COPY.

LAMBETH PALACE,

S.E. 1.

5th March, 1947.

My dear Goodall,

I received the other day the ad interim report of the Joint Committee on the Younger Churches of which Mott was Chairman and you were secretary. The Report struck me as unsatisfactory from the Abglican point of view and I asked Canon Campbell to look at it. I enclose herewith the notes which he has sent me.

I agree that the Anglican Churches are difficult to classify, but they ought not therefore to be left out of the picture. Anglican Provinces are completely autonomous and within a Province each Diocese has a great degree of autonomy though of course recognising its obligations to the Province as a whole and to its Metropolitan. Our Missionary Diocese have almost complete autonomy for the conduct of their own life though they are under the jurisdiction of the Archbishop of Canterbury who is the Guardian of their Constitutions and appoints their Bishops. One or two Missionary Dioceses derive from the Protestant Episcopal Church of America and their relation is rather different. But so far as a survey of this kind is concerned wherever a country is mentioned in which there is an Anglican Diocese and still more where there is an Anglican Province it certainly ought to appear in the Survey.

-2-

and China included, Nigeria and Japan excluded. A system so ambiguous is seriously
detective.

5. It may be that the defects are due to the delay (alluded to on p.7 sec.9) in securing recommendations by confessional or denominational world alliances. If it is on these recommendations that the ultimate classification depends it is unfortunate that they should have been anticipated by this Interim Report.

6. The Report makes no further reference to the special circumstances of a body like the Anglican Communion. Under the terms of the definition on p.7 there are few dioceses in the Anglican Communion which could be excluded from the ranks of autonomy. Each us responsible for the conduct of its own life under its Bishop and Synod, while "recognising" the essential inter-dependence of churches of the same confession" either by being knit together in Provinces with neighbouring dioceses or by direct link with the Archbishop of Canterbury.

7x Nobody would seriously claim that all these dioceses should be accepted as autonomous even when they come within the terms of the definition. The Provinces must clearly be so accepted. The interests of other Dioceses must be safeguarded. Either they should be grouped geographically for purposes of representation, or the Anglican Communion as a whole should have a certain number of seats available for allocation to representatives of its oversea Branches.

7. The following detailed notes suggest there were gaps in the knowledge of the Abglican Communion shared by the editors of this report.

p.12. Egypt. No reference to the two Anglican dioceses of Egypt and the Sudan.

p.13. Kenya. The Anglican Church is not a group but the diocese of Mombasa. "The African Anglican Church" and the word "include" both inadmissible.

p.14. Madagascar. No reference to Anglican diocese of Madagascar founded 1874, 64 Malagasy clergy.

p.15. Nigeria. There are two Anglican dioceses, the Niger and Lagos, whose status exactly correspond to that of Uganda. Lagos figures do not appear. Omit (C.M.S.)

p.17. Nyasaland. Diocese of No. has a Church population of c.50,000, and 39/40 African clergy.

p.18. Tanganyika. The initials C.M.S. should go. No reference to the Dioceses of Zanzibar and Masasi.

p.19. Uganda. Correction of Note, It is not probable that Nigeria will be included in a Province of E.Africa.

p.20. S.Africa. Nobody would guess that there is an Anglican autonomous Province of S.Africa containing 13 dioceses.

p.24. Philippines. No reference to Protestant Episcopal Church of U.S.A.

p.25. South Seas. No one would suppose that there were 3 Anglican dioceses, Melanesia, Polynesia, New Guinea.

p.33. Argentina. No ref. to Diocese.

p.34. Jamaica. Why partly autonomous? when Baptist Union autonomous?

p.35. Trinidad. It is not clear whether membership of a Province is regarded as disqualifying for Autonomous status.

p.37. Burma. No ref. to Diocese of Rangoon.

p.38. China. Figures inaccurate and minimising.

p.39. India. " " " incomplete

p.40. Japan. Why no reference to the Nippon Sie Kokwai?

UN #217

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE
OF THE
INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL AND THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
BUCK HILL FALLS, PENNSYLVANIA

APRIL 16-18, 1947

**MEMBERSHIP AND ATTENDANCE.** See Report of the Joint Committee which came out of this meeting, attached.

**FIRST SESSION.** The chairman, Dr. Mott, gave a simple outline statement tracing the events leading to the formation of each of the councils.

The Minutes of the previous meeting of the Joint Committee, February, 1946, in Geneva, were considered adopted, since they had been accepted by the succeeding meetings of the Provisional Committee of the World Council of Churches and of the Ad Interim Committee of the International Missionary Council.

Brief preliminary reports were given on the progress made in collaboration between the Provisional Committee of the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council, following the lines adopted at the meeting of the Joint Committee in Geneva in February, 1946.

The chairman appointed Bishop Baker, Dr. Boegner, Dr. Hooft, Dr. Decker, and Mr. Goodall to set up subcommittees, from time to time during this meeting as they think advisable, to discuss specific questions on the agenda and to make recommendations to plenary sessions of the Joint Committee.

**SECOND SESSION.** The following subcommittees were appointed: Subcommittee on Younger Churches and Representation - chairman, Dr. Goodall; secretary, Rev. Oliver Tomkins. Subcommittee on Relationships between the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council - chairman, Dr. Cavert; secretary, Dr. Decker. Subcommittee on Practical Collaboration between the two councils - chairman, Dr. Koechlin; secretary, Dr. Leiper. It was agreed that members of the three subcommittees be interchanged as need for consultation might arise.

The brief reports on progress made in collaboration were concluded.

Dr. Mott referred briefly to the history of the appointment of the Joint Committee, one of whose principal tasks was to foster "the best working arrangements" between the Younger Churches and the World Council. He reviewed the fact-finding work and the consultations during the war. Even after the close of the war it had not been possible to secure detailed information re the Younger Churches in certain important areas. Nevertheless, the chairman had formulated such information as he had secured in an Ad Interim Report, with full recognition of its inadequate and provisional character. Copies of this report had been previously circulated to members of the Joint Committee and to others. Certain corrections and additions were noted. The Ad Interim Report was then referred to the Subcommittee on Younger Churches and Representation for study and recommendations.

**SUCCEEDING SESSIONS.** The above subcommittees each had several sessions and formulated recommendations in their respective fields to the Joint Committee. The actions taken by the later plenary sessions of the Joint Committee, after considering recommendations made by the subcommittees, are included in the attached report.

REPORT OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE
OF THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES AND THE INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL
For Presentation to the
Provisional Committee of the World Council of Churches
And the
Committee of the Council of the International Missionary Council

The second meeting of the Joint Committee was held at Buck Hill Falls, Pennsylvania, on April 16th, 17th and 18th under the chairmanship of Dr. John R. Mott.

The membership of the Committee as reconstituted at Geneva in 1946 was as follows:

<table><thead><tr><th>World Council of Churches</th><th>International Missionary Council</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>The Rev. M. E. Aubrey</td><td>The Bishop of Worcester (Dr. Cash)</td></tr><tr><td>Dr. Marc Boegner</td><td>Dr. G. Baez-Camargo</td></tr><tr><td>Bishop Fuglsang-Damgaard</td><td>Bishop W. Y. Chen</td></tr><tr><td>Dr. Alphons Koechlin</td><td>Dr. R. E. Diffendorfer</td></tr><tr><td>Dr. W. J. Gallagher</td><td>Dr. F. F. Goodsell</td></tr><tr><td>Dr. Leonard Hodgson</td><td>Dr. R. B. Manikam</td></tr><tr><td>Dr. S. M. Cavert</td><td>Professor K. B. Westman</td></tr></tbody></table>

Of the above there were present:

(a) For the World Council of Churches: Dr. Boegner, Dr. Koechlin, Dr. Gallagher, Dr. Cavert. The Rev. E. C. Urwin (for Mr. Aubrey), Professor A. R. Wentz (for Bishop Fuglsang-Damgaard), the Bishop of Chichester (for Dr. Leonard Hodgson).

(b) For the International Missionary Council: Dr. Camargo, Dr. Diffendorfer, Dr. Goodsell, Dr. Manikam, Professor Westman, Professor T. C. Chao (for Bishop Chen), Mr. Kenneth Grubb (for the Bishop of Worcester).

(c) Officers: Bishop James C. Baker, Dr. W. A. Visser 't Hooft, Dr. J. W. Decker, Dr. H. S. Leiper, Dr. F. W. Tomkins, the Rev. O. S. Tomkins, Miss Eleanor Kent Browne, the Rev. Norman Goodall.

(d) Visitors: The Rev. Kwan Sik Kim (Korea), the Rev. Fritz Pyen (Korea), Dr. Tracy Strong, Pastor M. Niemoeller.

The Committee took the following actions:

I. **COLLABORATION ON SPECIFIC MATTERS** (Cf. report of Geneva meeting, Page 99 in World Council of Churches minutes)

A. **EAST ASIA OFFICE.**

RESOLVED:

1. That the Joint Committee approve in principle the establishment of a joint office in East Asia of the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council, the need for which was originally expressed by the National Christian Councils of India and China. As interpreted by these Councils the proposal is designed to help the Churches in East Asia to develop a sense of their interdependence.

-2-

Report of the Joint Committee

dence, to provide them with an agency for pooling their experience and for sharing both spiritual inspiration and practical technique, and to help them to participate fully in the life of the ecumenical Church.

2. To recommend that the budget for the office should be met from three sources, namely, the churches of East Asia, the International Missionary Council, and the World Council of Churches.

3. To recommend that the proposal be further studied by the enlarged meeting of the East Asia Regional Committee of the International Missionary Council at Whitby, Canada, which will include the delegates from Eastern Asia together with such representatives as the World Council of Churches may appoint. It hopes that as soon as possible concrete proposals will be submitted to the responsible bodies of the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches for their prompt and favorable action.

## B. STUDY AND RESEARCH.

The Joint Committee has discussed the problem of possible greater coordination of study and research activities, of the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches, and recommends that the General Secretaries together with the research staffs should plan ways and means of utilizing their joint resources for the study of the most important problems and adding in due course Younger Church member(s) of staff.

