1.2 Overview of the Free Methodist Church of Southern Africa
1.2.3 The FMC‘s Missional Vocation and Commitment for Social Engagement
The missional vocation and commitment of the FMC for social engagement are discussed in A Theology of Mission for Free Methodist World Missions edited by D. Sheffield (2006). According to Sheffield (2006a:3), the mission of the FMC is informed by three affirmations, these being, that the church participates in the Triune God‘s mission of reconciliation and restoration of the world; that it is conferred by the Holy Spirit, the power of being Christ‘s visible body filled with grace and bringing the gospel of reconciliation to all people; and that it is sent into the world to reconcile all of the created universe with God.
Sheffield identifies various implications of these affirmations in the FMC‘s understanding and practice of mission. Therefore, the affirmation of the church‘s participation in the mission of the Triune God entails that a just reign will be established and evil be judged. It also means that all people reflect the image of God and have the capacity to serve, and that all the human cultures have something to contribute to God‘s mission. It likewise implies that God intends to reconcile all creation. It also shows that the mutual love of the Triune God is the source of the Christian mission. The other implication here is that Jesus offers healing which provides reconciliation and transformation on a personal, social, cultural and ecological level. (:4).
Sheffield observes that since the church is the visible body of Christ, all believers are ministers and have to witness mutual care, support, and shalom8. In this context, the church is expected to reflect unity in diversity, a body which suffers with the sufferers, rejoices with those who are happy, and is concerned about the poor, the marginalised and the oppressed. In a nutshell, Sheffield suggests that in the FMC there has to be adequacy between the gospel proclaimed and the visible actions (:4-6).
With the affirmation that the church is sent into the world, Sheffield maintains that therefore, Jesus is at work in all cultures before the church‘s efforts, that his Good News is for all people, and that ―The church is to be ‗incarnated‘ among the world‘s people‖ (:6). As Sheffield also
7 Preparatory members are the people who normally attend the church‘s services but have not yet gone through all the required process to become full members.
8 Capp (2006:54) explains the concept shalom as ―what God wills human society to look like.‖ In a more extended way, Yoder (1989) relates it to material well-being and prosperity (:13), social justice, and straightforwardness (:15- 16).
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mentions, the Free Methodists believe that the church is sent to all people to call them to the forgiveness of sin and restoration of God‘s intention. Concerning health and healing, Sheffield writes that the Free Methodists recognise Jesus as the Lord of Life. They accept the possibility and the call for various kinds of healing (physical, emotional, social and emotional) through preventive and restorative healing strategies, including appropriate technologies. At this point, the Free Methodists recognise the participation of all nations, traditions and religions in the healing of human ailments, caring for the created universe and the establishment of a just society. The church is also expected to participate in redemptive economic and political life (:6- 7).
As described here, the FMC‘s understanding of mission entails various interwoven elements which can have positive implication for social engagement, especially in times of health crises such as HIV and AIDS and its gendered nature. Five themes can be identified in this regard.
Firstly, the mission of the church is assigned by God, not by the church. This means that the church should not manipulate this agenda. Secondly, the church is expected to engage in providing holistic healing and care wherever and whenever this is needed. Thirdly, all people indistinctively are eligible for the church‘s services of diakonia and integration into the church community. Fourthly, all believers can minister and therefore have to be empowered and involved. Lastly, non-believers also have something to contribute to God‘s mission and their role should be recognised and honoured. It therefore appears that once the above affirmations are translated into actions, the FMC is expected to indiscriminately provide all the necessary care to the needy, to involve all believers in this action, and to value the contribution of external partners.
Sheffield (2006b) presents four priorities of the Free Methodists when engaging in the community. Firstly, they enquire the will of God through scripture and prayer and consider also the needs expressed by the community. Secondly, they try to restore and build a strong relationship between Christ and the people, between people, and between people and the physical environment. Thirdly, they minister to the whole person, responding to the needs of all the dimensions of a human being, namely the mind, spirit, emotions and body, including political and economic needs. Lastly they empower communities in order to assist them to be not dependent or independent, but interdependent (:10). These priorities may likewise support the idea that the FMC possesses a positive way of addressing the challenges posed by HIV and AIDS and gender. This is because they involve a response to the needs emerging from and
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expressed by the community, development of good relationships, response to the needs of all human‘s dimensions, and the empowerment of assisted people.9
Snyder (2006) links the FMC understanding of mission with Wesleyan theology. He identifies four themes of this theology which have impacted on the development of that mission. The first theme concerns the image of God in humankind (and in all creation). According to Snyder (2006:22) Wesley believed that both men and women are created in God‘s image. Therefore, as Snyder observes, Wesley was not spreading the bad news of condemning people for their sinfulness but the good news of their likeness with God. Wesley considered that even though this image can be spoiled by sin, it is not a total loss because we are all sinners and all humankind has some inherent entity (God‘s likeness) which can be healed and restored. In this likeness, Snyder also finds that Wesley‘s theology does not neatly separate the spiritual and physical realms, which was Wesley‘s extension of salvation, not only to humankind but also to the whole created order (:22).
The next theme in Wesley‘s theology was salvation as healing. For him, salvation means being healed from the moral disease of sin. Wesley believed that people‘s sense of guilt because of their sins, ruins their relationship with God, with themselves, with each other, and with their physical environment. Therefore, he insists on Jesus‘ atonement or salvation as the healing of sin and its effects in all dimensions of human life. He did not focus on the juridical explanation of salvation as ‗undeserved cancellation of penalties‘ because of our sins as western theologians of his time understood (:23-24).
The third theme is ‗God‘s preceding grace‘. Wesley explained that God precedes the church‘s work in all people, cultures, societies and religions. If people respond with faith, they are justified and if they remain, they are sanctified. The role of the church is therefore to inform people of the presence of God‘s grace so that they may respond and be saved (:22-23).
The last theme is the perfecting of the Christian character. In developing this theme, Wesley considered that the ultimate goal of salvation is Christian perfection. This is achieved through the Spirit which progressively transforms humankind into God‘s image by enabling them to love God with their hearts, souls and minds and their neighbours as themselves. According to Snyder, it is this demonstration of God/Jesus image by the church community that Wesley calls ‗social holiness‘ out of which the church‘s social justice or social witness emerges (:24-25).
9 More details on the strategies of addressing HIV and AIDS are discussed in the Section 3.3.4.
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It therefore appears that the theology of Wesley and a derivative understanding of the FMC mission inherently encompass elements that are helpful for the church‘s engagement in the community, especially in times of health and social challenges. Among others, it is understood that the church has to minister to all humankind regardless of their gender, illness, culture and social status, since they all reflect God‘s image. The church is also expected to respond to all human needs, whether these are spiritual, social, emotional or physical. The church should not condemn or discriminate against people on the basis of their conformity to the church‘s structures or belief. In this respect this study draws attention to how the FMCSA has responded to HIV and AIDS and its gendered nature and how Wesleyan theology and practice can be used as valuable resources for the fulfilment of this Church‘s missional engagement.