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The Church Towards a Common Vision This publication and its companion volume collect the responses received CHURCHES RESPOND TO to The Church: Towards a Common Vision (TCTCV) between 2013 and 2020. The responses address the Church’s mission, unity, and its being in the Trinitarian life of God in order to encourage and advance the churches’ growth in communion with each other in apostolic faith, sacramental life, mission, and ministry for the sake of God’s world. CHURCHES RESPOND TO THE CHURCH: These responses are of great importance, not only because they test the points of convergence and of difference identified in TCTCV but also because they express the interests and concerns of many member churches and ecclesial bodies engaging in the work for Christian unity. They also TOWARDS A COMMON VISION, A COMMON VISION, TOWARDS THE CHURCH provide invaluable insight and guidance for future work on ecclesiology. TOWARDS A COMMON VISION VOLUME 2 VOL. 2 VOL. Faith and Order Paper No. 232 Edited by: Rev. Dr Ellen Wondra -1500-02/13 Rev. Dr Stephanie Dietrich Dr Ani Ghazaryan Drissi ENTREPRISES GPS CHURCHES RESPOND TO THE CHURCH: TOWARDS A COMMON VISION VOLUME 2 Edited by Rev. Dr Ellen Wondra, Rev. Dr Stephanie Dietrich, Dr Ani Ghazaryan Drissi Churches Respond to The Church: Towards a Common Vision Volume 2 Edited by Rev. Dr Ellen Wondra, Rev. Dr Stephanie Dietrich, Dr Ani Ghazaryan Drissi 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 permission from the pub- lisher. 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 580 million Christians more than 110 countries and works cooperatively 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. Book design and typesetting: Michelle Cook / 4 Seasons Book Design ISBN: 978-2-8254-1751-5 World Council of Churches 150 route de Ferney, P.O. Box 2100 1211 Geneva 2, Switzerland http://www.oikoumene.org Contents Introduction v Section 1: Responses from Churches 1 1. The Church of Lippe 2 2. Association of Mennonite Congregations in Germany 3 3. Evangelical Lutheran Church in America 6 4. Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Inter-Orthodox Consultation 17 5. Uniting Church in Sweden 26 6. Union of the Waldensian and Methodist Churches in Italy 31 7. Canadian Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) 34 8. Church of Norway 36 9. Anglican Church of Canada 45 10. Armenian Apostolic Church, Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin 59 11. Evangelical Church of Westphalia 66 12. Friends General Conference 68 13. Evangelical Church of Greece 72 14. First Church of Christ, Scientist 80 15. Uniting Church in Australia 93 16. Evangelical Church in Baden 102 17. Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) 111 18. United Methodist Church 124 19. Church of Ireland 141 iii 20. Orthodox Church of Finland 145 21. Jamaica Baptist Union 153 22. Roman Catholic Church 161 Section 2: Responses from Church World Communions, National Councils 223 of Churches and Regional Ecumenical Organizations 23. Finnish Ecumenical Council 224 24. Christian Council of Sweden 228 25. Council of Churches in the Netherlands 237 26. National Council of Churches in Denmark 243 27. North Carolina Council of Churches 254 28. Community of Protestant Churches in Europe 266 29. Baptist World Alliance Commission on Baptist Doctrine and Christian Unity 279 Section 3: Responses from Ecumenical Organizations and Individuals 297 30. Response by Rev. Prof Paul S. Fiddes 298 31. Theological Committee of the Church of Greece 310 32. Faculty of Waterloo Lutheran Seminary, Waterloo, Ontario 317 33. Response by V. Rev. Presbyter Irakli Jinjolava 328 34. Evangelical Theological Faculty, Leuven, Belgium 332 35. Response by V. Rev. Presbyter Nemanja S. Mrdjenovic 345 36. Ecumenical Forum for Catholicity 351 37. Conference of European Churches —Churches’ Commission for Migrants in Europe 359 38. Joint Commission on Doctrine, Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church 370 39. Report on the Anglican-Pentecostal consultation 383 iv Contents Introduction The Church: Towards a Common Vision (TCTCV), work carried out by bilateral dialogues, consulta- the convergence document published in 2013, is tions, commissions, and individuals at every level a milestone in the ongoing conversation about the of the churches’ life over many years. (This process Church that has been a central focus of the mod- is described in the Historical Note appended to ern worldwide ecumenical movement. This ecu- TCTCV.)2 The BEM process revealed that study- menical conversation seeks to discern ways beyond ing common understandings of the Church might the situation of long-standing ecclesial divisions help to address some of the remaining controver- toward