The Joint Committee stresses its sense of the importance of such further integration wherever it becomes possible without detriment to the vital interests of both organizations.

## C. YOUTH

The Joint Committee rejoices in the definite setting up of the Youth Department of the World Council in which the youth leaders of the Younger Churches are represented. It expresses satisfaction also in the fact that the Younger Churches will send strong delegations to the second World Conference of Christian Youth in Oslo and recommends that the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches look to the Youth Department to take care of all their youth interests.

## D. RECONSTRUCTION AND INTER-CHURCH AID.

The Joint Committee records the gratification of both organizations in the progress which has been made in the coordination of relief and reconstruction, in particular through the formation in the United States of Church World Service. Because of the manifest value of the coordination thus achieved, the Joint Committee urgently recommends such further efforts by both agencies and their related bodies as will present the task of reconstruction and inter-church aid in Asia and Europe as one to be accomplished by all churches for the churches in need.

## E. INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS.

Mr. Kenneth Grubb reported on the steps taken to implement the proposals of the Joint Committee (in 1946) for the formation of a Department of International Affairs.

-3-

Report of the Joint Committee

RESOLVED:

1. To confirm the action taken by the ad hoc committee in Cambridge (in 1946) in the formation of the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs;

2. To endorse the statement of principles and objectives adopted at the Cambridge conference;

3. To place on record (a) its gratification in the appointment of Mr. Kenneth Grubb and Professor O. F. Nolde as Director and Associate Director, respectively, of the Commission, (b) its appreciation of the progress made toward completing the membership of the Commission and establishing the main lines of the Commission's work;

4. To draw the attention of the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council to the serious financial obligations involved in this undertaking. An Income considerably beyond anything which can be provided by the two organizations from their normal resources is demanded if the Commission is to fulfill its purpose. The cooperating bodies are therefore urged to render all assistance possible in discovering additional sources of income;

5. To Urge that the work of the Commission shall be brought to the attention of all national ecumenical councils and that relationships shall be effected through which the maximum collaboration of these councils may be secured;

6. To suggest that the question of the circumstances under which and the authority with which the Commission may make public pronouncements shall receive particular consideration at the forthcoming meetings of the Provisional Committee of the World Council and the Committee of the International Missionary Council.

F. CORRELATION OF CONFERENCES.

The Joint Committee recalls that at its meeting in Geneva in 1946, it was recommended that the two bodies should consult about the dates of conferences that they desire to call and that each should send delegates to the other body; and now notes with satisfaction that this consultation and exchange of representatives has become a part of the procedure of the two Councils. We recommend that this practice be maintained.

G. ECUMENICAL PRESS SERVICE.

The Joint Committee at its meeting in 1946 recommended that the cooperation already in force between the two bodies in the publication of ICPIS be developed so that it might become a recognized organ of the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council for the distribution of ecumenical news and information. We have now heard with gratification that the ICPIS and the Bulletin of the International Missionary Council have been amalgamated in the Ecumenical Press Service, and that this Ecumenical Press Service is now being published under the joint sponsorship of these two bodies and other world wide Christian organizations and that further matters regarding it are being studied with a view to making it an effective medium for the dissemination of ecumenical news. We recommend that the Ecumenical Press Service be commended to all the constituent members of the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches.

-4-

Report of the Joint Committee

## H. ECUMENICAL INSTITUTE.

The Joint Committee has heard with pleasure of the establishment of the Ecumenical Institute and of the good beginning already made in its work of training Christian leadership with an ecumenical spirit and outlook. The Committee draws attention to the fact that the Ecumenical Institute desires to serve the Churches in all parts of the world and recommends that all the Churches associated with the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches and especially the Younger Churches, be urged to avail themselves of its services.

### I. CHRISTIAN EVANGELISM.

The Joint Committee is sensible of the fact that there is especial need today to proclaim to the world all that the Gospel means both for the individual and for the social and political order. It notes therefore with special gratitude that both the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches use the term "evangelism" in its full sense as meaning both personal evangelism and the application of the Gospel to social life and that both these aspects are being emphasized in the program for the Assembly of the World Council of Churches and for the meeting of the Committee of the International Missionary Council. The Committee expresses the hope that out of these meetings will come constructive proposals for further common effort to evangelize the whole of human life.

## II. YOUNGER CHURCHES AND REPRESENTATION.

### A. On the basis of Dr. Mott's interim report, the Committee

**RESOLVED:**

1. To recommend to the Provisional Committee that it consult the British and American Methodist Conferences as to which other Methodist Churches in Younger Church areas are ready for immediate invitation.

2. Similarly, to recommend to the Provisional Committee that it consult the Lutheran World Federation as to which other Lutheran Churches in Younger Church areas should at once be invited with special reference to the constituent Churches in the Lutheran Federation of India and the Lutheran Church in Japan.

3. Similarly, to recommend to the Provisional Committee that it consult the Baptist World Alliance and the Baptist missionary societies concerned as to other Baptist groups of Churches in Younger Church areas to be considered autonomous and immediately invited.

4. Anglican Dioceses. This Committee recommends to the Provisional Committee that it authorize one of its officers to write to the Archbishop of Canterbury suggesting to him that in consultation with relevant missionary bodies in England, and the relevant Anglican authorities in the United States and Canada, he should

a. Suggest groupings of extra-provincial dioceses which might be considered as member-units of the World Council to be represented by delegates with vote in the Assembly.

-6- Report of the Joint Committee

on his visit there this summer, he is satisfied that this is the right course.)

### C. CRITERIA.

The Committee has considered the wording as given in the Geneva minutes (World Council of Churches) on page 52 and recommends the following change:

> The deletion of the last sentence under "C" and the addition of a new brief paragraph reading, "The question of size must also be taken into consideration."

### D. PROCESS OF ALLOCATION. (Geneva minutes (World Council of Churches) page 176)

The Committee gave some consideration to the way in which the fifty places allocated to Churches in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Pacific Islands might be distributed. It recommends the Provisional Committee to request its members from the Younger Churches who will be present at the International Missionary Council meeting at Whitby in July to initiate the discussion of a draft allocation.

### E. FURTHER MACHINERY FOR INQUIRY.

This Committee recommends that the officers of the International Missionary Council now be invited to continue the inquiry so admirably initiated by Dr. Mott and to inform the Provisional Committee of the developing situation of the Younger Churches in regard to World Council membership, with special attention to the items in this report which call for further immediate information.

## III. RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES AND THE INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL.

The Joint Committee has had before it certain recommendations from the International Missionary Council's Committee on Program, Structure and Staffing from its meeting April 14 and 15, 1947, at Buck Hill Falls, as well as the memoranda which has been circulated to members of the Joint Committee. It was recognized that the recommendations of the Committee on Program, Structure and Staffing were subject to approval by the Committee of the Council of the International Missionary Council.

The Joint Committee amended the pertinent recommendations of the Committee on Program, Structure and Staffing and adopted them as follows:

A. The Joint Committee reaffirms the convictions which it stated in the following terms at Geneva in February 1946 and which were accepted by the ad Interim committee of the International Missionary Council and the Provisional Committee of the World Council of Churches:

> "We deem it necessary that the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches shall make clear to all their identity of purpose and concern for the evangelization of the world, shall co-operate in every possible way, and shall draw progressively closer together in all their undertakings for Christian fellowship, witness and service."

-7-

Report of the Joint Committee

"It is our judgment that the World Council of Churches cannot leave outside its purview the missionary enterprises of the Churches; that, at the same time, the Churches need a functional agency in this field such as the International Missionary Council, with its wider basis of membership and its particular responsibilities; and that the growing tasks of both these ecumenical bodies, and their common Christian interests and purposes, will require that they be increasingly united in vision, plan and sacrificial action."

1. The Committee would emphasize the fact that what is involved in this association is a process, not a single event in the field of organization. Indeed this process of drawing progressively closer together began at the International Missionary Council meeting at Madras in December 1938 and the World Council of Churches meeting at St. Germain in January 1939, and has been steadily growing.

2. The Committee believes that for the time being the distinctive responsibilities and functions of the two bodies require the existence of them both as autonomous organizations. In particular, immediate obligations of the world missionary task today demand the minimum of organizational changes which might result in interrupting the present work of the International Missionary Council.

3. The Committee is convinced that the interdependence of these two organizations is as vital as their autonomy. Structural integration is not deemed to be immediately desirable, but what is needed is further effective cooperation in close association. They are complementary ecumenical councils. Both of them are church and missionary in character and together they are seeking ends which are essentially common. While the most powerful expressions of this relationship are to be sought in the field of action, the Committee urges that the principle of interdependence should also find acknowledgment in the mutual use of the following titles:

THE INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL
In Association with
THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES

AND

THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
In Association with
THE INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL

It is recognized that this recommendation cannot become effective until approved by the Committee of the International Missionary Council, which will meet at Whitby in July 1947, and by the Assembly of the World Council of Churches, which will meet at Amsterdam in 1948.

4. It is recommended that in the further working out of principles and policies affecting coordination and common action there should be a joint committee which should be consultative and not administrative in character except for such specific tasks as the two bodies may assign to it; that each of the organizations should provide one of its secretaries to serve this joint committee or make such other arrangement as may be mutually agreed upon.

World Council of Churches

(in association with the International Missionary Council)

Honorary President :

Dr. John R. Mott, New York

Presidents :

Pasteur Marc Boegner, Paris

The Archbishop of Canterbury

Professor T. C. Chao, Peiping

Bishop G. Bromley Oxnam, New York

The Archbishop of Upsala

The Metropolitan of Thyateira, London

Central Committee :

Chairman :

The Bishop of Chichester

Vice-Chairman :

Dr. Franklin Clark Fry, New York

General Secretary :

Dr. W. A. Visser 't Hooft

Associate General Secretaries :

Dr. Henry Smith Leiper, New York

Dr. Robert C. Mackie, Geneva

Bishop Stephen C. Neill, Geneva

Dr. O. Frederick Nolde, New York

The Rev. Oliver S. Tomkins, London

GENEVA

17, Route de Malagnou

Tel. 5 43 33

Cable Address :

"Oikumene" Geneva

With Bishop Neill's compliments.

