The Central Standing Committee is to be commended for the publication of the eighty-eight page booklet which records in a very matter-of-fact style the hard core of scriptural truth upon which the reunion of the Australian ecclesias was achieved in 1958.
After five years those episodes in the progress toward unity which in their day seemed most thrilling have been almost forgotten, even by senior members. The step-by-step progress was then watched with anxious eyes as first the growing desire for reconciliation was succeeded by a sympathy on both sides for what seemed to be conflicting points of view, and then by a solution of the difficulties which had seemed intractible, to be followed in the end by a break down of all except a minority resistance. The culmination of a slowly growing volume of earnest efforts by isolated individuals and small committees healed a breach which had occurred about 1904.
Very wisely the booklet has nothing to say about the details of what Bro. C. C. Walker characterised in his day as a “nebulous controversy”. It had few solid features that could be firmly grappled with. It was nebulous because it rested too much upon misunderstandings both personal and factual —such as is the case all too often in matters of this sort—upon words with defined meanings and upon opinions and interpretations which escalated uncontrollably between different levels ranging all the way from intense literality to airy-fairy figure of speech. In the midst of it all, it was hard to see the real nature of the controversy; but brethren looking back to it now after five years of intimate association with their former adversaries can realize how nebulous it was and what a large amount of damage was done by misdirected zeal.
It is right and proper also that the record should pass over in silence the long and patient investigations which reunion committees conducted into controversial problems, and the sleepless cogitations which led ultimately to a full understanding. The workers were too many to do justice to, and in any case the aim of the publication was not to honour individuals. The controversy is now a thing of the past and should not be revived—not even with the best of intentions; it had so many undesirable features, and it had no compensation to offer by way of a knowledge more than was already known about the divine beauty of the nature of Christ Jesus and his atoning sacrifice; its only redeeming feature was that mentioned by Bro. John Carter—it led through trial and error to a sounder balance of understanding.
The aim of the booklet is manifestly higher than personal praise; but, lest the important fact should be forgotten or blurred by time, to establish beyond all doubt that the reconciliation was upon the soundest of understandings of scriptural truths, and not at all upon any hasty compromise which in years to come could be used to unsettle the ecclesias. For this reason it records in clear, concise form those matters only that are relevant to the main objective. These things should be remembered as long as possible by a grateful generation of believers.
This aspect of things is made abundantly clear by reproduction of the Cooper-Carter Addendum to misunderstood clauses 5 and 12 of the Amended Birmingham Statement of Faith; also Bro. Carter’s masterly addresses upon Isaiah 53 and The Atonement, given in 1958; and in addition some points from the Roberts-Andrews debate, in order to identify some remaining pockets of disaffection with J. J. Andrews’ erroneous teachings. A few pertinent quotations from Dr. Thomas clinch the sound foundation of the reconciliation.
A very useful and impressive inclusion is an index of subject references, and another index of scriptural references.
The booklet concludes upon the leading note, “Purity of doctrine is essential, but, above all, the truth must reach the heart and engage the affections. Brethren are urged to avoid the mistakes of the past, to avoid personalities and discord in the body (1 Cor. 12. 20) ; to cease from all evil speaking . . . morbid craving for controversy, and disputes about words, all of which things are works of the flesh that destroy unity and harmony, and will exclude from the Kingdom of God (1 Pet. 2. 1; Gal. 5. 19-21; 1 Tim. 6. 3-5). With this, surely, there can be no disagreement.
Review of “The Early Earth” by John Whitcomb (1972)