2 – Sofia 2

SUMMER 1990 PAGE 2 SEA OF FAITH MAGAZINE HUMANIST OR CHRISTIAN ? from Angela Barkshire (Rickmansworth) I was interested to read ex-Catholic Aileen La Tourette's article in the last Sea of Faith Magazine.

Like her I felt the need to leave the R.C. Church - in fact my priest politely suggested that I should, saying that my views were humanist and heretical I Emotionally, socially and spiritually I'd been happy as an R.C., so this came as a real blow. Not being the humble and obedient sort I didn't leave because he said I should, but because after much thought I realized that I was intellectually unhappy and imprisoned. Leaving the Church was a spiritual 'high' for me because the freedom to think my own thoughts was important for my well-being, but of course I was left high and dry in other ways.

I have since tried other churches, but it's no good. I just cannot accept using words like God, Heaven etc any more (even though I put my own interpretation on them). Don tells us to "stay in" and "change things from within", but I just cannot do that and feel comfortable with myself. I am not saying that anyone who does this is wrong or dishonest, only that for me it isn't possible, much as I need a Church.

I am in the minority wanting a break-away new Church, I know, but I'd only go back if such a Church existed. I am not really sure if my priest was right in calling me "just a humanist". Perhaps I'm not a Christian at all ? All I know is that, thanks to Don and others I've heard on the subject of Radical Christianity, I am now sure about what I think. That is the important thing - one can do without a Church if one has that 1 The important thing is to be honest and true to oneself. The conferences are my only remaining link with Christianity. Are there others like me ? "ALMOST RADICAL" from John Cakebread (Chelmsford) I have a number of objections to "Some Marks of a Radical Christian". I do not wish to be so dogmatic as to deny "the possibility of any form of survival after the death of the body". If we are that certain then surely our minds are as closed as those of fundamentalist Christians !

— Angela Barkshire, Rickmansworth

I wonder how many radicals have read books like Keith Ward's "Holding Fast to God : A Reply to Don Cupitt" (1982), or John Bowker's "Licensed Insanities" (1987) or Michael Novak's "Belief and Unbelief' (1966). I ask because I gained the impression at Leicester last year that many radicals only seem to read Cupitt I think that Ward makes out a plausible case for the possibility of life after death, that Bowker's chapter on 'Why Believe in God ?" can help us speak of the possibility of God, and that Novak's chapter on "An Effective Humanism" is good in reminding us of basic aims like "striving to diminish the amount of human suffering in the world".

Another recommended read for radicals is Philip Toynbee's "End of a Journey" (1988). Toynbee refers to a series of radio discussions which took place over forty years ago and comments : "I have never seen so clearly that all the arguments for or against the existence of God are useless and ridiculous. To think of Freddie (Ayer) and that Jesuit going all through their clever gymnastics .... How could Father X (the Jesuit) not have seen that there is nothing to be said, only things to be done".

Maybe I'm only an 'almost radical'.

— John Cakebread, Chelmsford

RADICAL CHARACTERISTICS from Mark Stubbs (Luton) I read C.B. Spurgin's list of the characteristics of a radical Christian with interest but also with some trepidation ; my chief concern being that our fledgling movement might get off to a bad start if it attempts to formulate any kind of creed and so end up with a kind of neo-dogmatism - to be a radical Christian you must believe this and this but you cannot possibly believe that.

I think that the radical Christian should be distinguished by his/her openness to experience (I was going to say reality but that appears to have no existence in a de-constructed universe) and an independent, questioning character of mind - the refusal to accept any belief purely on authority.

So what bothers me about Spurgin's list is the fact that it does read, despite his disavowal, like a creed SUMMER 1990 PAGE 3 SEA OF FAITH MAGAZINE to which we are Invited to subscribe. Now while most of it Is unproblematic to me it does contain some rather definite statements on certain subjects about which I wish to reserve judgement because of the insufficiency of the evidence.

It may well be that God Is a human construct and does not exist in a realist way as either a personal being or as the ground of being. Certainty Don Cupitt has argued his case very persuasively, but I for one wish to remain an agnostic on the point and not commit myself to non-realist belief quite as wholeheartedly as C.B. Spurgin (or Don Cupitt) has done.

Make no mistake I have long since taken leave of the God of traditional theology but I do confess that I find some of the "semi-realist" positions quite attractive and I cannot with integrity rule them out of court.

So where does that leave me ? My "orthodox" friends do not consider me a Christian at all - "How can you be a Christian if you don't believe in the divinity of Jesus ?", they ask. But the liberal Christianity of David Jenkins doesn't attract me very much either. I don't find the idea of a spiritual resurrection of Jesus any more convincing than that of a physical one. My only spiritual home can be with radical Christians but I hope I never see the day when a radical friend asks me "How can you realty be a radical when you're not sure about the non-existence of God ?".

Let's keep radical Christianity free, lightweight and ever moving onwards. At all costs we must avoid the mistake of defining our beliefs. It would be perverse indeed if radical Christianity were to allow insufficient space for doubt and uncertainty.

— Mark Stubbs, Luton

THE ECUMENICAL TEACHING ORDER from Janet M. Jones (Saltford) Having written a short article for the annual ETO Newsletter about the Sea of Faith Conference, it seems appropriate that I should write about the Order for this magazine - especially as it is my membership of ETO which gave me the confidence to attend the Leicester conference.

The Order is an ecumenical group of lay people from all walks of life who have formed a studying and worshipping fellowship with the intention of strengthening the teaching ministry of the Church to adults.

It was founded by Miss Dorothy Daldy and a group of like-minded people in 1973. Ruth Pryce, who also attended SOF II, and I joined in 1980.

During the first three years members receive tuition by live and taped lectures. Courses are provided on :

The Bible in the context of contemporary critical scholarship ; Theology and Christian belief today ; Social and individual Christian responsibility ; Church history and the development of ideas ; Worship and Prayer. ETO has been most fortunate in the quality of the tutors who have given their services to the Order.

After completing the three year study course members are expected to lead study groups in their own church and to take an active part in the life of the Church in their area. To help them acquire knowledge and skills, lectures on a range of topics are provided at the six Day Meetings held in Wells, Somerset. At these meetings there are four concurrent lectures, catering for the members and the three study years, given by the course tutors and an invited lecturer. A residential conference is held at the Ammerdown Ecumenical Study Centre near Bath each autumn and an annual Quiet Day is held at the Franciscan Convent at Compton D'Urville. Every Day Meeting includes a celebration of the Eucharist, the rite used depends on the denomination of the clergyperson taking it. Experiment with other forms of worship is encouraged at the Ammerdown conference and in local groups.

The original idea of Dorothy Daldy to found an Order was unusual but inspired because no other form of religious organisation describes that senses of community, belonging, support and openness which members find in the Order. The geographical distribution of members has made the formation of local groups essential and it is the local group that has become the backbone of the Order. Membership has remained at around 150 people for a number of years because at present they must live within driving distance of Wells.

The theological outlook of members is varied but the common characteristic is a willingness to discuss new ideas. Whereas the first aim of the Order, to be involved in the teaching ministry of the Church, is outward looking the second aim is, "In fellowship to promote our personal interior growth and understanding ; to extend our own spiritual life and knowledge of God ; to be prepared to change not only what we think but what we are." As a radical Christian I feel at ease in the Order.

Members know that I am a reader of radical theology and I have been encouraging them to read Don Cupitt's books for a number of years.

— Janet M. Jones, Saltford