CONTENTS

<table><tbody><tr><td>Attendance, appointment of officers, apologies</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Scope and functions of Joint Committee</td><td>1</td></tr><tr><td>Continuity of officers of Joint Committee</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Evangelism and missionary obligation of the Church</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Eastern Asia Conference</td><td>4</td></tr><tr><td>Representation at Joint Conferences</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Communion Services at Joint International Conferences</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Joint East Asia Representative</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>Relationships between W.C.C. and N.C.C's.</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>Membership of Younger Churches in W.C.C.</td><td>8</td></tr><tr><td>C. C. I. A.</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>I.M.C. Committee on Christian approach to the Jews</td><td>9</td></tr><tr><td>Ecumenical Press Service</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>Reconstruction and Inter-Church Aid</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>Organisational Relationships in Youth Work</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>Study Plans</td><td>10</td></tr><tr><td>Next Meeting</td><td>12</td></tr><tr><td>Relations with bodies outside the Ecumenical Movement</td><td>12</td></tr></tbody></table>

INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL
and
WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES

Minutes of the first meeting of the
JOINT COMMITTEE
Oxford, England

July 2 - 4, 1949.

Present: Dr. A. Koechlin (in the Chair at the opening session)

Dr. P.O. Bersell W.C.C.

Dr. A.M. Chirgwin W.C.C.

Dr. W. Freytag I.M.C.

Dr. F.C. Fry I.M.C.

Dr. M. Kozaki (substitute for Dr. Wu Yi-Fang) W.C.C.

Dr. J.A. Mackay I.M.C.

Dr. J. Marsh ) substitutes for Rev. A. Whitehouse ) Rev. L.E. Cooke W.C.C.

Bishop Stephen Neill (Secretary) Rev. C.W. Ranson Gen. Sec., I.M.C.

Dr. W.A. Visser 't Hooft Gen. Sec., W.C.C.

Consultants

Mr. E.J. Bingle, Assoc. Sec. for Survey, I.M.C.

Dr. H. Kraemer, Vice-President of I.M.C.

Dr. K.S. Latourette, Chairman of I.M.C. Research Cttee.

Dr. H.S. Leiper, Assoc. Gen. Sec., W.C.C.

Dr. R.C. Mackie, Assoc. Gen. Sec., W.C.C.

Dr. O.F. Nolde, C.C.I.A.

Dr. B. Sundkler, Research Sec., I.M.C.

Baron F.M. van Asbeck, C.C.I.A. (by invitation)

Opening devotions were conducted by Dr. Koechlin.

APPOINTMENT OF OFFICERS

Dr. J.A. Mackay was elected to the Chair, and Bishop Neill appointed Secretary of the Committee. Dr. Koechlin then vacated the Chair in favour of Dr. Mackay.

APOLOGIES FOR ABSENCE were received from the Bishop of Manchester (Rt. Rev. W.D.L. Greer), Dr. G. Baez-Camargo, Dr. Wu Yi-Fang, the Rev. N. Goodall (I.M.C.); Professor T.C. Chao, the Rev. L. E. Cooke, Mr. T.C. Luke (W.C.C.); and from Mr. K.G. Grubb.

SCOPE AND FUNCTIONS OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE

Dr. Visser 't Hooft said that at the present meeting the Committee must consider how best the phrase "in association with" might be implemented. It had become clear that from the specific angle of the W.C.C., intimate relationships with the I.M.C. were a vital matter. There was to a certain extent an overlapping membership, and it would be a disaster if the two world movements were to work

- 4 -

EASTERN ASIA CONFERENCE

Mr. Ranson said that a full memorandum had been prepared by Dr. Decker, which was now in the hands of the members. A commission jointly sponsored by the two bodies had been appointed and met in Manila, from which certain definite proposals emerged, which included the holding of a conference in Eastern Asia. The plans for the Conference were outlined by this commission. There were to be 45 delegates from the countries of East Asia and Australasia, with an additional twenty persons made up as follows: 3 observers from North Borneo, Indochina and Okinawa, and 17 speakers and officers of the parent bodies and consultants. The possibility had been suggested that they should consider having a few missionary observers at the Conference in addition to other non-Asiatics.

Dr. S.C. Leung, of China, had been appointed Executive Secretary of the Conference and commenced his duties on January 1st of this year.

It was noteworthy that the initiative in the shaping of the programme had from the beginning lain with Eastern Asia, with consultative representation on the Programme Committee of the parent bodies. The subject was "The Christian Church in changing Asia", and under that comprehensive general theme many issues of urgent and vital importance to the Church in that region would be faced.

After full discussion, the following recommendation for presentation to the Central Committee, moved by Dr. Fry and seconded by Dr. Chirgwin, was unanimously adopted:

The Joint Committee received a report on the prepara-
tions for the Christian Conference of Eastern Asia, which
is being planned by a Commission representing constituent
Councils of the I.M.C. and member Churches of the W.C.C.
in East Asia, under the general auspices of the parent
bodies. The Joint Committee noted with great interest
the progress which has been made in the planning of the
Conference programme and RESOLVED

(1) To record its conviction regarding the timeliness and
significance of the proposed Bangkok Conference, and the
belief that, despite the difficulties of convening it, the
Conference should (D.V.) be held this year.

(2) To express appreciation of the work of Dr. S.C. Leung
in preparation for the Conference;

(3) To give general approval to the revised estimate of
expenditure, viz. $14,500, and to ask the parent bodies to
accept financial responsibility for the Conference in the
following proportions:

I.M.C. - two-thirds

W.C.C. - one-third

(4) To assure our colleagues in Eastern Asia of our sense
of unity with them and of our continued support, and

(5) To request the prayers of the ecumenical fellowship on
behalf of the Bangkok Conference and the Church in Eastern
Asia.

- 5 -

Mr. Ranson then proposed a note for inclusion in the Minutes regarding the membership of the Conference. This note recommended that the I.M.C. and W.C.C. should jointly suggest to National Christian Councils that they should receive nominations from member Churches of the W.C.C. and appoint delegations to future conferences with due regard to representation by Churches and Councils and also to confessional allegiance.

The following note, proposed by Dr. Fry and seconded by Dr. Bersell, was adopted for addition to the resolution recorded above:

### Representation at Regional Conferences
Since it is hoped that the Eastern Asia Conference will be the first of a series of joint regional conferences, and the holding of such conferences raises certain problems not previously considered, it is thought well to suggest to the parent bodies the following procedure with regard to membership of such conferences:

That the I.M.C. and W.C.C. should jointly request the National Christian Councils in the respective areas to receive nominations from member Churches of the World Council of Churches, and if they so desire, from other Churches associated with the National Christian Councils, and to appoint delegates with due regard to the balance of representation from Churches and Councils.

It is recognised that the preparations for the Bangkok Conference are already well advanced, but it is hoped that, if the principle here suggested be accepted, those responsible for organising the Bangkok Conference may be able to bear it in mind in making the final choice of delegates.

## THE HOLDING OF COMMUNION SERVICES IN JOINT INTERNATIONAL MEETINGS

Arising out of the Bangkok programme, the question of responsibility for the arrangement of Communion services at joint international meetings was discussed at some length.

At the outset of the discussion the following suggested note for inclusion in the Minutes had been moved by Dr. Fry and seconded by Dr. Bersell:

With reference to the proposed arrangements for Communion services at Bangkok, it was noted that it was not the practice of the W.C.C. that conferences held under its auspices should themselves hold Communion services. Responsibility for such services rests with the local Churches. The I.M.C. on the other hand has arranged Communion services at some of its international conferences.

This suggestion was withdrawn. The Chairman said that it seemed to be the feeling of the meeting that we were not ready to

- 6 -

define for ourselves or others what the true policy should be.
It might be inexpedient at the moment to try to define it.

It was AGREED that the Secretaries of the W.C.C. and the I.M.C. be asked to write to those responsible for arrangements for the Bangkok Conference, conveying to them the sense of the discussion which had taken place.

JOINT EAST ASIA REPRESENTATIVE

Dr. Visser 't Hooft put forward the following proposal for adoption:

We have considered the recommendation made by the Joint Committee on an earlier occasion and confirmed by the parent bodies, that the I.M.C. and W.C.C. should have a common member of staff in Eastern Asia. We look to the Bangkok Conference to make a thorough study of this plan and to make specific proposals to the parent bodies. In the meantime we would contribute the following considerations to the discussion:

There is wisdom in the proposal of the Manila meeting of the Eastern Asia Commission that this member of staff should not have administrative responsibilities but rather act as a liaison officer between the Churches concerned and between those Churches and the world movements. We also agree that the plan should be considered as an experiment for a period of three years. At the present stage we see especially the need for a representative in that area who will bring to the Churches concerned the encouragement and pastoral advice which they need in their difficult circumstances. Such a liaison officer would bring the contribution of the ecumenical fellowship to the Eastern Churches and pass on the contribution of those Churches to the world movements.

After some discussion this recommendation was proposed by Dr. Chirgwin, seconded by Dr. Kraemer, and adopted.

RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN THE W.C.C. AND THE N.C.Cs.

Dr. Visser 't Hooft presented to the meeting a statement regarding the relationship between the W.C.C. and the N.C.Cs. Full discussion took place and one or two amendments were suggested.

It was moved by Dr. Fry and seconded by Dr. Bersell that the following statement prepared by Dr. Visser 't Hooft should go forward to the Central Committee:

> That the following document regarding the relationships between the W.C.C. and the National Christian Councils be approved and remitted by the Joint Committee to the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches on the understanding that there be included an introductory statement

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concerned) to enter into formal relationship with the
W.C.C.:

Philippines
India and Pakistan
Japan
China
Korea
Burma
Brazil

In these countries the World Council has one or
several member Churches and most or all of the member
Churches of the World Council are within the National
Christian Councils.