the fulfillment of our Lord Jesus Christ’s sial issues that continue to divide the churches.3 high priestly prayer that the faithful may be one At every stage, the Commission on Faith and as Christ is one with the Father, that the world Order has asked churches and ecumenical bodies may believe (John 17:21). As the churches have for input, for responses to various study docu- sought to work through their divisions and dif- ments, and for guidance in structuring and pur- ferences toward convergence and consensus, they suing its work. And churches, ecumenical bodies, have been able to grow closer together in commu- ecclesial organizations, and various consultations nion and in mission. As a convergence document, have responded generously and constructively to TCTCV substantiates that growth, while it also offers possibilities and poses questions about how respond to BEM: Official responses to the “Baptism, Eucharist remaining issues might be approached. and Ministry” text, ed. Max Thurian. Faith and Order Papers TCTCV is the fruit of a concerted process of Nos.129 (1986), 132 (1986), 135 (1987), 137 (1987), 143 study and dialogue involving the Commission on (1988), 144 (1988), (Geneva: World Council of Churches). Faith and Order in conversation over decades with 2. The Church: Towards a Common Vision. Faith and Order churches and ecumenical bodies around the world. Paper No. 214 (Geneva: WCC Publications, 2013), 41-46. TCTCV is available at https://www.oikoumene.org/resources/ The present document builds on Faith and Order’s documents/the-church-towards-a-common-vision. Much of first convergence document, Baptism, Eucharist, the work discussed in the Historical Note can be found in the and Ministry (1982) and the churches’ responses Faith and Order digital archives, https://archive.org/details/ faithandorderpapersdigitaledition?sort=titleSorter. to it.1 It is also deeply informed by the important 3. Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry 1982-1990: Report on the Process and Responses (Geneva: WCC, 1990), 147-151. 1. Baptism, Eucharist, and Ministry. Faith and Order Paper No. 111 (Geneva: World Council of Churches, 1982). Churches v state more clearly and more hopefully the depth for the future. All this is evident in the responses and breadth of the real yet imperfect communion to TCTCV which are included in these volumes. that Christians around the world already share. TCTCV asked five questions designed to help Thus, TCTCV reflects the churches’ deep faith in discern the extent to which TCTCV does express a the Triune God revealed in scripture and lived out convergence and to chart further work needed to in the churches’ traditions; their reliance on word move towards the full visible unity of the church- and sacrament; their embrace of various types of es.4 This process of reception deliberately contin- communion ecclesiology; their renewed emphasis ues the pattern set out in Baptism, Eucharist, and on mission and evangelism as foundational for the Ministry (BEM) and followed with other work Church; and their desire for the exercise of Christ- from the Commission on Faith and Order and like authority in service to the Church. other commissions and bodies of the WCC. Along the way, as various lacunae have been These present volumes are a collection of recognized, the many participants in the ecumen- the responses received between 2013 and 2020. ical movement have sought to expand their dia- We are profoundly grateful to all those who have logue to include more voices from the churches given time, thought and prayer to responding to of the Global South, and from emergent ecclesial TCTCV; and it has been a delight, as well as a movements and churches. Increased attention to challenge, to hear and to engage with the results the diversity of contexts in which the churches of so many deliberations and consultations. Pub- witness and serve has revealed ever more exten- lishing these responses is itself a further response sively the wealth of gifts the churches receive from to TCTCV, one that allows the churches and God and offer to the world in hope. other groups to receive each other’s responses The process leading to TCTCV has also and TCTCV more fully. This further reception, sought to state as clearly and accurately as possi- in turn, may encourage and strengthen further ble the convergences that have emerged in areas where divisions have in the past been much 4. “• To what extent does this text reflect the ecclesiological sharper and deeper than they are now. It is clear understanding of your church? that the churches agree in more ways than they • To what extent does this text offer a basis for growth in unity among the churches? disagree.
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