The

Fellowship
ISSUE 3 - 2015

Fellowship of Non-Subscribing Christians

FNSC

Inside:
Nation Shall Speak Peace unto Nation
One Faith, One Church
A Church for and of the People
A Way Unfolds
In Praise of God

We preach Christ
crucified
0161 339 6740

1 Corinthians 1:23

FNSC 2015

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Nation Shall Speak Peace

unto Nation

Editorial

The meeting of the FNSC at Flowery Field Free Christian Church in Hyde served
to underscore the validity of our still new organisation of ecumenical, non creedal
Christian Fellowship. That the presence of the FNSC is well received amongst
such Christians is without doubt. Our message of traditional Christian values and
liberal inclusiveness is the message our members and supporters wish to hear. In
his sermon the Rev. Chris Wilson (p.3) said, Christianity is under attack as never
before." Sadly, how true this is and how this truth behoves us to recall the words
of the Apostle Paul in his letter to the Romans that we should not be conformed
to this world but rather that we should be transformed by the renewing of our
minds so that we might prove what is that good, and acceptable and perfect will of
God (12:2). At the same time, we cannot be indifferent to a world that has largely
turned away from the Christian faith, we cannot be indifferent to its constant
waging of pointless wars, the unnecessary poverty in a world created for plenty,
and we cannot be indifferent to the plight of thousands of refugees cast adrift at
sea. If we truly desire the Kingdom of God we cannot ignore injustice.
In this issue of The Fellowship we bring notice of our Annual General Meeting in
Oldham on September 12th and the good news that the FNSC is growing and
consolidating as a unique Christian voice. Reflecting the ecumenism of the
Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland and its deepening relationship
with the Congregational Federation, we are pleased to present an article by the
Rev. Tom Wilson. Tom is a Congregational minister and a former President of the
Congregational Federation in Scotland who writes that he wanted to be part of a
church that is 'people focused and Christ centred'. The title of his article, A Church
for and of the People is inspiring indeed.
Blessings to one and all.

Annual General Meeting of FNSC

Saturday, September 12th, 1 p.m. at Unitarian Chapel Oldham,
King Street, OL8 1EB
Membership Enquiries: kenhoward75@gmail.com
Published by the FNSC, 27 Marne Avenue, Ashton-under-Lyne,
Lancashire, OL6 9DW. bob.pounder@zen.co.uk
www.fnschristians.org
www.facebook.com/fnschristians

The Rev. Lena Cockroft

The motto of the BBC is, so far as I

know, Nation shall speak unto
nation. I used to think it was Nation
shall speak peace unto nation, but I
dont think it is. How wonderful it
would be if it were true.
We are in the time of Pentecost in the
Christian calendar and, of course, the
great thing at Pentecost was that the
disciples, without much formal
education in languages, could
suddenly understand and make
themselves understood among a
great diversity of people.It should
have been a wonderful time, but
instead we read that everybody got
confused. Obviously the ability to
speak to each other and understand
what they said didnt provide all the
answers.
Two people were once discussing the
Bible and one remarked that he was
worried there was so much of it he
couldnt understand. The other replied
that it wasnt the parts of the Bible he
couldnt understand which worried
him, it was the parts he could!!
Today, even without the miraculous
intervention of the Holy Spirit,

however we explain him, we can

understand and communicate, almost
instantaneously, with more countries
than ever before.There are more
experts than ever before available to
us who can explain the problems
every nation has.
But communication hasnt provided
the answer. Just like Pentecost,
increased communication has made
things even more confusing than ever.
Maybe thats where this complex
phenomenon we call the Holy Spirit
really does come in. He doesnt just
enable us to speak to people who are
different, or even to understand them,
he actually teaches us what to say to
them the words they need to hear.
Jesus once promised that his followers
were never to worry about what to say
in difficult situations. When the time
came they would know the words to
use. How I wish it were so now
because never before have the
nations needed to hear the right
words.
Maybe its not enough that the wonders of technology have enabled nation to speak unto nation, we still
need some kind of miraculous intervention, either by the Holy Spirit or
otherwise , that nation shall speak
PEACE unto nation. Amen, so let it be!
The Rev. Lena Cockroft is the FNSC
honorary president and minister at
Ballymoney and Glenarm NSPCI