One more Council should soon be added to the above
list as soon as its N.C.C. has been accepted by the I.M.C.,
namely the National Christian Council of Indonesia, which
will be formed in October and which will include prac-
tically all the Churches which have also joined the World
Council.

The distinction between formal and informal relation-
ships is not easy to draw. It can be defined in the fol-
lowing way: that formal relationships imply that the
N.C.C.'s concerned will be invited to send consultants to
the Assembly and that, in the promotion of its departmental
activities, the World Council shall normally work through
the offices of National Christian Councils with which it
has established such relationships. In cases where no
such formal relationship exists, the World Council will
act according to the circumstances of the situation. In
any case it is understood that every member Church retains
the right to have direct relationships with the World
Council of Churches in any field of work.

MEMBERSHIP OF YOUNGER CHURCHES IN THE W. C. C.

Dr. Visser 't Hooft said that the whole question of the membership of Younger Churches in the W.C.C. had always been left very vague. He thought members might wish to make suggestions regarding certain Churches with which the W.C.C. might enter into correspondence. He had no official requests from Younger Churches to bring forward.

After full discussion, the following recommendation was
proposed by Dr. Freytag, seconded by Dr. Chirgwin and adopted:

The Joint Committee, noting that the present interpre-
tation of the rules of the W.C.C. on autonomy are regarded
in some quarters as encouraging the geographical or racial
fragmentation of the Church, request the Central Committee
to consider whether, with a view to adequate representation
of those parts of the Christian Church at present almost un-
represented, some of the seats to be assigned to the Younger
Churches may be allocated to member Churches which have an
international constituency, on the understanding that these
places will be used to bring as delegates to the Assembly

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members of those Younger Churches which are not otherwise
eligible as full members of the W.C.C.

## COMMISSION OF THE CHURCHES ON INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Dr. Nolde gave a summary report of the activities of the C.C.I.A. in various important fields. The full report of these activities would be found in the printed report of the Commission, which was now available.

The following resolution, proposed by Dr. Koechlin and seconded by Dr. Freytag, was passed unanimously:

Since it is impossible to make a sharp distinction between
international affairs and the major strategic questions
with which the Joint Committee is concerned, the Committee
is of opinion that it will be of advantage to both bodies
that:

1) C.C.I.A. be represented on this Committee, and that
its representatives report to the Committee on the work
of C.C.I.A. when requested to do so.

2) That all members of the Joint Committee be placed on
the mailing list of C.C.I.A. for all important documents.

3) That C.C.I.A. be willing to consider specific questions
remitted to it by the Joint Committee as falling within the
scope of its activities.

4) That the Joint Committee be willing to take up issues
remitted to it by C.C.I.A. as requiring its special consideration.

## I.M.C. COMMITTEE ON THE CHRISTIAN APPROACH TO THE JEWS

The following resolution, proposed by Dr. Chirgwin and
seconded by Dr. Kraemer, was passed:

The Joint Committee recommends to the Central Committee
of the World Council of Churches that the World Council of
Churches enter into association with the Committee of the
International Missionary Council on the Christian Approach
to the Jews, the details of this association to be deter-
mined in the light of further consultation between the
parent bodies.

The following resolution, on the subject of joint study of
the Christian Approach to the Jews, proposed by Dr. Fry and
seconded by Dr. Bersell, was passed:

The Joint Committee recommends that, following on the
report of the Committee of the Amsterdam Assembly on the
Christian Approach to the Jews, a study of the problems of
the relations between the Church and the Jews be undertaken
jointly by the Committee on the Christian Approach to the
Jews and the Study Department of the W.C.C., and that the
general direction of this study be a responsibility of the
Joint Committee of I.M.C. and W.C.C.

- 10 -

ECUMENICAL PRESS SERVICE

Dr. Visser 't Hooft said that the main problem of E.P.S. was a
financial one. It was used a great deal, and the trouble was
that the more successful it became, the less satisfactory was
the financial position, as if E.P.S. succeeded in getting religious
news into the secular press, people ceased to subscribe to it.
He called attention to the need for further financial support for
the Press Service.

The following resolution, proposed by Dr. Freytag, seconded
by Dr. Koechlin, was passed:

That the Joint Committee records its appreciation of
the valuable work of the Ecumenical Press Service. The
Committee learns with concern of the present financial
difficulties of E.P.S. It recognises that the World
Council of Churches has hitherto carried the major finan-
cial responsibility and expresses the hope that the other
sponsoring bodies will be able to increase their support.

Dr. Mackie (Director of the Reconstruction and Inter-Church Aid Department of the W.C.C.) introduced the subject. After discussion, the following recommendation, moved by Dr. Freytag and seconded by Dr. Koechlin, was adopted:

The Joint Committee took note:

a) That the Department of Reconstruction and Inter-Church Aid of the W.C.C. had developed in the post-war situation with its interests confined to the needs of the European Churches, but that this was increasingly felt to be an unsatisfactory limitation for a department of the World Council;

b) that the continuing plans for the support of Orphaned Missions were intimately related to the life of the European Churches themselves;

c) that a number of giving Churches were increasingly relating their support for inter-Church aid in Europe to their support of the Younger Churches;

d) and therefore DECIDED that the question of the strategy of inter-Church aid on a world scale should be prepared by the staff of the parent bodies for adequate discussion at the meeting of the Joint Committee in 1950.

ORGANISATIONAL RELATIONSHIPS IN YOUTH WORK

This subject was discussed, but no formal resolution was
passed, as it was felt that problems, as they arose, could be
settled by correspondence between the Secretaries concerned.

STUDY PLANS

Dr. Sundkler, introducing this subject, referred to various study

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plans which were in process of being worked out. He drew the Committee's attention to a symposium volume being prepared in India and Ceylon on Evangelism. This was an independent undertaking by Christians in those countries and would be a very significant piece of work. The study projects of the I.M.C. included surveys on theological education in various parts of the world. The I.M.C. was particularly concerned at the moment with a survey of the problem in Africa. This was a question which concerned the World Council also. A questionnaire had been sent out to all Bible Schools and Theological Colleges in the four regions of Africa. It was suggested that this should be followed up by regional surveys made by people in the regions themselves, but this had not been possible in all cases, particularly in South Africa. The South African Christian Council had now set up a Research Committee which was looking into the problem. It had been suggested that there should be a special Commission which might go to Africa in 1950 and relate the various sections of the survey from a wider point of view.

The following recommendation, moved by Dr. Kraemer and seconded by Dr. Koechlin, was adopted:

The Joint Committee recommends to the parent bodies the following four principles:

1) That the Study Department of the W.C.C. and the Research Committee of the I.M.C. be instructed to keep in close touch with one another with regard to all projects of study and research.

2) That where N.C.C's have Study Departments or Committees working under them, the Study Department of the W.C.C. shall act in co-operation with such agencies in planning study projects in the lands of the Younger Churches.

3) That where such agencies do not exist, the Study Department of the W.C.C. shall approach groups or individuals in the countries concerned only after consultation with the N.C.C's in countries where these are in existence.

4) That the Study Department shall be careful to keep the Research Committee of the I.M.C. and the N.C.C's informed of the progress of all study projects, which it may take in hand in the lands of the Younger Churches.

The following recommendation, moved by Dr. Fry and seconded by Dr. Kraemer, was also adopted:

The Joint Committee welcomes the proposal that the World Council of Churches should be associated with the I.M.C. study of Theological Education in Africa. The Committee transmits to the Central Committee of the W.C.C. the request of the I.M.C. that Bishop Neill should be allowed to serve on the proposed Commission.

- 12 -

## LENGTH OF NEXT MEETING

It was generally agreed that the next meeting should have a longer time allotted to it, to enable sufficient discussion and consideration to be given to the important matters which would be before it. The following resolution, proposed by Dr. Fry and seconded by Dr. Kraemer, was passed:

> That at least three full days be allotted for future meetings of the Joint Committee, the final decision regarding the date of the 1950 meeting being left for decision by the officers in the light of other ecumenical meetings.

## RELATIONS WITH BODIES OUTSIDE THE ECUMENICAL MOVEMENT

The Chairman said that it had been suggested at Whitby that the I.M.C. should endeavour to establish sympathetic understanding with Faith groups which were at present outside the ecumenical movement.

Dr. Visser 't Hooft suggested that the wisest plan would be to set up a small group of knowledgeable people who could make a thorough survey of this question and report to the next meeting of the Committee.

The following recommendation, proposed by Dr. Bersell and seconded by Dr. Kozaki, was adopted:

> Attention was given to the problem of relations with bodies outside the ecumenical movement, and it was AGREED that the Chairman should appoint a Committee to make a survey of this whole problem, and to report to the next meeting of the Joint Committee. It was suggested that Mr. Bingle and Dr. Hoekendijk should serve on this Committee, together with someone acquainted with the American situation, the Chairman of the Joint Committee to act as an advisory member of the group.

- 3 -

# I. OPENING PROCEEDINGS

1. The Minutes of the first meeting of the Joint Committee held in Oxford, England, July 2-4, 1949, were confirmed.

2. It was agreed that only duly constituted members of the Joint Committee would have the right to vote, that all others (members of staff and consultants) would have the privilege of the floor.

3. It was agreed that resolutions only would appear in the printed Minutes of the Joint Committee; but that a fuller account of the meetings with a brief summary of the discussion would be circulated to the officers and members of the Committee.

# II. PROPOSED CONFERENCE ON NEAR EAST REFUGES PROBLEM

Dr. Mackay called upon Dr. Robert Mackie to open the discussion of the proposed Conference on the Near East Refugee Problem.

Dr. Mackie told of the visit of Mr. Elfan Rees to the Middle East in order to report on the general situation and to make recommendations as to the way in which voluntary agencies could be most helpful.

