Learning from traditions— Churches and Moral1 Discernment Wijlens / Shmaliy Wijlens “The focus is on hearing from fellow-Christians – those of earlier genera- tions, as well as contemporaries from different traditions – about how they respond in practice to the call of Christ; how they interpret their situations, how they engage in processes of moral discernment, and how they reach and implement decisions.”—from the Introduction In our times moral issues seem to be a challenge to preserving unity within dif- ferent churches as well as a frequent obstacle to restoring visible unity between the churches. In response, this is the first of three volumes resulting from the work of a Faith and Order study group on moral discernment in the churches. CHURCHES AND MORAL DISCERNMENT 1 CHURCHES The volume features 14 self-descriptions of different traditions regarding moral discernment: their sources, the interplay of sources, and the processes of ecclesi- al deliberation. The different self-descriptions are presented to enable reflection on and provide awareness of how processes of moral discernment are envisioned by the respective traditions. They invite the reader, as well as churches, to study them, reflect on the moral discernment of their own tradition, and learn how others engage in moral discernment. Myriam Wijlens, a Dutch Roman Catholic theologian and canon lawyer, teaches at the Uni- versity of Erfurt (Germany). Her research focuses on necessary reforms of canonical structures in light of ecumenically relevant ecclesiological developments. Among her publications is Sharing the Eucharist. Vladimir Shmaliy is an associate professor of theology and vice-rector for academic affairs at the Moscow Theological Academy. An archpriest of the Russian Orthodox Church, he has served his church in many ecumenical dialogues and as a theological consultant to the Department of External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate. His research has ranged widely, including in theological anthropology and religion and science. FAITH AND ORDER PAPER 228 ECUMENISM / ETHICS Learning from Traditions Edited by Myriam Wijlens and Vladimir Shmaliy Churches and Moral Discernment Churches and Moral Discernment Volume 1 Learning from Traditions Edited by Myriam Wijlens and Vladimir Shmaliy Faith and Order Paper No. 228 CHURCHES AND MORAL DISCERNMENT Volume 1: Learning from Traditions Copyright © 2021 WCC Publications. All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in notices or reviews, no part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without prior written permis- sion from the publisher. Write: [email protected]. WCC Publications is the book publishing programme of the World Council of Churches. Founded in 1948, the WCC promotes Christian unity in faith, witness and service for a just and peaceful world. A global fellowship, the WCC brings together more than 350 Protestant, Orthodox, Anglican and other churches representing more than 560 million Christians in 110 countries and works coopera- tively with the Roman Catholic Church. Opinions expressed in WCC Publications are those of the authors. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, © copyright 1989 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. Used by permission. Cover design, book design and typesetting: Michelle Cook / 4 Seasons Book Design Cover image: Vassily Kandinsky, Circles in a Circle (detail), 1923. ISBN: 978-2-8254-1735-5 World Council of Churches 150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland https://www.oikoumene.org Contents Contributors vii Preface Myriam Wijlens and Vladimir Shmaliy ix Introduction Rachel Muers and Kristina Mantasasvili xv 1. Eastern Orthodox 1 Approaching Moral Questions from the Conscience of the Church Metropolitan Vasilios and Kristina Mantasasvili 2. Syrian Orthodox 9 Inspired by Ephrem the Syrian: Moral Discernment with a Therapeutic Approach Mor Polycarpus A. Aydin 3. Coptic Orthodox 21 Moral Discernment through the Praxical Pursuit of God Stephen M. Meawad 4. Armenian Orthodox 29 Sources for Moral Discernment: Armenian Apostolic Tradition Shahe Ananyan 5. Roman Catholic 37 Catholic Ethical Teaching: Between Infallibility and the Sense of the Faithful Josef Römelt 6. Old Catholic 49 Conscience Formed within the Community: Moral Discernment in the Old Catholic Church Theresa Hüther 7. Lutheran 57 Respecting the World, Engaging in the World: Basic Principles of Lutheran Ethics Bernd Oberdorfer 8. Reformed 71 Sharing Power to Discern the Will of God in Every Time and Place Rebecca Todd Peters vi Contents 9. Anglican 81 Anglican Moral Discernment: Sources, Structures, and Dynamics of Authority Jeremy Worthen 10. Historic Peace Churches 91 Peace at the Heart of Ecclesial Moral Discernment