According to the General Secretary of the Church of the Nazarene, the new Manual went into effect this past Saturday, March 15. Unfortunately, the Manual was not yet available. That issue has been resolved . . . at least by virtue of the online version.
It does not appear that the hard copy version of the Manual is yet available. - I have been waiting for my copy, and I am hoping that it will be ready, shipped, and will arrive before the end of the month. - I know, I know. There are plenty of Nazarenes that joke about the Manual. They joke about those who treat it like the Bible, and they, themselves, don't seem to consider it to be of much importance.
I suppose I am one of those about whom they joke. Certainly, I don't consider it to be anywhere near as important as the Bible. Nevertheless, I do hold it in high esteem. It is the book of doctrine and discipline for the denomination through which I serve. And, I have spent much time and effort working on various resolutions which have been incorporated into the Manual over the last few quadrenniums. - Then, again, we live in a time when people, even within the Church, have little regard for authority, despite the biblical call for us to submit ourselves to such. This, of course, is not an attitude unique to Nazarenes. I have found the same attitude among United Methodists concerning their own Book of Discipline.
Nevertheless, I'm excited about the release of the new Manual! (I would be really excited if any reader of this blog had a 1911 version of the Manual they would be willing to sell. That would complete my collection!) - Anyway, for those who are interested, to go to the online version of the 2013-2017 Manual, click here.
I have added the new link to the sidebar, as well. (However, we'll have to wait for on online image of the new Manual, before I can replace the 2009-2013 image.)
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