Dr. Mackie called attention to the fact that attempts both in Britain and America to raise money for Palestine refugees had been only partially successful. There was a real question therefore on the part of the World Council of Churches as to the advisability of spending more of such limited funds as they possessed for Palestine on a Conference which might not produce added funds for Palestine. He pointed out therefore that there was a question as to whether a Conference should be held at all, that there was a difference of opinion as to whether the Conference, if called, should include any Government representation; and there was the further question whether such a Conference should include one or two people prominent in the Jewish community whose support of any proposals to help Palestine might facilitate raising money for this purpose.

After full discussion, the Committee adopted the Report of a Sub-Committee in the following terms:-

## PROPOSED CONFERENCE ON PALESTINIAN REFUGES

1. **Auspices.** The Conference should be under the joint auspices of the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council.

- 4 -

2. Purpose. This should be a conference primarily about the Palestinian Refugee problem, though it is bound to become involved in related questions; e.g. inter-Church Aid amongst the indigenous Churches. Its purpose might be defined as follows:-

(a) Analysis of the Refugee Problem

(i) Its nature and extent

(ii) The present relation of Christian organisations to the problem and to U.N. action.

(iii) Future possibilities of intergovernmental action and the relation of Christian organisations to that action.

(b) Consideration of the work and co-operation of Christian forces with regard to refugees.

(c) Decision as regards action to be taken in influencing public policy and finding financial resources in U.S.A., the U.K., and elsewhere.

3. Composition of the Conference.

Officers and staff of W.C.C., I.M.C., L.W.F., etc.
United Nations agencies

local experts from Christian organisations

Officers and staff of N.F.C.C. and other missionary bodies.

Church Representatives, including Orthodox and Roman Catholic.

The number in each category should not be specified;
but the number of those participating in the Conference
should be in the neighbourhood of forty.

4. Planning and Date

(a) Mr. Elfan Rees should be asked to visit the area about the middle of September, (i) to consult with the N.E.C.C. and the U.N.R.W.A., and other interested bodies on the plans of the conference; (ii) to discuss with a view to action, what immediate measures can be adopted for cooperation and the use of available funds.

(b) Mr. Rees should keep in touch with the U.N. authorities with a view to raising those issues at the conference most likely to lead to constructive long-term action both through international action and through the cooperation of voluntary agencies. The actual programme should be prepared in consultation with E.E. Elder, W.G. Greenslade, Bishop Allen and others in the field.

(c) The conference should be held at a convenient date early in 1951. This would allow of longer notice to the participants, a better idea of U.N. prospects and the formation of the National Council in U.S.A.

## 5. Cost of the Conference.

Every effort should be made to get participating bodies to carry the expenses of delegates. The W.C.C. has £1,000 available belonging to the Standing Conference on Refugees, which would be the sponsoring body from the W.C.C. side. Other international Christian bodies should be asked to contribute.

## 6. Place of the Conference.

To achieve its purposes the conference must be held in the Middle East area. Beirut seems to be the best site.

## III. EAST ASIA REGIONAL CONFERENCE.

Dr. Mackay made a brief statement introducing the subject of the East Asia Conference at Bangkok.

The Bangkok Conference represented the first attempt at Regional co-operation between our two ecumenical bodies - the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council. A new problem was presented to us both: how shall the ecumenical idea be expressed most adequately in regional terms? Our Christian adaptation of this term ecumenical combines two ideas:

1. The idea of unity - the unity of the Christian Church - a unity whose boundaries are or should become the inhabited earth.

2. The problem of world widening.

What does it mean to express Christian unity in regional terms? What does it mean to get regional unity interested in world widening - in the ecumenical Church in its extensivity?

### East Asia Secretaryship.

Mr. Ranson offered a definition of the functions of the Eastern Asia secretary, based on the recommendations of Manila, Oegstgeest and Bangkok, as follows:-

1. By regular visitation to seek to inspire and strengthen the councils and churches in Eastern Asia, working with them and their constituencies as opportunity may offer.

- 7 -

It was noted that the resolution now becomes a recommendation
which, on favourable action being taken by the Ad Interim Committee
of the I.M.C., would go back to the responsible authorities of both
bodies for the working out of the details.

The Bishop of Chichester expressed the hope that, once the
appointment was made, the Chairman of the Joint Committee, Dr.
Mackay, should be regarded as specially responsible for the
direction and guidance that would be required by the East Asia
Secretary in the execution of his duties in accordance with the
instructions given by the two parent bodies.

IV FAITH AND ORDER

The Rev. Oliver Tomkins reported that in preparation for the
third World Conference on Faith and Order to be held at Lund in
1952, the Department of Faith and Order had been authorized to notify
the Churches that this Conference would be held and ask them to send
their delegates. He wondered what steps could be taken to assure
proper representation of the younger Churches. Problems discussed
included:-

(1) How best to secure the co-operation of theologians in the younger Churches in preparation for this Conference and in the appointment of delegates to it.

(2) The spreading throughout the churches of the understanding of the issues to be discussed and the problem of the proper relationship of the World Council to areas where National Christian Councils have hitherto been the chief means of calling together representatives of the member Churches of the World Council.

(3) In what way can Faith and Order take special cognizance of parts of the world where unity schemes are under discussion or have been completed, e.g. Ceylon.

RESOLVED that the preparations for the third World Conference on
Faith and Order in Sweden in 1952 would be best forwarded by

(i) The Secretary of Faith and Order transmitting to the Secretaries of N.C.C.'s all information sent to the member Churches in their areas.

(ii) requesting them to offer to the member Churches the facilities of N.C.C.'s (so far as finance and personnel allow) for convening regional conferences of theologians to discuss the Faith and Order issues or for discussion by correspondence where meeting is impossible.

(iii) making available to N.C.C.'s such Faith and Order literature as they might be able to assist in distributing for theological seminaries, minister's fraternals or other forms of inter-denominational discussion.

- 8 -

It is recognised that this proposal needs to be kept in
conformity with the resolution of the C.C. of the W.C.C. at
Woudschoten in 1948 (see Minutes pp. 17-18) by:

(a) The Secretary of Faith and Order consulting with the Member Churches in the several N.C.C. areas before formally establishing such a relationship.

(b) The right to be recognised of W.C.C. member Churches not co-operating in the N.C.C. of that area, to have direct dealings with the Faith and Order Secretariat.

However, in this connection it is hoped that such Churches
might co-operate ad hoc in a Faith and Order discussion precisely
because dogmatic barriers to co-operation and unity are in this
instance the subject matter of discussion.

V. LATIN AMERICAN CONFERENCE

Dr. Mackay, Dr. Poegner, and Dr. Baez-Camargo, reported
on the Buenos Aires Conference, a Conference organised and sponsored
by the Evangelicals themselves.

RESOLVED to direct the attention of the parent bodies to the need
for closer contact with the Evangelical Churches in Latin
America, and to suggest that the following be considered a possible
means to such closer contact:

(1) Visits to Latin America of the General Secretaries of the
two parent bodies at an early date.

(2) The provision of scholarships to enable Latin American
theological students to study in Europe.

(3) The arrangement of visits to be paid to Latin America
by outstanding scholars and Church leaders.

(4) The provision of literature concerning the W.C.C. and the I.M.C
and the regular forwarding of information about important
theological books appearing in European languages.

VI. THE MISSIONARY OBLIGATION OF THE CHURCH.

Dr. Norman Goodall opened the discussion by calling attention
to the two papers that had been distributed to the members of the
Committee: "First Principles" and his "Interim Report on the
Missionary Obligation of the Church." In 1953 there is to be a
second Assembly of the World Council. It has already been suggested
that the study of the Missionary Obligation of the Church should fit
into that section of the Assembly which deals with Evangelism.

After full discussion, the Committee recorded its sense of the great importance of this inquiry for the life of the Churches and for the future of the Ecumenical Movement and

RESOLVED (i) To recommend to the Executive Committee of the W.C.C. that the subject of "Missions, Evangelism and Ecumenism" be given a place as one of the main themes for discussion at the 1951 meeting of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches, and that if this recommendation is adopted, the officers of Joint Committee be requested to arrange for a paper for presentation to Central Committee.

(ii) To recommend to the ad Interim Committee of the I.M.C. that a meeting of the full Committee of the Council be held in 1952 and that this study be given major attention at that meeting.

(iii) To recommend to the W.C.C. Central Committee that in planning the programme of the Assembly of 1953, consideration be given to the inclusion of such arrangements as will make it possible to present effectively to the Assembly the results of this whole process of thought and planning.

VII. RELATIONSHIPS WITH BODIES OUTSIDE THE MEMBERSHIP OF THE I.M.C.-W.C.C.

The Rev. Oliver Tomkins introduced the subject by reference to the periodical *Eglise Vivant* and a plea for Ecumenical mindedness on the part of Roman Catholic missionaries. A situation has been created by the Vatican's statement, which shows that the Vatican now recognizes that the Ecumenical Movement is a thing it can no longer afford to ignore. The conditions on which with complete regularity Roman Catholics can cooperate or authorize cooperation are now laid down by the whole Office.

AGREED to recommend that the Joint Committee heard a report by the Rev. Oliver Tomkins regarding informal conversations with Roman Catholics, and that the Committee understands that such conversations and others which may take place are entirely personal and unofficial.

Mr. Bingle reported on the progress of the survey of the Churches and Missions not in the membership of the I.M.C. or the W.C.C.

- 10 -

Dr. Mackay referred to the National Council of Evangelicals
as a body which might be won over to closer fellowship with the
Ecumenical Movement.

Dr. Visser 't Hooft reported that the World Evangelistic
Alliance is now trying to build up a truly international organis-
ation - a body of associations with individual membership and
not with Church membership. They have gone out of their way
to enter into friendly relations with the World Council.

Dr. Nolde reported that the C.C.I.A. had voted to give
consultative status to the World Evangelical Alliance, the
National Association of Evangelicals and the Southern Baptists.
because they desire it to facilitate relationships with the U.N.

Mr. Stanley Dixon reported that the World Evangelical
Alliance is a member of the Conference of British Missionary
Societies.

RESOLVED: that the Joint Committee expresses its gratitude
to Mr. Bingle, Dr. Hoekendijk and the Chairman for
the work done on bodies outside the Ecumenical
Movement, and requests that the study be further
prosecuted.

