.C.",
  "pageFrom": 298,
  "pageTo": 302,
  "pages": [
    {
      "pageNumber": 298,
      "ocrText": "298\nHISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN INDIA\nin 1903, a committee of representatives of the London and Madras\nMissions was constituted. In little over a year it had a scheme\nready which was received with general favour. The union included\nnot only Churches of the American Madura Mission, and the\nmajority of those of the London Mission, but also the Churches\nfounded by the American Board in Ceylon. In 1905 the first\nGeneral Assembly met at Madura under the presidency of\nDr. Duthie.\nAlthough the union movement had proceeded so rapidly, those\nmost interested in it did not look upon it as having reached its\nend. As far back as 1902 informal colloquies had taken place with\na view to bringing into one the Churches of the London and Madura\nMissions on the one hand, and the South Indian Presbyterians on\nthe other. It was found that each side would have to give up\nsomething. The Presbyterians would have to be content with a\nsimpler, and, to some minds at least, less adequate expression of\ntheir faith, and to a less centralised form of government. On the\nother hand the Congregationalists found that union was impossible\nunless they allowed to the body representing the Churches (the\nChurch Council) an amount of authority incompatible with simple\nCongregationalism. In most cases the sacrifice was gladly made;\nand indeed some on both sides felt that the new basis was more\nsuitable for the Indian Church than either of the systems it replaced.\nThe negotiations lasted about two years; and the result was the\nscheme of union which has been ratified to-day. The Presbyterian\nAssembly, though reluctant to part with its Southern Synod,\nbecame convinced that the latter was taking the right course; and\nas the time for such a union for all India had obviously not come,\nit resolved to let the Southern Church lead the way, and accord-\ningly handed over its Synod to be an integral part of the new\nChurch.\n146., REPORT OF THE UNION COMMITTEE\nOF THE S.I.U.C. (1909 A.D.)\nThis report of the Committee on Union was presented to the\nSecond General Assembly of the South India United Church, held\nat Trivandrum in December, 1909. The Committee consisted of\nJ. P. Cotelingam, I. H. Hacker and J. H. Maclean. It reveals the\ncontinuing interest in wider church union in relation to both South\nIndia/Sri Lanka and the nation as a whole. Minutes of the Second\nGeneral Assembly of the S.I.U.C., 1909, pp. 14 ff.\nThe Committee has endeavoured to carry out the instructions\nit received on its appointment, which, briefly stated, were two-\nfold: (1) to confer with representatives of other churches, and",
      "status": "completed"
    },
    {
      "pageNumber": 299,
      "ocrText": "SOURCE MATERIALS\n299\nmore especially the Presbyterian Church in India, with a view to\nestablishing a federation of Indian Churches on certain clearly\ndefined lines, and (2) to endeavour to find ways of co-operating\nwith Churches which might be found not to be ready at present\nfor federation on the lines suggested.\nIt will be noted that the resolution under which the Committee\nwas appointed contains no reference to the possibility of any ex-\ntension of the movement for organic union which led to the organi-\nsation of the South India United Church. It seems to have been\ntaken for granted that there was no Church in South India with\nwhich there was any immediate probability of such union. Two\ncircumstances, however, had led the Committee to believe that the\nlimits of the movement for organic union have not been reached;\nthese circumstances are (1) the receipt of a letter just after the\nrising of the Assembly from the Rev. J. Hermelink, then Chairman\nof the Basel German Mission (see the appendix to report of\nAssembly), and (2) the receipt by the President of the Assembly\nof a communication from the Director of the Sri Lanka and India\nGeneral Mission. The Committee accordingly asks the Assembly\nto take into account in re-appointing the Union Committee the\npossibility of further organic union with these or other bodies\nWe hereby resolve to recommend to the several bodies we re-\npresent the formation of a federation and to present the following\nplan for their consideration :-\n1. The name of the organisation formed by the Churches\nand Societies joining in federal union shall be 'The Federation\nof Christian Churches in India.'\n2. All Churches and Societies that believe in God through\nJesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord and Saviour, and that accept\nthe Word of God as contained in the Scriptures of the Old and\nNew Testament as the supreme rule of faith and practice, and\nwhose teaching in regard to God, sin, and salvation is in general\nagreement with the great body of Christian faith, shall be eligible\nfor fellowship in the Federation.\n3. The Federation shall not interfere with the existing\ncreed of any Church or Society entering into its fellowship, or with\nits internal order or external relations. But in accepting the\nprinciple that the Church of God is one, and that believers are the\nbody of Christ and severally members thereof, the federating\nChurches agree to recognise the validity of each other's ordinances,\nministry, membership and discipline, without thereby committing\nthemselves to approval of particular methods or practices.",
      "status": "completed"
    },
    {
      "pageNumber": 300,
      "ocrText": "300\nHISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN INDIA\n4. The object of this Federation shall be to attain a more\nperfect manifestation of the unity of His disciples for which the\nRedeemer prayed, by fostering and encouraging the sentiment and\npractice of union, by organising union effort wherever and whenever\npossible, by making the welfare of all the Churches in the\nFederation an object of vital interest and concern to all, by streng-\nthening throughout the entire brotherhood the sense of a common\nlife and heritage; and in general to seek through all such effort\nto hasten the establishment of the Kingdom of God in India.\n5. For the realisation of this object there shall be\n(a) The formation of a Provincial Federal Council in\neach province or great language area, consisting of representatives\nfrom Indian Churches in their corporate capacity, or, in cases\nwhere there is no ecclesiastical organisation distinct from the\nmissionary organisation, from Missions, the number of delegates\nto be chosen in the proportion of one ministerial and one lay repre-\nsentative for every ten organised congregations, or fraction thereof.