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"Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, live
like men, be strong. Let everything you do be done in
love." 1 Corinthians 16:13.
We constantly admire the commitment of our brethren to their
church. There is a splendid devotion to it as the repository
of the faith expressed in words and actions which contribute
to the acceptance by many in this society, of Christian values
and principles.
Their loyalty to the church is of inestimable value to them
and to it, spiritually, in the shared worship of God, and
in forms and ceremonies often of proven worth over several
centuries; and practically, in the maintenance of its structures
to meet its obligations to Christ and people.
The church has had to accept changes in a society, increasingly
secularist, irreligious and indifferent to what were previously
generally accepted ethical standards of conduct. This is an
age of revolution and the church more than ever must present
the faith in words that are simple, clear, precise and appealing.
Time was when few people were outside the influence of the
church. Time is that very many have little or no contact with
the church or with church members, how to best reach people
with the gospel is the task the church faces continuously,
and pressingly, whatever the difficulties. The church has
to be in touch with people, using any available means of communication
necessary to persuade them to turn to Christ, to receive and
to enjoy the benefits He brings us.
While the old and proven means of reaching people with the
good news of Jesus Christ - teaching and preaching - remain
very important elements in Christian communication, other
ways are being used to ensure that the faith is known, understood
and accurately evaluated. They include methods which were
used for generations - radio, television, books, newspapers,
tracts, pamphlets, play, film, pageant and exhibition - initiative
has never been lacking. More concentrated use of these mediums
and with the incredible machinations of the computer added,
evangelism has widened its scope.
The talent and skill of the Christian can be used in numerous
ways for the primary purposes of the church which are:
- to proclaim the good news of the Kingdom;
- to teach, baptize and nurture new believers;
- to respond to human need by loving service;
- to seek to transform the unjust structures of society.
The proposal of the Anglican Lambeth Conference 1998 was
to add:
- to safeguard the integrity of creation and renew the life
of the earth.
The faith and the practice of it is spelled out here in terms
acceptable to church people whatever their denominational
allegience.
And in evangelism there is always the one to one, person
to person, contact. The Christian whose personal testimony
to what faith in Christ has meant in his life, can at times
persuade others to turn to Him too.
The stand for Christ and Christian values has been a charge
on Orangeism from its beginning.
We commend, then, the educational affairs committee of Grand
Lodge whose publications - the tract, "Know Surrender"
is one of them. These are intended to remind the brethren,
and to tell the people of their need for a personal commitment
to Christ as the Saviour and Lord of their lives.
It is regrettable, unfair end unjust, that as a Christian
organisation, we suffer from misjudgment and misrepresentation
when those good things for which we stand are obvious to everyone.
In a statement of December 1998 the Order said:
"Our thinking on religion, politics and social
questions is governed by our Christian beliefs. Anything
which is not compatible with them is to be refused and
rejected,"
In a prayer:
"We ask God for the clarity to hear His voice,
the wisdom to understand what He is saying to us today
and the courage to rise up and do it."
Canon Dr. S.E. Long
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