VIII. THE CHURCHES IN SOUTH AFRICA

The Chairman and General Secretary of the Central Committee
reported the action taken by the Central Committee concerning Race
Relations. They called attention particularly to

(1) The suggestion made by the Central Committee to the Ad Interim
Committee that that Committee should "communicate with member
Councils, enquiring what assistance, if any, ecumenical organisations
can render to local churches, church bodies and councils, in seek-
ing a Christian solution of their racial problems,"

and

(2) To the proposal that a multiracial delegation for conference and fellowship should be sent to South Africa. "The Central committee . . . authorises the proposal that, if the churches in South Africa are ready to invite an ecumenical delegation, such a delegation should be sent under the auspices of the two parent bodies and for the purpose of conference and fellowship with the churches of South Africa. The Central Committee favours a multiracial delegation and instructs its officers to consult with the Christian Council of South Africa and the Member churches in that country upon this matter."

- 11 -

(3) To the agreement that, if an invitation is received to send a delegation which is interracial, the Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches shall accept and act accordingly. If the invitation does not refer to a multiracial delegation, then the Executive of the World Council of Churches shall not refuse the invitation but refer it to the next meeting of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches in 1951."

RESOLVED: To recommend favourable action on these matters; and to request the officers of the two bodies to take appropriate steps, subject to the concurrence of the <u>Ad Interim</u> Committee.

IT WAS AGREED that three letters of an informal character might be sent to South Africa - one by the General Secretary of the World Council of Churches to Professor Gerdener as a member of the Central Committee; another by the General Secretary of the World Council of Churches to Bishop Ambrose Reeves who had been retained on the Central Committee in a consultative capacity; and the third by the General Secretary of the International Missionary Council to Mr. Blaxall, the Acting Secretary of the National Christian Council.

It was suggested that the letters include

(a) A description of the way the matter had been discussed in the Central Committee;

(b) The resolution;

(c) A statement of why the Central Committee asked that the delegation be multiracial;

(d) An explanation that the delegation is not an inspection into the actions of the life of the churches, and that it is not a form of political action, but a fraternal delegation from the Church in its largest sense asking advice as to how to present this matter to the bodies that are to receive it and requesting suggestions as to what a multiracial, or any other delegation, could achieve.

IX THE INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE ON THE CHRISTIAN APPROACH TO THE JEWS

The document prepared by Dr. Conrad Hoffman and circulated among the members of the Committee concerning the International Committee on the Christian approach to the Jews, was discussed. Attention was called to the fact that the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches had already acted upon the request that the World Council co-operate in the International Missionary Council's Committee on the Christian approach to the Jews. It was agreed that on the basis of that action the Executive Committee of the World Council of Churches could take steps to implement the earlier action.

- 12 -

The Bishop of Chichester reported the receipt of a
request that there be set up at Jerusalem an Institute of Biblical
studies to have the blessing of the World Council of Churches but
not support from it.

AGREED to record the fact that this proposal had been brought to the
attention of the Joint Committee.

Dr. Decker raised the question as to whether the action
of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches at Chi-
chester had the effect of making the International Committee on
the Christian Approach to the Jews a jointly sponsored Committee
of the two bodies as is the C.C.I.A.

Dr. Visser 't Hooft thought that it did not have this
effect; that the World Council had indicated its concern about
the Committee, but that it was a Committee of the I.M.C. with
the World Council representatives on it as consultants.

Bishop Neill reported that last year's Committee had
approved the plan for a comprehensive volume on the relations of
Christians and Jews. He stated that the work had reached the
point of drawing up a tentative list of authors; that this list
had been sent to consultants in various areas; that their suggest-
ions were now under consideration; that the volume still remains
in the realm of consultation. He hoped next year to have a great
deal more to report.

X COMMISSION OF THE CHURCHES ON INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS

Dr. Nolde presented the report of the Commission of the
Churches on International Affairs.

Dr. Mackay expressed the judgment that his work deserved
an absolute vote of confidence from the two bodies.

XI ECUMENICAL PRESS

Mr. Ranson spoke of the debt of gratitude we owe the
eiditor in Geneva. He stated that there are problems in connection
with the New York edition but he felt these could be dealt with by
local consultation.

RESOLVED: that the Joint Committee expresses its appreciation
of the work of the Ecumenical Press Service and particularly ex-
presses its gratitude to the Geneva Editor, M. Alexandre de
Weymarn.

- 13 -

## XII MEMBERSHIP OF AFRICAN CHURCHES IN THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES.

A number of African Churches have reached or are likely shortly to reach the stage at which they become qualified to become member Churches of the World Council of Churches. The World Council of Churches is not always in a position to know what Churches should be considered with a view to their becoming member Churches of the World Council of Churches, and it was

RESOLVED: to request the I.M.C. to consider the status of the African Churches in the light of the conditions for membership laid down in the Constitution of the W.C.C. and to transmit to the General Secretariat of the W.C.C. such information as may be helpful to the W.C.C. in taking the decisions in this matter which may have to be taken in the near future.

## XIII RECONSTRUCTION AND INTER-CHURCH AID

RESOLVED: that the two General Secretaries be asked to invite a small group to meet informally on this question of Reconstruction and Inter-Church Aid in the course of the winter of 1950-51;

That a meeting be held at a time when the Director of the Department of Inter-Church Aid and Service to Refugees could be in the United States;

That the group charged with preparing the document for the Central Committee next year be asked to have this in mind.

## XIV YOUTH WORK

Dr. Mackie reported the third meeting of the World Christian Youth Commission now in session which is made up of representatives from five groups. This group is thinking in terms of a meeting in 1952, probably of about 220 people - 150 from Asia plus those who would come from other parts of the world.

He referred to the suggestion that Miss Jean Fraser spend some months or a year in Asia strengthening the youth work and finding the people who could take part in such a meeting.

- 14 -

Dr. Visser 't Hooft explained that there was a very strong
feeling among young people that there should be a large world youth
conference about every five years, that these meetings have had
an enormous influence in the East, where they still talk of the
Oslo Conference and hold "Oslo meetings."

XV JOINT COMMITTEE ME TINGS

Mr. Ranson questioned whether we should have another
meeting of the Joint Committee next year; that instead a small
committee to work on missions, evangelism and ecumenism might
meet before the Central Committee next year.

Dr. Mackay wondered whether it was desirable to have the
Joint Committee meet annually or whether it should be left to the
Joint Committee to decide whether it should meet the following
year, or two years later.

RESOLVED: That because of the need for preempting certain dates, the 29th. of July to the 1st. of August, 1951 be tentatively fixed for a meeting of the Joint Committee; that it be left to the officers of the two organisations to determine whether this should be a full meeting of the Joint Committee or a meeting for a special purpose.

XVI COURTESIES

RESOLVED: That the Joint Committee of the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches express its appreciation to Principal and Mrs. Osborne for their courtesy in making it possible for the Committee to meet at the Ontario Ladies' College.

RESOLVED: That the Joint Committee express its appreciation to the
Rev. and Mrs. Harry C. Priest for the efficient and gracious way
in which they have cared for the arrangements for the meeting of
the Committee.

1954 and that the Committee on the Christian Approach to the Jews be asked to prepare for the Joint Committee the documentation required for this discussion.

## DEPARTMENT OF INFORMATION

The suggestion that the IMC might care to utilise the facilities of the new Department of Information of the WCC was welcomed and the following points were made:

(1) the IMC might be consulted about the membership of the Committee of the Department so as to ensure that its interests were represented.

(2) the channels of the Department in relation to an Article Service, relations with the secular press and all means of interpreting the ecumenical movement should be made available to the IMC.

(3) the WCC should be brought more fully into active co-operation in the production of the *World Christian Handbook*.

(4) there might be common promotion for the *Inter-national Review of Missions* and the *Ecumenical Review* where such seemed advisable.

To the L.M. GROUP:

Here is another paper which Pit Van Dusen suggests you read in preparation for the discussion of integration of the IMC and the WCC. Be sure to do your homework!

REPORT OF THE JOINT COMMITTEE
TO THE CENTRAL COMMITTEE
ON THE POSSIBLE "INTEGRATION" OF

THE WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES and THE INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL.

July 31, 1956.

(Not for publication)

The Central Committee will recall that at its meeting at Davos a year ago, the Joint Committee offered an extended report of its meeting just concluded, the first meeting of the reconstituted Joint Committee since the Evanston Assembly, dealing with the considerable number of matters to which J. C. has been instructed by the parent bodies to give attention.

At that time, we reminded the Central Committee that one of the four tasks assigned to the Joint Committee in its Charter drafted at Konigstein in 1954 is:--

"to study the advantages, disadvantages and implications of a full integration of the International Missionary Council and the World Council of Churches."

Thus, the possibility of future integration was in the minds of both parent bodies in reconstituting the Joint Committee, and the Committee was charged with responsibility to keep this matter under review and present its conclusions to the parent bodies. However, at Davos we reported that the Joint Committee felt, as of that date, this was an assignment which could be deferred for later consideration.

Certain developments during the past year have convinced the Joint Committee that preliminary consideration of "integration" should not be longer deferred. Among these developments are at least five which merit special mention:--

1. By all odds the most important is the unmistakable evidence of steadily deepening awareness in both Movements of parallel if not identical objectives and obligations. When the two bodies were brought into "association" at Amsterdam, it was in response to a recognition of common calling and purpose. The hope was expressed that the relationship of "association" would express and deepen "the mission-consciousness of churches and the church-consciousness of missions." The eight years since Amsterdam have witnessed a fulfillment of this hope very widely throughout the constituency of both bodies. Indeed, one of the most significant facts in the Christian life of our day is the growing awareness on the part of the churches of their missionary vocation. The calling of the Church to proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth and the obligation of the Church to bear witness in deed and word to all nations are increasingly seen as belonging to the essence of the Church's life. This sense of mission is more and more pervading the ecumenical movement---as, indeed, that movement largely owes its origin to it. Within the World Council, increasing recognition is being given to the bearing of the Church's unity on the fulfillment of its mission. On the other hand, within the constituency of the International Missionary Council, mission and unity are seen in their closest and most urgent bearing on one another. This two-fold recognition emerged strongly at the Willingen meeting of the IMC in 1952 and at the Rolle meeting of the Central Committee in 1953, and found expression in the declaration on "Mission and Unity." The recognition was widely present at the Evanston Assembly. It has spread and deepened among churches and missions since Evanston.