FNSC 2015

One Faith
One Church
A Report

Flowery Field Church

The Rev. Chris Wilson

Our Fellowship meeting took

place on Saturday, March 21st at
Flowery Field Free Christian
Church in Hyde, Greater
Manchester. Over thirtyfive
people, including ministers, and
five members from Northern
Ireland, were in attendance. The
opening service of devotion was
led by the Rev Chris Wilson. We
give thanks to the members,
officers and ministers of the
church for their support and
generous hospitality.
Chris preached an inspiring message
of Christian unity and began by
reminding the assembled Fellowship
that Christianity is under attack as
never before. He declared that what
was required in holding fast to the
Christian faith was confidence and
clarity. He went on to say that for
Christians, confidence arises from the
essential understanding of the
centrality of the cross, entailing the
sacrificial death and the resurrection

of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, that

additional doctrines or creeds were
not necessary but that the cross itself
is sufficient.
Chris claimed that the Christian faith
is not for the ambivalent, saying, You
cannot be a bit Christian, anymore
than you can be a bit Hindu or a bit
Muslim - Christ requires us to
choose. In other words the Christian
is called to whole hearted
commitment, to follow Christ by taking
up the cross.
Addressing the unfashionable
question of sin, a subject that is often
denied or ignored these days, Chris
met the subject head on by readily
acknowledging it simply as part of the
human condition - that not one of us is
perfect. Hardly a revelation to those
who are honest enough to face up to
it. He continued: Our faith affirms
original sin - that inbuilt human ability
to choose wrongly, to choose badly
and to hurt others.
Our weakness is therefore
self evident. Like David of old, we
may seek new and clean hearts, and
although we are Christians, not Jews,
the Law, as in the Ten Commandments, for example, is not sufficient.
The cross, however, brings

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transformation:

Unless a grain of wheat is planted

in the soil and dies, it remains
alone, but its death produces much
new grain - an abundant harvest of
many new lives.
Death and resurrection are the paradigm for the spiritual life, the life to
which we are called. Christ died to
waken us, to shake us from our moral
stupor, to demonstrate the sacrificial
love of God in action - of a God who
loves.
The service of devotion was followed
by a meeting of the membership
chaired by the Rev. Chris Wilson and
opened by the Rev. Bob Pounder
whose opening comments on the
theme of One Faith,One Church
inspired numerous contributions from
the floor.
Again and again the question of clarity
in terms of the direction that our
churches should be moving in was the
main area of concern. Unsurprisingly,
the consensus was for the continuation
of our Christian tradition, unfettered,
non-creedal, with an eye to that
famous maxim, the sacred right of
private judgement. Whether Unitarian
or Trinitarian it mattered not.
The Fellowship of Non-Subscribing
Christians (FNSC) with its close ties to
the Non-Subscribing Presbyterian
Church of Ireland has been founded
for reasons of faith and fellowship to
give direction and hope to all
Christians in this tradition and to those

in sympathy with a wider

ecumenism. It was felt that this is
what the current situation demands.

The meeting was reminded, in that

Lenten period, of the counter-cultural
message of Christ for He had said
that His kingdom was not of this
world.
We preach Christ crucified

In the early Church there was no

ambiguity, as far as the Apostle Paul
was concerned. It was led by the
Holy Spirit and it existed and lived to
challenge the mores of the world. It
was definitely not a soft option. Paul
did not mince his words he said that
he preached Christ crucified and
that the preaching of the cross is
foolishness to the world. But the
exhortation was not to seek glory in
the things of this world but to find
glory in God.
In the New Testament we find the
letters of Paul, the founding
documents of the Christian Church.
We might wonder what relevance the
early Church may have for us today.
The answer is that across the
centuries its message of courage and
conviction still speak to us today.
As our speakers observed, now,
more than ever, in an increasingly
secular and indifferent society, the
Church must find its voice, the
Christian voice must be heard.
The Rev. Chris Wilson is
minister at Moneyreagh
Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church

FNSC 2015

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A Church for and of the People!

