Methodist Anglican Panel for Unity in Mission, April 2011

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Just in case you don't know what this is, here is an excerpt from the Methodist Anglican Panel for Unity in Mission's remit:

The Methodist – Anglican Panel for Unity in Mission (MAPUM) was set up in July 2009 through the merger of the Local Unity Panel of the Council for Christian Unity and the Committee for Local Ecumenical Development of the Methodist Church. The Council for Christian Unity approved the formation of the new Panel in December 2008, and the Methodist Conference gave its approval in July 2009.

The Methodist Review of Ecumenical Relationships in endorsing this proposal expressed the importance of MAPUM having due regard for ecumenism in Wales and Scotland. The CCU welcomes and encourages this dimension of MAPUM’s work, which reflects the three nations focus of the Joint Implementation Commission in its second quinquennial which includes Welsh and Scottish appointees.

The aspiration of both the CCU and the Methodist Council is that MAPUM must be wholly owned by both Churches and not become semi-detached from either.

The aims of MAPUM are to:

• Affirm and uphold the inseparability of Unity and Mission with the conviction that neither can be fully addressed in isolation.
• Promote working together in mission under the Covenant,
• Share insights, address issues, and develop resources in local unity in mission for both Churches.

So, MAPUM meets this morning through to tomorrow lunchtime and here is a summary of some of the highlights:

1. Fresh Directions in Unity in Mission, is a long long paper (now standing at 133 sides of A4!  A part of it is illustrated.) which covers all aspects of the ecumenical work of the Church of England.  This paper is to go to the College of Bishops in the autumn.  I will cover it in some detail once we have a reasonably final version.  The Panel has seen the paper before and so will focus on responses to the paper from the Methodist Church as well as the URC, Baptist Union of Great Britain and the Moravian Church.
2. Last year, Dioceses and Districts were invited to respond to the report of the first Joint Implementation Commission, Embracing the Covenant.  I will report on this tomorrow morning.
3. Bipartite relations between the URC and Church of England and the URC and Methodist Church.  MAPUM will ask discuss possibilities for triangulation, whatever that is!
4. The Panel will spend a lot of time considering Shared Ministry, especially through covenanted partnerships in extended areas.

As always I can provide more information on request.  I will get around to most of these in loads of exciting detail in due course.

Related articles

• What is a Local Ecumenical Partnership? (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• Methodist URC Liaison Committee, March 2011 (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• Documenting Local Ecumenical Partnerships (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• Technical Ecumenism (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• Episcopal, Methodist and URC Discussions (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• Amending LEP Constitutions (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)