God’s Gift of Unity C

hristian unity is both a gift given by God and a demand placed upon the church, declared Baptist World Alliance General Secretary Neville Callam. Callam made these claims while delivering the keynote address

at a Christian Unity Dinner during the American Baptist Churches (ABC) USA Biennial meetings in Puerto Rico in June. “It is Christ

BWA General Secretary Neville Callam delivered the keynote address at

the Christian Unity Dinner during the American Baptist Churches USA meetings in San Juan,

Puerto Rico, in June. The picture shows Callam,

left, with J. George Reed, executive director of the

North Carolina Council of Churches, who received the Luke Mowbray

Award for outstanding

contribution to the cause of advancing ecumenism, Mrs. Reed, and ABC USA General Secretary Roy Medley.

efforts at unity in Singapore and a desire for spiritual awakening among Baptists in the Southeast Asian nation; attempts at balancing a respect for the autonomy of the local church and the local church’s acceptance of the need for voluntary accountability in the Caribbean island of Jamaica; the faithful witness of Bulgarian Baptists, who recently celebrated 130 years of Baptist witness in

who unites us and sets us free,” he said. But “the church has an obligation to manifest the unity that is given in Christ ‘so that the world may believe.’” It is important, the BWA leader stated, that this unity is

visible within the church. “The church’s vocation to unity [must] faithfully be pursued” through “honest and deep work to discover convergences in understanding of the Christian faith, life and witness.” The church, Callam claimed, should be clear on the points on which there are agreements, where there are differences, “and the perspectives that could serve as a bridge over differences… not regarded as church dividing.” Callam indicated that there are several rubrics through which

Christian unity can be viewed – spiritual unity, a unity that all Christians and churches share; conciliar fellowship, where churches are “reunited” to their historical base; koinonia, which is “given and expressed in a common confession of the apostolic faith;” and reconciled diversity, where “churches strive to recognize in themselves and in others the one holy catholic and apostolic church in its fullness,” penetrating “behind their differences to discover the space where they co-exist in Christ.” Callam also addressed a special breakfast meeting during the

ABC USA Biennial, providing updates on recent developments among Baptists around the world. Callam noted steps that have been taken in Kenya to forge greater unity through a reconciliation process after divisions among Baptists in the East African country;

the Eastern European country despite persecution and hardships; an increased appreciation for holistic ministry among Latin American Baptists, as evidenced in Chile after the devastating February 2010 earthquake; and the generous spirit of Baptists in the United States for those in need. At the Christian Unity Dinner in Puerto Rico, J. George Reed,

executive director of the North Carolina Council of Churches, received the Luke Mowbray Award for outstanding contribution to the cause of advancing ecumenism, and Yosh Nakagawa, staff member of the Asian American Caucus and Ministries for the Evergreen Baptist Association of ABC USA, was awarded the Sparrowk President’s Award for exceptional and outstanding contribution to the church.

Christian unity is both a gift given by God and a demand placed upon the church The ABC USA Biennial was held in San Juan, Puerto Rico,

from June 24-26. ABC USA, which has a tradition going back to the 17th

OCTOBER/DECEMBER 2011 27

century, comprises approximately 1.3 million members in 5,500 churches in the United States and Puerto Rico.

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