\nThis Council shall hold annual meetings, or such stated\nmeetings as it may determine, and it shall also be convened to deal\nwith urgent matters of general concern at the call of three federated\nChurches.\n(b) The formation of a National Federal Council consisting\nof representatives, chosen by each of the Provincial Councils in\nproportion of one in four of its membership or fraction thereof,\nto be composed in equal numbers of ministerial and lay representa-\ntives, it it being understood that each federating body is entitl\nentitled to\nat least one representative. Meetings shall be held once in three\nyears or as often as the Council itself shall determine, or when\ntermine,\ncalled for by not less than three Federal Councils to deal with urgent\nmatters.\nThese Councils, whether Provincial or National, shall have\nonly consulative and advisory powers except where additional\npowers may be delegated to them by the bodies they represent.\nBy means of reports from the Provincial Councils the National\nCouncil shall keep in touch with the life and work of the Churches,\nand by means of sub-committees it shall have power in the intervals\nof meetings to prosecute the work of the Federation and further\nits interests. If need be the National Council shall voice the\nopinions of the Christian community it represents.\n6. It shall be the work of the Federation alike in the Provin-\ncial and National Councils to carry on work on the following lines",
      "status": "completed"
    },
    {
      "pageNumber": 301,
      "ocrText": "SOURCE MATERIALS\n301\nin so far as it falls within the scope of the Indian Church and is in\nharmony with what is already being done by existing organi-\nsations :-\n(a) to suggest and encourage efforts to combine the moral\nand spiritual forces of Christianity in the development of worthy\ncharacter in Christ's followers by means of joint observance of\nsacred ordinance and interchange of pulpits, and thereby to intensify\nthe consciousness of life and strength in the Christian Church;\n(b) to seek for and to make opportunities for Christian\nfellowship in meetings for devotion and conference...that thus...\nthe way may be prepared for a still wider and more effective\napplication of the principles of Christian unity;\n(c) to guide and stimulate the churches by collecting and\ndiffusing information concerning the progress of the Kingdom of\nthe Lord within their bounds as well as throughout the world...;\n(d) to suggest and encourage plans pl for combined effort to\nevangelise the masses and win India for Christ, and more especially\nto consider the most efficient and economical means to evangelising\nthe districts within their areas;\n(e) to seek to promote co-operation as far as practicable\nin literary and educational work, rk, especially in the training of\nteachers and preachers, to seek to secure harmonious action in\nreference to all public matters affecting the moral and social welfare\nof the community, Christian and non-Christian, and to make\nrepresentations and suggestions to Missions where deemed advisable;\n(f) to develop by co-operative and representative action\nand by free intercommunion, a consciousness in the Indian Churches\nof membership in the same outward visible Church which, though\nnot characterised by uniformity in all things, is yet essentially one\nin its life and work, in its divine purpose and blessed hope.\nThe subsequent work of the committee has consisted simply in\nthe transmission of these resolutions to the Churches in South\nIndia which had expressed sympathy with the idea but had been\nunable to send representatives to the Conference, and the action\nof their governing bodies is now awaited...\nIt will be noted that the Assembly's resolution was not com-\nmunicated to all in South India. The Committee considered that\nto send it to the representatives of Churches which considered any\nfederation which involved mutual recognition of ministry and\nsacraments to be contrary to their fundamental principles was\nsimply to court a rebuff. However desirable it might be to have",
      "status": "completed"
    },
    {
      "pageNumber": 302,
      "ocrText": "302\nHISTORY OF CHRISTIANITY IN INDIA\nfederation with the large communities holding Anglican, Lutheran,\nor Baptist views, the Committee was reluctantly led to the conclu-\nsion that no proposals for federation with the Churches in South\nIndia holding such views should be made at present...\nThis leads to the consideration of the third possible form of\nunion, viz., co-operation with those unable to accept the federation\nbasis. The Committee has not seen its way to formulate any\nscheme, believing that informal conference in such a matter must\nprecede formal action. Representative Anglicans, Baptists, and\nLutherans have accordingly been interviewed by the Convener.\nSome have expressed their desire for such a co-operative scheme as\nwould include their Churches and ours, but have made no definite\nproposals. Others, while ready to use to the full the means already\nfurnished by Missionary Conferences and interdenominational\norganisations for friendly intercourse and co-operation in good\nworks, have expressed themselves as doubtful whether any formal\norganisation should be attempted.\nThe Committee accordingly doubts whether the time has come\nfor any definite scheme of union, other than the organic union\nalready accomplished and the federal union now under considera-\ntion. It believes, however, that if any scheme is brought forward\nby those who desire that the co-operation already existing should\ntake organised form, any future Assembly to which it is submitted\nwill be ready to consider it sympathetically.\nThe following resolution is presented to the Assembly for\nconsideration :-\nThe Assembly accepts the report, and resolves to continue the\nCommittee.\n1. With regard to the extension of the movement for organic\nunion the Assembly instructs the Committee to enter into com-\nmunication with the Ceylon and India General Mission with a\nview to organic union, with the understanding (1) that if that\nMission sees its way to accept the Basis of Union as it stands the\nExecutive Committee be empowered to receive its Churches into\nthe United Church and to bring them into Councils, and (2) that\nif any modification of the basis be proposed by the Ceylon and\nIndia General Mission, the Committee confer with representatives\nof the Mission regarding the proposed modifications, and refer\nthe matter to the next General Assembly.\nThe Assembly also empowers the Committee to enter into\nnegotiation with the Basel Mission in the hope that after allowing\ntime for consideration of all the issues involved, terms of organic\nunion may be satisfactorily arranged.",
      "status": "completed"
    }
  ]
}