By Tom Wilson

The Rev. Tom Wilson

Life in the church began for me as

a member of the Church of
Scotland, the church of my
baptism, confirmation, wedding
and my childrens baptisms.
However, it was also in the church
that I was becoming more
uncomfortable with the legalism and
shift away, in my view, from the
people. It was rules and regulations
and this is the church that folks are
members of voluntarily! I felt they
were being told how to think, worship
and in some instances they were
being dictated to by insecure
ministers who imposed their views on
the churches they served. Obviously
this is a broad brush view and there
are many fine people serving CofS
churches but I felt disenfranchised
and I was the proverbial round peg in
a square hole.
I never enjoyed the creeds used
particularly at Communion; I couldnt
see the point of a sectarian and
outdated document like the Westminster Confession of Faith. I knew that I
needed to be part of a church that
was nearer to the people and I

gravitated to the Congregational way.

I wanted to be part of something that
was, in my mind, people focused and
Christ centred. I wanted worship similar
to the Presbyterian church but without
the influence of external bodies to the
local church. As Congregationalists we
are not subject to the authority of a
presbytery, synod or diocese. Now
dont get me wrong, there are times in
Congregationalism that I wish we had
overseers who could come and mediate or that we had some Presbyterian
discipline (but thats a story for another
time).
In Scotland, our system of Congregationalism is very much that of
Independent Presbyterian Indeed our
history of Independency goes back to
the 18th century but it is the period of
the Evangelical Union of Scotland,
which in turn merged with the Congregationalists to form the Congregational
Union of Scotland in the latter half of
the 19th century that I identify with.
The EU/Congregational Church was
Independent but operated an almost
Presbyterian system within the Union
and within her member churches. One
thing that is vital for the reader to
understand, the Congregational way
is different in every church, from their
management to their understanding of
Congregationalism.

This background shaped my theology,

for in my view the EU/Congregational
was a progressive, visionary and
missionary church. One only has to
consider Dr David Livingstone, a
Congregationalist sent by the London
Missionary Society (now Council for
World Mission). Our Independent
system grew in stature and if I can use
the phrase a church for and of the
people youll hopefully understand
where I am coming from.
It was a denomination which baptised
children, ordained the first woman
minister in Scotland and who offered
hope to the disenfranchised and an
open communion table for all who loved
the Lord. The practical and pragmatic
theology of welcoming all of Gods
people, Jew, Gentile and otherO
My theological approach has been
shaped by the vision and progressive
thinking of this august body which had
its roots firmly established in the past
but with a keen eye on the future; a
welcoming, warm and loving church.
Thats where I come from. Shaped by
our heritage and traditions but
progressive and hopefully warm and
embracing of all Gods people
unconditionally for He gives to us,
unconditional love.
I believe the NSPCI is similar to the

original EU/Congregational church in

Scotland; we certainly have much in
common. I view the NSPCI as a
denomination that is firmly established
and comfortable in its heritage but with
a vision for the future and not
frightened to explore that vision,
especially with the office bearers that
Ive met so far. Perhaps it has
something to do with the fact that it
was a Scots minister who travelled
over from Stirling and began one of the
first presbyteries. He was, if memory
serves, expelled from the Church of
Scotland; a true non conformist and
thats the tradition that has shaped my
theology!
Footnote: The Congregational Union
of Ireland has no connections with the
Congregationalists in Scotland or in the
UK. We do not have fraternal relations
with the Irish Union and we do not
have a mutual recognition, there are no
formal or informal channels of dialogue
as our theological approach is very
different!
The Rev.Tom Wilson is minister at
Knightswood Congregational Church,
Glasgow. He is also a past Chair of the
Congregational Federation in Scotland,
and a former member of the General
Council (Trustee body) of the
Federation nationally.

