Sutherland Christadelphians
The main Sutherland Christadelphians Inc. web site is at sutherlandchristadelphians.org. This subdomain at bibsci.sutherlandchristadelphians.org is devoted to this "Bible and Science" project.
The rest of this page documents the formal decisions that created the project.
This "Bible and Science" project
Resolutions of the AGM of Sutherland Christadelphians Inc. — 4th March 2018
Two resolutions were agreed to, and a third added later:
- We acknowledge that problems undoubtedly exist within our community in reconciling our various understandings of Scripture with the discoveries of science, and we accept the responsibility to give attention to solving these difficulties in an atmosphere of calm, sincere, conscientious study, unhindered by rumours, mistrust, suspicion and hasty judgements.
- We ask the Management Committee to appoint a small group of suitable members willing and able to undertake this task with due respect to Scripture, science and history based on the scope provided by the Ecclesia, and report back to the Ecclesia at the appointed time.
- We acknowledge that reconciliation(s) acceptable to all may not be found. (This third resolution was added by the ecclesia on 21st April 2019.)
Members of the group
- Click here for the list of current members.
- Other members of the ecclesia may contribute.
- Other people outside may also be invited to contribute.
Scope
- Overview of the many sides of the discussion
- a summary of relevant interpretations of Scripture
- Relevance to salvation
- Group to decide the best approach to presenting the information to the ecclesia in a way that will enable them to make informed decisions.
- Useful deliverables
Reporting
- The group should report back to the ecclesia at each business meeting on the progress of their work, with a final presentation of the work to be made before the end of February 2019.
- a final presentation of the work to be made before the end of February 2019. (This was extended by the decisions of 21st April 2019.)
Origin of the Resolutions
- For the immediate cause for the resolutions to be proposed, and the historical background of their wording, see Reasons for Ecclesial Resolutions of 4 March 2018
Report to AGM, 3 March 2019
- See Majority Report
Subsequent decisions, 21st April 2019
- See subsequent decisions made by ballot on 21st April 2019 at Sutherland Christadelphians.
Whole-ecclesia decisions by ballot, 21st April 2019
- "3. We acknowledge that reconciliation(s) acceptable to all may not be found." was added to the Resolutions of 4th March 2018
- The timeframe of the group was extended "until 3 months after the AACE recommendations are released to allow the group to consider and integrate the information provided".
- [Given that "For many decades Sutherland has had members who have believed in some form of evolution sitting in fellowship beside those who believe in a literal 6 day creation, young earth creation, old earth creation and a variety of views in between"] [We] are willing to allow the different viewpoints on creation and evolution continue within our ecclesia as long as creation through evolution is not taught within the ecclesia.
Current status
This wiki site became the group's main deliverable, and continues to grow. All Christadelphians are welcome to collaborate, whatever their thoughts about the central questions may be. The goal is faithful documentation of all side of the discussion.
Sutherland Ecclesia's response to AACE Motion 8 Stimulus Paper
The Association of Australian Christadelphian Ecclesias Inc. (AACE) published this discussion paper to member ecclesias in February 2019. Sutherland Ecclesia's response is here.
