Confessing Movement
The Confessing Movement is a largely lay-led theologically conservative Christian movement that opposes the influence of theological liberalism and theological progressivism currently within several mainline Protestant denominations and seeks to return them to its view of orthodox doctrine, or form a new denomination and disfellowship (excommunicate) them if the situation becomes untenable. Those who eventually deem dealing with theological liberalism and theological progressivism within their churches and denominations as not being tenable anymore would later join or start Confessional Churches and/or Evangelical Churches that continue with the traditions of their respective denominations and maintaining orthodox doctrine while being ecclesiastically separate from the Mainline Protestant denominations.
For other organizations with similar names, see Confessing Church and Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals.It overlaps with other conservative Christian movements including Evangelicalism, and within Methodism specifically, the Holiness movement. Its members have stated their commitment to work to change their home denominations from within rather than establishing new ones, even if they are unable to regain full influence. It also has overlaps with Confessionalism which is identified with the belief in the importance of full and unambiguous assent to the whole of a religious movements' or denominations' teachings such as those found in Confessions of Faith which they see as accurate summaries of the teachings found in Scripture and accurately shows their distinction from other groups. Confessionalism is most visible among Lutherans known as Confessional Lutherans. The Confessing Movement places particular weight on the role of evangelism and traditional Bible teachings concerning the deity of Christ and holds conservative, historical Christian views on sexuality, especially homosexuality.
Confessing Movement in the churches[edit]
A large group of laity and a somewhat smaller group of clergy within the mainline churches hold that their denominations have been "hijacked" by those who, in their view, have 'forsaken Christianity' for moral relativism to accommodate democratic pluralist society in America. They reject church leaders such as United Methodist Bishop Joseph Sprague of Chicago and Episcopal Bishop John Shelby Spong as apostate.
Although tension between theological modernizers and traditionalists in American Protestantism has existed for generations, the formation of the Confessing Movement was triggered by changing positions on sexual orientation and especially the ordination of "practicing homosexuals" as clergy. Other issues influencing some groups were the ordination of women, and the decline in attendance of many of the mainline denominations through the 1950s to the 1980s in the US, with leaders of the Confessing Movement arguing that the shrinking of mainline church membership resulted from conservative members leaving for growing evangelical churches rather than liberal members disengaging.
Global[edit]
Methodist[edit]
The Confessing Movement within the United Methodist Church quotes Methodism's founder, John Wesley, who said:
Australia[edit]
Uniting Church in Australia[edit]
The Assembly of Confessing Congregations of the Uniting Church in Australia formed in 2006. It is the result of the coming together of two groups: the Reforming Alliance (est. 2003 in response decision by the UCA's 2003 Assembly not ban outright on the ordination of practicing homosexuals,[10]) and the Evangelical Members within the Uniting Church in Australia (EMU) (est. in the early 1990s as a conservative response to what was seen as the church's growing liberalism).
Some traditionalist members of the Uniting Church in Australia have left to join conservative denominations, with those who are Wesleyan-Arminian in theology joining the Free Methodist Church and those who are Reformed in theology joining groups such as the Free Presbyterian Church.