FNSC 2015

A Way Unfolds
Male and female figures of adoration in
the Christian and Buddhist tradition
By Ross Howard

Whoever it was who said,

Christianity is Christ, certainly
has my approval, as also does
the early non-Christians who
declared that Christians are
people who worship the god
Jesus. I have come to understand

knowledge of this aeons-old universe indeed it seems that there may well be
universes far beyond this one - that I
do not see how we can claim
knowledge of a creating, controlling
God. Certainly, I think that there must
be some vast intelligence behind it
all,but what can we know about it ?
What satisfactory explanation is there
for the existence of good and evil?

The two greatest religions of

humankind have perceived this, and
have provided us with male and
female celestial figures of the Buddha
and Kuan-yin1, of Christ and Mary. To
be sure, they are seemingly
omnipresent idealisations of the
earthly figures who bear their names,
but who can argue that we do not need
such figures of compassion and sexual
purity? It is they to whom some of us
feel that we must turn in times of
distress

Sadly, many people have been

brought up to believe that there is a
caring, protecting and powerful God
to whom they can turn, and have
become disillusioned when they have
not been able to obtain help. Some
have then abandoned religion
altogether.

that such worship is necessary that we

humans are by nature anthropmorphic.

Science has so increased our

But the the greatest religions,

Buddhism and Christianity, have not
left us without answers. They have
wisely provided us with male and
female celestial objects of adorationthe Buddha, Kuan-yin, Christ and
Mary. And psychical research has

Writing in the U.K.in 1921,Principal the Reverend Dr Sydney Cave

quotes from an ancient Buddhist source: "She (Kuan-yin) possesses the
perfection all virtues,and beholds all beings with compassion and benevolence;
she, an ocean of virtues, Virtue itself,she,Kuan-yin,is worthy of adoration. "

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made it plain to us that we who have
an earthly phsyical existence will also
have an afterlife, and be able to do
whatever we are able to help our
loved ones struggling on earth.There
can, at times, be help and there is no
need to discard religion because of
misleading ideas which we may have
been taught.

With it I have survived the

crushing loss of my wife,
through illness, and my
adult son, by suicide.
That remarkable teacher of spiritual
disciplines, Eknath Easwaran, in his
book about mantras (which he prefers
to call mantrams) tells us how
beneficial the mental recitation of the
name of a personal object of devotion
is, and books about Mayahana
Buddhism, as well as the Christian
classic, The Cloud of Unknowing,
confirm this. In my experience, such
mantras do indeed greatly assist us
along the way, and my own daily
mantra is "Kuan-yin'', the shortened
name of the beautiful Chinese female
Buddhist figure of compassion and
holiness, in virtue like the Christian
Mary and, like her. adored by millions.
Now, when I am no longer young, I
very much wish to recommend the
helpful way that I have discovered.
Free Christianity, is, it is claimed, an
open door for spiritual and
intellectual insights, so here is
knowledge of a spiritual way which I
hope will help others as much as it
has helped me.

With it I have survived the crushing

loss of my wife, through illness, and
my adult son by suicide. Life is not
easy for any of us, but there are
celestial helpers, and using their
names as simple, two-syllable
mantras can assist us tremendously
every day. We only have to be willing
to adore these great celestial figures
and to mentally recite their names Jesu, Marie (Mary),Buddha,
Kuan-yin.

Biography
Mr Ross Howard writes that he is an
authorised Lay Preacher of the
General Assembly of Unitarian and
Free Christian Churches
Churches, London, UK .
Although currently residing in New
South Wales, Australia, Mr Howard
has recently joined the Fellowship of
Non-Subscribing Christians.

