Working Principles

We seek to exercise the ministries God has given us in obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ and in reliance on the Holy Spirit. We therefore aim to follow Biblical principles in all that we do and to emphasise the vital importance of prayer.

We approach our work in the following ways:

1. Evangelism and Teaching

1. We are committed to teaching basic Christian truths as an essential part of evangelism.
2. We aim to express God's Good News to children, young people and families, not only in words, but also by building caring relationships with them.
3. We make every effort to communicate the Gospel in contemporary language and in ways appropriate to the context.
4. We emphasise that faith should always lead to action and to growth in Christian character and service.
5. We acknowledge that the Gospel has inescapable social dimensions and therefore it involves us in service to others and a concern for social justice. In view of our specific aims, we have a special responsibility for children and young people who are poor, deprived or exploited.
6. We encourage children to follow Christ in ways that are appropriate to their age, culture and background, taking special account of their home and family situation and level of maturity.
7. We believe that the new birth is a profound supernatural experience, brought about by the Holy Spirit. So we invite people to respond to what he is doing in their lives and guard against calling for superficial responses.
8. We are committed to working in ways that reflect our beliefs, in appropriate cooperation with organisations and institutions, such as schools, that welcome us.

2. Bible Ministries

In encouraging people to meet God through the Bible, we emphasise the significance of the Bible as a whole.

1. We encourage people to read it so that they come to repentance, faith, obedience to God and worship.
2. We prepare systematic programmes and materials for children, young people and adults, appropriate to their age and situation.
3. We are committed to Bible reading which is thoughtful, prayerful and regular and which enables the reader to respond to the message of the whole Bible rather than to isolated passages.
4. We are concerned to interpret the text in a way which enables people, in their contemporary situations, to hear for themselves the message of the Bible from its original context.

3. Churches

1. We recognise our part in God's worldwide family and seek ways of working positively with a variety of churches.
2. We encourage people who come to faith through our ministries to take part in the life of a local church fellowship.

4. Equality and Unity

1. We believe that all human beings are of equal worth in the sight of God and that all those who put their faith in Christ are one in him.
2. We are therefore committed to exercising our ministries without discrimination as to race, colour, gender, language or social position.
3. We recognise that Scripture Union worldwide is a family of national movements in which resources can be shared in a responsible way on a basis of trust.
4. We express our Christian commitment in varied and creative ways since we are drawn from diverse backgrounds.

5. Volunteers and Staff

1. We work with a relatively small number of staff who recruit, motivate, train, equip and support a larger number of volunteers with whom they work in partnership.
2. We believe that the Holy Spirit confers gifts of leadership on Christians of all nations without discrimination. So we encourage national leadership of Scripture Union movements, while recognising the contribution of those from other countries.
3. We, as staff and volunteers, from a variety of backgrounds, are united in our commitment to the aims, beliefs and working principles of Scripture Union.
4. We agree that, while we are involved in Scripture Union activities, we will handle controversial issues, such as baptism, spiritual gifts and church order, in ways that promote harmony.

6. Biblical Standards

1. We aim to follow biblical principles in all that we do. This includes, for example, our administration, our publicity and the way we care for our staff and volunteers.
2. We seek to honour God in carrying out our ministries, by combining prayerful reliance on him with the use of the best available means, maintaining the highest standards possible.
3. We believe in praying for financial support, in dependence on God, and telling the Christian public of our needs, without distorting the truth or using undue pressure.