Background

This Declaration is a revised version of a Declaration adopted by the Montana Association of Churches on October 29, 1996 as an ecumenical confession in response to the growth of extremist groups in our country. Many of these groups preach white male supremacy, radical nationalism, race hatred, anti-Semitism, homophobia, virulent anti-institutionalism and violence as solutions to our social problems. They often have a conspiratorial and apocalyptic perspective that views history as a struggle between good (those who subscribe to their beliefs) and evil (all others) and arm themselves for the final battle, to which they look forward, since they believe it will vindicate the just remnant (themselves) and annihilate their enemies. These extremists groups are all the more alarming because they often present their message as Christian.

From time to time, ideologies have appeared in history which the Church judges to be so hostile to the Gospel of Jesus Christ that it feels compelled to take an unequivocal stand for the Gospel by confessing its allegiance to Jesus Christ and denouncing these ideologies, all the more so if they claim to be Christian. Our fellow-believers in Montana concluded that the teaching of modern extremists groups is such an ideology. Through this declaration of the Montana Association of Churches, they denounced the teaching of these groups and made their confession to Jesus Christ.

Although extremist groups are a more serious problem in Montana than in Wisconsin, such groups do exist in our state and appear to be growing. For that reason, the Social Concerns Committee of the Wisconsin Conference of the UCC subscribed to the Montana Declaration in May and distributed it to the participants at the 1997 Annual Meeting of the Wisconsin Conference, UCC.

The Wisconsin Council of Churches' Board Advisory Committee on Social Witness felt a similar Declaration by the WCC would be helpful to Churches and Christians in Wisconsin who are confronting extremist groups in their areas and would also provide a basis for Board and staff to speak out on this issue in the name of the WCC. For that reason, the Committee is presenting the attached statement to the Board for its consideration and possible adoption. The Committee recommends that the Board affirm this Declaration.

Declaration on the Universality of God's Love

We affirm God's just and loving purpose for all people as revealed in Jesus Christ. We repudiate as false the teaching that God's love in Christ in not inclusive of all people.

We affirm that in Jesus Christ racial, gender, class, cultural, national and tribal identities that once separated and alienated people from one another are transcended and that God reconciles and welcomes diverse human groups and cultures in the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. We repudiate as false the teaching that one race, gender, class, culture, ethnic group or nation is superior to and should dominate others.

We affirm that Jesus' power, symbolized by the cross and exercised through love and service, is contrary to the power of violence and domination as symbolized by the gun and the bomb. We repudiate as false all teaching that appeals to hatred, advocates domination and encourages violence.

We affirm that salvation from sin, evil and death comes through God's free gift of grace in Jesus Christ and by faith and trust in this grace, inspired by the Holy Spirit. We further affirm that the proper response to God's grace is love of God and neighbor, who, according to Jesus, is everyone, even our enemies. We repudiate as false the teaching that new revelations or powers in addition to God's grace in Jesus Christ are necessary to deliver us from sin, evil or death.

We affirm that Church and State are separate institutions and that God has authority over both. We repudiate as false the teaching that church and state should be joined in an unholy alliance that seeks to impose cultural and religious conformity on a diverse and pluralistic society.