subversive holiness

members of my tradition gathered in 1999 for a 'subversive holiness' conference. this statement was formed during that time. brian postlewait has posted this over at emergent nazarenes.


AS MEMBERS of the Church Universal, we affirm the whole of the Christian tradition and seek to learn from the variety of gifts and expressions within it. We recognize the value of the Holiness tradition, in particular, its emphatic call to holy living. We speak from a concern for the Gospel, and the integrity of the Holiness tradition. Seeking to follow our Lord faithfully, we offer this statement to the Church, and to the Holiness tradition in particular, as our own statement of confession.

WE AFFIRM the sense of hospitality that has been preserved by practices of welcome and celebration in the Church of the Nazarene. We also express concern that the Church is becoming insular and is ceasing to welcome needy strangers and the poor.

WE AFFIRM the historical role of women in the Church of the Nazarene but fear that the historical commitment has become neglected.

WE AFFIRM the international vision of the Church of the Nazarene but want to confess that it still seems to support the nationalistic interests of the U.S. and the West.

WE AFFIRM the heritage of entire sanctification, but we fear that we have come to understand holiness only in terms of personal piety. We believe the Gospel message is for the whole person and the whole community.

WE AFFIRM the commitment to the Gospel message and we believe that the teachings and life of Jesus to be central to the life of holiness.

WE AFFIRM the distinct heritage of the Wesleyan holiness movement and therefore encourage the Church to remember the ancient Christian practices, especially the Eucharist, that have sustained the Christian Church throughout history.

WE AFFIRM the relational nature of our congregations and fear that it may be lost to the pressure to grow numerically and to perform according to the consumeristic values of America.

WE AFFIRM the importance of community in the Wesleyan heritage and therefore encourage the Church to seek and support forms of intentional Christian community, e.g. Wesleyan covenant groups, intentional communal living, accountability groups, etc…. We believe fellowship and community to be essential aspects of holiness.

WE AFFIRM the emphasis on the Church of the Nazarene on education but fear that education has become increasingly elitist and unaffordable. Massive debt acquired by students is particularly burdensome for those who are called to lives of occupational ministry within the church. We are concerned about the possibility that people may have had to step away from ministerial vocations because of educational debt.

WE AFFIRM our history of lay driven ministry but fear that the professionalization of some ministerial vocations leads to complacency in our congregations. Compassion, in particular, is now understood as a particular vocation instead of an essential aspect of the life of every believer.

WE AFFIRM the heritage of compassionate ministry but we believe there is no compassion separate from the work of justice – the confrontation of systems that cause poverty and oppression.

WE AFFIRM the commitments of the holiness tradition to racial reconciliation but we believe there remains a lack of reconciliation in our churches.

WE AFFIRM the worship of God in its many and diverse forms but we acknowledge a dangerous trend in worship services toward spectatorship.

WE AFFIRM the call of the early Church of the Nazarene to lives of servanthood but are concerned about the trend toward consumerism in the Churches.

BECAUSE THE HOLINESS TRADITION is clear about the abuse of resources WE CANNOT SUPPORT the ongoing lack of stewardship, investment in large buildings and entanglement of lives in material possessions and entertainment when the Church’s own manual calls it to be “free from an emphasis on wealth.”

IN SHORT we embrace or encourage the tradition of the Church of the Nazarene but collectively caution against it being commandeered by the values of the world. We believe that our emphasis on sanctification should call and support us to embody an alternative way of life as a sign and a witness to the world of the Lordship of Christ.

THEREFORE, even in the diversity of our convictions and traditions, we resolve to seek lives of holiness of heart and life that are centered on Christ and that live by the values of God’s Kingdom. We commit ourselves to the universal body of Christ as brothers and sisters. We will seek to live lives of reconciliation to each other, hospitality to the world, and solidarity with the poor. We commit to the hopes and practices of the historic Church and we commit to pray for the renewal of the Church everywhere.

FINALLY we call upon Christians everywhere, especially those who are in any form of church leadership to reflect upon what they might do to help expand and recover the tradition and hope of Christian holiness.