Recommended Further Reading

For further reading on this subject Mr
Howard strongly recommends 1). Mantram Handbook by Eknath
Easwaran. Nilgiri Press, USA.
2). Bodhissattva of Compassion:
the Mystical Tradion of Kuan-yin
by John Blofeld, Shambala
Publications
Kuan-yin1 is the embodiment of
selfless love, the supreme symbol of
radical compassion

FNSC 2015

In Praise of God
Matt Grant

The hymn the Servant Song

describes the Christian life as one
like any other, involving joys and
sorrows. Yet the hymn adds that
the Christian life is also distinct
for the way that life is
approached. The Christian life

involves seeking to become Christlike, primarily through life with one

another I will hold the Christ-light for
you in the night-time of your fearO
when you laugh Ill laugh with you.
This practical vision is, for me at least,
where I find faith most moving.
A contemporary hymn I often play
when alone is Matt Redmans Blessed
Be Your Name. This hymn begins
with, Blessed be your name, in the
land that is plentifulO It is a line I
frequently roll around in my head,
almost as a mantra. It is easy to
become blinkered by daily concerns
yet most readers will share with me
the good fortune of a reliable income,
a home, a family life and so on. Just
recently I was at the barbers - there
was a new hairdresser on duty, newly
arrived from Iran. I didnt pry too much
but did learn he had left his family
behind and was currently looking to
rent a room - somewhere, anywhere.
As we talked, he asked me where I
lived, whether I owned my own house
etc. and commented knowingly, Ah,
you are richO The hymn continues
that we should also praise God during

times of wilderness and here we find

the Christian mindset at work, a call to
spend our lives counting our blessings
and passing them onwards, whatever
the circumstances but especially so
during times of plenty.

We remain rooted in Scripture

Finally, not really a hymn, but an old
pop song which struck me during this
Easter just gone Johnny Cashs
rendition of I wont back down. Cash
sings, I'll keep this world from
dragging me down, gonna stand my
ground. And I won't back down. There
is of course a greater narrative to the
Easter story but the basic detail a
man who wouldnt let go of his heartfelt
principles in the face of a storm is
deeply inspiring. There is this
resoluteness to Jesus, what some
might call reckless abandon, but when
set in the context of his ministry,
becomes something amazing. Some
religious liberals seemingly wish to
make Jesus somehow more radical,
be it repainting him as Che Guevara or
recasting him as transgender, and so
on. I dont necessarily have a problem
with re-exploring Jesus, so long as we
remain rooted in scripture, but what
really can be more radical than giving
over your entire life for other people?
The power found in each of these is
they celebrate on the one hand and
throw down a challenge on the other,
and in doing so, uplift and inspire me.
Matt Grant is a Unitarian
Lay Worship Leader

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10

The Fellowship of Non-Subscribing Christians

Mission Statement
We, the Fellowship of Non-Subscribing Christians, affirm:
that Jesus Christ is the sole Head of the One Church to which all Christians are
called;
that Christians are united, not by creed, but by a common standard of
behaviour after the example of Christ;
that the authority of conscience in matters of faith, and in the understanding
the Bible, is our sacred right;
that all Christians, of whatever tradition, and sharing a common baptism, can
and should unite on this basis.
Aim
To unite in common endeavour all Christians resident in the United Kingdom
and Irish Republic, who accept the preamble above and who object to compulsory subscription to creeds as the defining standard of their Christian faith.
Objects
To encourage the advancement of Christian faith
To unite in common work and worship
To provide a spiritual home to individual Non-Subscribing Christians throughout
the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland
To encourage thoughtful understanding of scripture
To co-operate with such denominations whose purpose is in accordance with
our own
To raise such funds as may be necessary for the furtherance of objects
Membership
Membership of the Fellowship shall be opening to all Christians resident in the
United Kingdom or the Irish Republic, and who accept the Preamble above, the
Constitution of this Fellowship, and upon the payment of a yearly subscription
to be determined from time to time by the General Purposes Committee of this
Fellowship
Committee
Hon. President: Rev. Lena Cockcroft
Chair: Rev. Bob Pounder
Secretary: Rev. Chris Wilson
Treasurer: Rev. Brian Cockroft
Membership Secretary:Mr Ken Howard
Social Media Officer: Mr Matthew Grant
Press and Publicity Officer: Rev. Bob Pounder