The 2016 General Assembly welcomed and adopted the Vision for Society Statement, which seeks to continue to place peacebuilding firmly at the heart of Christian discipleship and the Presbyterian Church in Ireland.
At the time, the convener of the Council for Church in Society, Very Rev. Dr. Norman Hamilton said, “This is a symbol of our desire that this statement will both be a stimulus for our engagement with wider society, as well as a powerful symbol that this is a calling of the whole Church to a highly important aspect of Christian and biblical witness.”
You can read the text of the Vision for Society Statement here.
Vision for Society Hymn
A hymn using the words of the Vision for Society statement has been produced and the words are below. Written in common measure, a suuitable tune is Stuttgart.
A copy in Word format is available opposite in teh download box.
Vision for Society
Saved by grace and called by Jesus,
That is who we truly are.
Filled with grace towards our neighbours
In the Holy Spirit`s power.
Broken is this world, divided,
Here, as Church, we`re called to be
Witnesses of Jesus` Kingdom,
Show his grace for all to see
We believe that we are challenged
And equipped by Christ our Lord,
To transform this land of Ireland
As directed by His word
Humbly we confess our failure
Proud and hurtful ways to trash
And live out Christ`s counter culture
In a land where cultures clash
Jesus calls His true disciples
To build peace: it is His way
We assert the Church`s calling,
Bridge divisions in our day.
We now pledge to build peace better,
Working for the common good
Friend and foe must find Christ`s healing
Strive for peace as Christians should.
AWGB
In PCI’s 500-plus congregations across Ireland, peacebuilding will look different. Different in Belfast as it will look from peacebuilding in Dublin as it will in Galway, or Cork; but its centrality to Christian discipleship remains the same wherever God has placed us.
To support congregations to prayerfully consider how they can outwork Christ’s call to be peacebuilders in their own communities, the Council for Congregational Life and Witness has produced a number of additional free resources:
“It is my prayer that our Vision for Society Statement and our continued commitment to peacebuilding will bear much fruit.”
Rev. Stephen Johnston, convener, Congregational Life and Witness Good Relations Panel.