Report of the Joint Committee to the Central Committee
on the Possible "Integration" of the World Council of
Churches and the International Missionary Council.

July 31, 1956

2. A concrete evidence of the intimate interrelatedness of the two Movements is the growth of overlap in their respective memberships. On the one hand, many of the historic missionary societies and boards which constitute the constituency of the IMC within the "Older Churches" are servants of, or working in close partnership with, churches which are members of the WCC; increasingly, functionally and even structurally, they are the missionary agencies of these member-churches. In consequence, their concerns appear more and more within the purview of the World Council, although not as fully as would be essential if the two world bodies were to integrate. On the other hand, National Christian Councils which are the constituency of the IMC among the "Younger Churches" are, in many instances, entering into closer and mutually fruitful relationship with the WCC as "Associated Councils." Thus, on this side likewise, the constituency of the two bodies is more and more the same. This development is working to the mutual enrichment of the National Christian Councils and the WCC. But it also involves, for the NCCs, a dual relationship and responsibility which are increasingly confusing and burdensome for them; this fact was driven home upon the officers of both IMC and WCC at the Lucknow meetings in 1952.

3. The undertakings in which the IMC and the WCC are already joined in varied patterns-- the CCIA, the East Asia Secretariat, Study, Interchurch Aid, etc., practical expressions of their "association," account for a larger and larger part of the actual program of each body. (At Davos, it was noted that more than half of the total work of the WCC is now carried on jointly with the IMC.) Not only are these undertakings increasing in number. More and more, the Committees and Staffs of the two bodies find themselves thinking, planning, and working as a unity. Thus, functional "integration" is already over wide areas an accomplished fact, passing far beyond what is implied in a formal relationship of "association." And there is an evident acceleration in this "mutuality" which is due less to deliberate design than to an inherent and altogether appropriate and constructive inner logic.

4. More specifically, in a number of areas of cooperation between the two Movements, specific developments during the two years since Evanston have served both to make vivid the increasing intimacy of their life and work, and the usefulness as well as danger of tension and misunderstanding in their present separation. This has been especially true with respect to Interchurch Aid in its relationship to the historic work of Christian Missions since it was authorized to extend its program in behalf of both bodies into Asia, Africa and Latin America, and since that program is now recognized in long-term rather than merely emergency terms. Again, developments taking place among Younger Churches in various parts of the world, especially in Asia, have led officers of both Movements to recognize that their concerns and perplexities are closely parallel if not identical; they find it natural and appropriate, indeed inescapable, to think and plan and act together, as though the two bodies which they respectively represent were already one. This new fact was clearly demonstrated at the meetings at Bangkok last spring.

Many of the four developments just mentioned are advancing rapidly.

5. Lastly, a careful re-examination of the ecumenical calendar for the period between the Evanston Assembly and the next Assembly in 1960 has led the Joint Committee to recognize that the question of possible future "integration" should receive early attention. Clearly, the mandate given the Joint Committee after Evanston expected that it would carry forward its study of the "advantages, disadvantages and implications of full integration of the IMC and the WCC" so as to be able to bring conclusions and recommendations to both bodies at their next world assemblies. But, as we know, the next Assembly of the IMC is scheduled for the Gold Coast at

Report of the Joint Committee to the Central Committee on the possible "Integration" of the World Council of Churches and the International Missionary Council.

July 31, 1956

Christmastide 1957. If the Joint Committee is to be prepared to present carefully considered recommendations at that time, they must receive definitive formulation at the Committee's meeting in the summer of 1957. Therefore, preliminary exploration of the questions involved appeared as a first claim upon the Committee's agenda at the 1956 meeting just concluded.

The better part of two days were devoted to unhurried, serious and very thorough examination of most of the major aspects of the matter—"advantages, disadvantages and implications." To strengthen representative participation in the discussion and to assist the Committee toward sound conclusions, a half dozen persons carefully chosen through consultation between the officers of both bodies were asked to share as consultants. The secretary of the Joint Committee had engaged in extensive preparatory conference and correspondence, and had prepared a full and helpful memorandum, appraising the issues of integration and even outlining three alternative schemes of possible pattern of integration so that the Committee and its consultants might have the advantage of concrete suggestions of the implications of integration. Moreover, the Committee had the great advantage of the conclusions of an enlarged Officers' meeting of the IMC which had given the matter careful attention at Cambridge shortly before.

One would need to have participated in these two days of meeting to appreciate fully the quality of thought, the quiet earnestness of seeking, the resolute thoroughness in searching out all important aspects, the determination to give full weight to all sides of debated issues, and above all the solemnizing sense of responsibility which lifted these discussions to a very high level.

The Committee early saw that three questions are involved, which may be simply represented by the three interrogatives—"Whether?", "When?", "How?"—whether "integration" of the two bodies is the sound course ahead; if so, when such integration should take place; and when the matter should be brought before the constituencies of the two Movements for consideration and decision; how? i.e. what form should such a future integrated Council take? The Joint Committee gave very full attention to all three questions. On the first two—"whether?" and "when?"—it reached definite judgments. On the third—the form or pattern of a possible integrated Council—it engaged in extensive explorations. While specific recommendations on this point must await a process of wide consultation and much further and fuller deliberation (for which the Joint Committee is now asking for authorization), I may say that even these preliminary explorations carried the thinking of those who shared in them very much farther toward a resolution of the most baffling difficulties and the achievement of a satisfying consensus than any of the participants had supposed to be possible at this early stage.

The most important conclusions are embodied in the document before you. They are reached with only one dissenting voice. In substance, it is the considered and clear conviction of the Joint Committee and its consultants that the time has come when the WCC and the IMC should consider afresh the possibility of an integration of the two Councils. The Committee adds these conditions which it considers essential in any plan of integration which might be brought forward for later consideration:

"The Committee regards it as imperative that any such integration should be in a form which ensures that missions belong to the heart of the ecumenical movement. It should also be on lines which would bring the missionary forces

-L-

July 31, 1956

into closer relationship with all phases of the
Church's witness in the life of the world and engage
the fullest resources of the churches in the task of
formulating and fulfilling their mission in terms
commensurate with the needs of the world today and
with the nature of the "glorious Gospel of the
blessed God."

More specifically, it is clear that two objectives
must be fulfilled:--

1. The missionary conviction and commitment which are the very being of the International Missionary Council must permeate the life of the integrated Council, and find appropriate recognition and effective voice in its structure--its Assembly, the Central Committee, as well as staff and working committees.

2. The program of the International Missionary Council in its full scope and strength must take place in undiminished power within the work of the integrated Council.

Accordingly, the Joint Committee asks approval from both Councils to undertake
the formulation of a draft Plan of Integration, to be ready for consideration by
the Central Committee of the WCC a year hence and by the IMC Assembly at the Gold
Coast in December 1957-January 1958. Should the Plan, with such amendments as WCC
Central Committee and IMC Assembly may wish to make, prove acceptable to these two
bodies, it would be possible for it to be communicated to the member councils of the
IMC and the member churches of the World Council for their consideration in time
to be acted upon at the Third Assembly of the WCC in 1960. If this approval is
given, the Committee will commit the development of a Plan of Integration to a
sub-committee already named. A first concern of that Committee will be the fullest
possible consultation with all elements in both Movements which are concerned.

Lastly, because of the importance of the matters with which it will be engaged
in the next year, the Joint Committee asks its two parent bodies to increase its
present membership of twelve to a total of twenty by the addition of four more
representatives of each Movement.

Three comments, in conclusion:--

1. It is important to note the limited scope of the step here proposed. In a sense it is no more than a request for approval to carry forward in a more specific fashion the mandate given to the Joint Committee at Evanston. What is proposed is a further process of exploration. Not until the *principle of integration* has taken shape as a *plan of integration* will either Council be in a position to come to a final decision.

July 31, 1956

2. On the other hand, no one should underestimate the far-reaching character of whatever scheme of integration may be developed. Fundamental changes in both bodies would be required. One can hardly imagine that such changes could be contemplated without serious questioning, and perhaps misgiving, on the part of some of those whose loyalty is claimed for one or the other body, perhaps especially some within the constituency of the International Missionary Council.

3. Finally, however, it is the solemn conviction of those who have had the privilege of participating in these preliminary explorations that we are being led forward by a Wisdom beyond human divising, for the fulfillment of Divine Purposes through churches and missions which bear the name of Christ, in claiming the whole world for His allegiance and His service.

IMC/10/11/56/MFL

Appendix II

REFERENCE COMMITTEE I

PROPOSED RESOLUTIONS ON THE DRAFT PLAN

OF INTEGRATION OF W.C.C. AND I.M.C

I. The Central Committee, acting in terms of Minute 21 of 1956, receives the draft plan of integration as prepared by the Joint Committee and commends it to member churches for their study and prayerful consideration.

II. The Central Committee asks the member churches to answer the following questions:

a) Are you, in principle, in favor of integration, provided that a satisfactory plan is evolved?

b) What comments have you to offer on the details of the proposed plan?

III. In asking these questions, the Committee draws attention to the following points:

a) The authoritative decision of the WCC in this matter cannot be taken before the Third Assembly of the W.C.C. in 1960. Action will then be determined by the judgment of the member churches voting through their delegates in the Assembly.

b) Although the draft Plan offers, in the opinion of the Committee, a generally satisfactory method of integration, it will undoubtedly require amendment at certain points in the light of further study and discussion. The suggested procedures for timing, as set out in Section IX of the Plan (pg. 10) provide at least a two year period within which this process of discussion and amendment may be carried out. Suggestions for amendment whether received from member churches of the W.C.C. or member councils of the I.M.C. will be considered by the Joint Committee at its meetings in 1958 and 1959 and the Plan, revised as may be necessary, will be brought back to the Central Committee in 1959 for its judgment and final recommendation to the Assembly. It is hoped that member churches will participate fully in this process of further consultation during the next two years.

