Caution Over W. C. C. Grant

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32395, 7 September 1970, Page 1

Caution Over W. C. C. Grant

Money from New Zea-1 land members of the National Council or Churches could form part of the $170,000 which the executive committee of the World Council of Churches had decided to grant to antiracist organisations, the general-secretary of the N.C.C. (the Rev. D. M. Taylor) said in Christchurch last evening. Everyone was rushing to the conclusion that the World Council of Churches had made a terrible mistake, Mr Taylor said. “I am very sceptical of the newspaper reports that the grant would be used to sup port terrorist organisations “I have a good deal more trust in the executive committee of the World Council

I —those responsible 1 am sure] [know just what they are | doing.”

The council here must await information from the world headquarters in

Geneva before New Zealand’s position could be clearly defined, Mr Taylor said. Asked if the N.C.C. might withdraw from the world body if it was found that the money was going to support terrorist organisations, Mr Taylor pointed out that the N.C.C. was free to withdraw from the World Council of Churches at any time. “But we must await accurate information on just what is happening—rushing to conclusions is pointless." Mr Taylor said that the decision of the World Council to support anti-racist organisations was emphasised by the most recent edition of the magazine of the South African Council of Churches. “Two whole pages of this were blank—censored because they carried reports of the trial of Winnie Mandela —this type of censorship puts the churches in a terrible position.

s “It is to stop this sort of - thing that the W.C.C. wants to give money—there is a I world of difference between ' this and assumptions that the : grant of $170,000 is to be t used for support of guerrilla ’ organisations.” ■ Certainly, he said, no-one ! could be a Christian today r without involvement in some type of civil action, but this ’ involvement did not mean the 1 type of ierrorist activity that ' had been alluded to in the controversy overseas about - the W.C.C. grant. I “We will have to wait to - see what happens—but we ’ must remember, and readers ’ must remember that the dei cision to fight racialism was . taken at the world congress > in Uppsala two years ago—- • this grant is merely giving f teeth to that decision,” Mr i Taylor said. ’ (Decision: Page 13)