Rachel Muers 11. Baptist 99 Baptist Moral Discernment: Congregational Hearing and Weighing Steven R. Harmon 12. Methodist 115 The Role of Authority in Moral Discernment Morag Logan 13. Disciples of Christ 127 Disciples of Christ: Renewal, Unity, and Social Witness Kristine A. Culp 14. Pentecostal 137 Word, Spirit, and Discernment Cecil M. Robeck, Jr. Appendices: 1. Moral Discernment in the Churches: A Study Document (2013) 146 2. Faith and Order Study Group on Moral Discernment: Members 191 Contributors Rev. Dr Shahe Ananyan, Ecumenical Officer, Armenian Apostolic Church, Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin (Armenia) Dr Kristine A. Culp, Dean of the Disciples Divinity House and Associate Profes- sor of Theology at the Divinity School, University of Chicago (USA) Dr Steven R. Harmon, Professor of Historical Theology, Gardner-Webb Univer- sity School of Divinity, Boiling Springs, North Carolina (USA) Ms Theresa Hüther M.A., Research Assistant at the Old Catholic Seminary at the University of Bonn (Germany) Rev. Dr Morag Logan, Uniting Church of Australia, University Chaplain, Carl- ton (Australia) Ms Kristina Mantasasvili, Ecumenical Patriarchate, Department of European Educational Programmes, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece) Dr Stephen M. Meawad, Adjunct Professor of Catholic Studies at Sacred Heart University (Connecticut, USA); Adjunct Professor of Religious Studies and Theology at the University of St. Joseph (Connecticut, USA) Dr Rachel Muers, Society of Friends (Quakers), Professor of Theology, Univer- sity of Leeds (UK) Dr Bernd Oberdorfer, Professor of Systematic Theology, University of Augsburg (Germany) Rev. Dr Rebecca Todd Peters, Professor of Religious Studies and Director of Pov- erty and Social Justice at Elon University (North Carolina, USA); Ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament in the Presbyterian Church (USA) H.E. Dr Polycarpus A. Aydin, Metropolitan for the Archdiocese of the Nether- lands of the Syriac Orthodox Church (Netherlands) Dr Cecil M. Robeck, Jr., Ordained Minister of the Assemblies of God, Senior Professor of Church History and Ecumenics; and Special Assistant to the Pres- ident for Ecumenical Relations at Fuller Theological Seminary, in Pasadena, California (USA) vii Rev. Dr Joseph Römelt, CSsR, Professor of Moral Theology and Ethics, Catholic Faculty of Theology, University of Erfurt (Germany) Rev. Dr Vladimir Shmaliy is Associate Professor of Theology and Vice-Rector of the Moscow Theological Academy. H.E. Metropolitan Dr Vasilios of Constantia – Ammochostos, Church of Cyprus (Cyprus) Dr Myriam Wijlens, Professor of Canon Law, Catholic Faculty of Theology, University of Erfurt (Germany) Rev. Dr Jeremy Worthen, Secretary for Ecumenical Relations and Theology at the Council for Christian Unity of the Church of England (UK) Preface Myriam Wijlens and Vladimir Shmaliy This is the first of three volumes resulting from the work of the Faith and Order Study Group 3 on moral discernment in the churches. From the 1980s onward, the topic of ethics has been on the agenda of the Faith and Order Commis- sion. Indeed, in our times moral issues seem to be a challenge to preserving unity within different churches as well as a frequent obstacle to restoring visible unity between the churches. The topic of moral issues has been on Faith and Order’s agenda with the aim “to clarify the theological inter-relation between two fundamental ecumenical concerns: the quest for visible unity of Christ’s Church and the implementation of the Christian calling to a common witness and service in today’s world.”1 Over the years, the Faith and Order Commission has published various studies, alone or in cooperation with other ecumenical institutions: for example, the 1990 document Church and World;2 the 1997 published documents “Costly Unity,” “Costly Commitment,” and “Costly Obedience”;3 and the 2005-issued document Christian Perspectives on Theologi- cal Anthropology: A Faith and Order Study Document.4 The First Phase: Moral Discernment in the Churches– A Study Document (2006–2013) Following from its previous studies, the Standing Commission on Faith and Order in its 2006 meeting decided to “conduct a study of the ways in which the churches formulate and offer teaching and guidance with respect to moral and ethical issues – especially those that are or may become church-dividing, 1. Commission on Faith and Order, Minutes of the Meeting of the Standing Commission 1986 Potsdam, GDR, Faith and Order Paper No. 134 (Geneva: WCC Publications, 1986), 28. 2, Church and World: The Unity of the Church and the Renewal of Human Community: A Faith and Order Study Document. Faith and Order Paper No. 151 (Geneva: WCC Publications, 1990). 3. In Thomas F. Best and Martin Robra,