IV. It is important to remember that the draft Plan as prepared by the Joint Committee is remitted to member councils of the I.M.C. concurrently with this submission of it to the member churches of the W.C.C. Representatives of the I.M.C. member councils will be meeting in an Assembly in Ghana from December 28th, 1957 to January 8th, 1958 and the action of the IMC Assembly in this matter will be reported to member churches of the WCC not later than February, 1958. It is suggested that while consideration of the Plan should begin as soon as possible, the comments of member churches may be deferred until the action of the Ghana Assembly is known, (for subsequent IMC procedures, see Section IX of the Plan, paragraphs 3,4, and 5).

V. In making this recommendation to the member churches, the Central Committee is aware of the fact that certain questions have been raised in different quarters about the proposed integration. It has given careful attention to these, and has the following comments to make:

1) The fear has been expressed that this proposed action will alter the essential basis of membership in the Council, namely that it is a Council of Churches, and that it will involve the member churches in responsibility for missionary and proselytising activities of which

Appendix II - page 2

they may not approve, and in the scandal of competing evangelistic activities by rival bodies. On this the Central Committee makes the following comments:

a) A distinction must be made between the missionary obligation to bring the Gospel to the whole world (an obligation which is explicitly taught by our Lord, and which all churches acknowledge in principle) and proselytism (which the member churches of the WCC generally agree in condemning). The missionary activities which are the concern of the IMC, and will be the concern of the proposed Division, are directed primarily to the non-Christian world.

b) It is true that problems arise where missionary work is carried on in geographical areas where there are already established churches. These problems have already received the most careful attention of the WCC and the document "Christian Witness, Proselytism and Religious Liberty in the Setting of the World Council" received at the last meeting of the Central Committee, gives solid ground for believing that these problems can be solved in a way that will be acceptable to all the Churches in the Council.

c) The IMC has from the beginning been concerned to remove the scandal caused by competing missionary activities in the non-Christian world, and has been a powerful factor in the movement towards unity in missionary work and in the life of the Church. The present proposal for integration with the WCC and indeed the modern ecumenical movement as a whole, are in part the result of the long labors of the IMC for unity in the missionary task. Integration will in turn strengthen this movement for unity.

d) The IMC is not a body which itself conducts or supervises any missionary activity. It is a consultative body. The proposed new division will have the same role. Moreover, the churches whose missionary activities are involved in the proposed integration are - for the most part - already members of the World Council.

e) The proposed integration will not change the principles which govern membership in the Council. It will remain a Council of Churches. All members of the Assembly will be delegates of member churches, and the membership of the Central and Executive Committees will continue to be drawn from these. The fact that some members of the new commission may be members of Churches which are not members of the Council, introduces no new principle since this is already the case in other parts of the Council's organization. Moreover, the general lines of the Commission's policy and program, and any nominations made by the Commission will be subject to the approval of the Central Committee.

f) Those churches which are concerned about the problems arising from the activities of missions carried on by other churches in their own areas will be in a better position to deal with such problems in an integrated Council than they are at present.

2) It has been said that there are those who will object to the integration on the ground that the World Council is not a body committed to the task of world mission, and therefore cannot provide a proper milieu for the work of the International Missionary Council. To this it must be replied:

a) That article III.(vii) of the Constitution shows that mission has been from the beginning accepted as part of the concern of the Council; and

Appendix II - Page 3

b) that the course of the discussion on integration has already demonstrated the depth of concern within the W.C.C. for the Church's missionary task.

3) It has been argued that the time is not ripe for the integration and that more time should be given before the matter is pressed. On the other hand, it must be seriously asked whether, in view of all the factors, more harm than good would not result from further delay in this matter. In view of the long discussions which have already taken place, a decision to postpone at this time would be an extremely negative action. Like every living movement, the ecumenical movement can only grow by being willing to make decisions, even when they are difficult and involve risks.

t) It has been pointed out that while the churches in some parts of the world are ready and eager for this step, others are not yet ready, and still others have given no consideration to the matter. The Central Committee recognizes this, and is of the opinion that every effort must be made to secure a full discussion of the whole matter especially in those areas where there is still hesitancy. But on the other hand, the only alternative to dealing with the issue now is to postpone it to the Assembly of 1966, and the Committee considers that this course will certainly involve serious dangers.

+++++++

## NOTES

1) Concerning nominations for membership of the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism.

The present Rules of the W.C.C. require that:

> "In making nominations, the Nominations Committee of the Assembly and the Central Committee shall...satisfy itself as to the general acceptability of the nominations to the churches to which the nominees belong."

> It suggests that the Joint Committee should be asked to consider whether any modification of W.C.C. practise will be required in the case of persons who are members of W.C.C. member churches and who may be nominated by affiliated councils for membership of the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism. The Joint Committee is asked to consider, for example, whether, in making such nominations, the Council concerned might accept responsibility for making this clearance with the member churches.

2) Concerning amendments.

In the course of discussion in the Reference Committee, various suggestions were made for verbal amendments to the draft Plan. Although not affecting its main structure, but they were neither discussed nor voted upon. Note was taken of them and they will be referred to the Joint Committee for consideration at its meeting in 1958, with all other suggestions received during the coming year, whether through W.C.C. or I.M.C.

APPENDIX III

Extract from the Record of

THE IMC/WCC JOINT COMMITTEE

re: Africa Team

With regard to the future of the team, the following recommendations
were adopted:

1. That the African Team be continued with such modifications of structure and membership as may be necessary and preferably with the inclusion of from three to five African members.

2. That the Team should endeavor to meet at intervals not greatly exceeding one year, and preferably -- when possible -- in different parts of Africa.

3. That the basic concerns of the churches and the ecumenical movement in relation to Africa. as outlined at Koenigstein and Wagner College be regarded as the basic terms of reference of the Team's action, subject to constant review in the light of changing conditions.

4. That the Team continue to serve as the basic reference group in respect to all the Africa interests and concerns of W.C.C. and I.M.C.

C O P Y

JOINT COMMITTEE
of the
WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES AND INTERNATIONAL MISSIONARY COUNCIL

The mandate of the WCC/IMC Joint Committee, as formulated at
Konigstein in February 1954, includes the obligation to "study
the advantages, disadvantages and implications of a full inte-
gration of the International Missionary Council and the World
Council of Churches." The Committee at its meeting on July
20-23, 1956 returned to the consideration of this question and
submits the following statement to the WCC and IMC.

DRAFT STATEMENT ON INTEGRATION

One of the most significant features in the Christian life of our time
is the deepening awareness of the churches of their missionary vocation. The
calling of the Church to proclaim the Gospel to the ends of the earth and the
obligation of the Church to bear witness in deed and word to all nations are
once again being seen as belonging to the essence of the Church's life. This
sense of mission is more and more pervading the ecumenical movement - as,
indeed, this movement largely owes its origin to it.

Since the First Assembly at Amsterdam the WCC and IMC (itself an ecumen-
ical expression of the churches' outreach through the historic witness of
missions) have been in constitutional and practical "association" with one
another. This association had its origin in the common calling and purpose
of both bodies and it was entered into in the hope that such a relationship
would deepen and express "the mission-consciousness of churches and the church-
consciousness of missions". Many aspects of the work of both Councils - study,
international affairs and the work of the East Asia secretariat - have since
become so deeply interwoven as to go beyond what was described in 1948 as the
"inter-relatedness of two autonomous councils". Not least important, increasing
recognition is being given to the bearing of the Church's unity - with which the
WCC is specially concerned - on the fulfilment of its mission, while within the
constituency of the IMC mission and unity are seen in their closest and most
urgent bearing on one another.

In the membership of both WCC and IMC there is an increasing overlap.
On the one hand, the historic missionary societies or boards are working in
partnership with, or as the servants of, churches which are taking their place
as members of the WCC. On the other hand, National Christian Councils, which
are constituent members of the IMC, are entering into closer relationship with
the WCC as "associated Councils" - a relationship which is proving to be of
increasing significance for the National Christian Councils and for the WCC
itself. Moreover, some of the most important tasks and opportunities before
both Councils are necessitating more of those processes which go beyond
"association". This is notably true of the expanding work of the Division
of Inter-Church Aid and its transition from emergency to more permanent
relationships of service between younger and older churches. It is equally
apparent in developments which are taking place in various parts of the world -
especially in Asia - and which must profoundly affect the means by which the
mission of the Church is fulfilled in and through the churches in these areas.

In the light of such considerations as these (and many of them arise
from situations in which events are moving rapidly) the Joint Committee
affirms its conviction that the time has come when the WCC and IMC should
consider afresh the possibility of an integration of the two Councils. The
Committee regards it as imperative that any such integration should be in
a form which ensures that missions belong to the heart of the ecumenical
movement. It should also be on lines which would bring the missionary forces
into closer relationship with all phases of the Church's witness in the life
of the world and engage the fullest resources of the churches in the task
of formulating and fulfilling their mission in terms commensurate with the
needs of the world today and with the nature of the "glorious Gospel of the
blessed God".

The Joint Committee therefore asks the authority of both Councils to
undertake the formulation - in the fullest possible consultation with all
concerned - of a draft Plan of Integration for presentation to WCC Central
Committee in 1957 and to the IMC Assembly at the Gold Coast in December/
January 1957/58. Should the Plan, with such amendments as WCC Central Com-
mittee and IMC Assembly may wish to make, prove acceptable to these two
bodies and receive the ratification of a sufficient number of the member
councils of the IMC, it would be possible for it to be communicated to the
member churches of the World Council for their consideration in time to be
acted upon at the Third Assembly of the WCC in 1960.

Presented to the Executive Board

September 1956