Inter-Orthodox Consultation: The Nature and Mission of the Church

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This article about the Orthodox Church is from the April 2011 edition of the Council for Christian Unity's European Bulletin.  This featured in an earlier post which reported on the start of the consultation.

A week-long inter-Orthodox consultation studying the WCC Faith and Order document “The Nature and Mission of the Church” had its first meeting on Thursday 3 March in Ayia Napa with the gathering hosted by the Orthodox Church of Cyprus.

The aim was to offer distinctly Orthodox insights as part of a world-wide discussion of ecclesiology.

Nearly forty participants from Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, church leaders, university professors, theologians, men and women as well as youth, most of whom are members of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order, will produce a common Orthodox response to this important theological text.

Metropolitan Prof. Dr Gennadios of Sassima, co-moderator of the consultation, said that “walls of separation and division still exist in the world and one of our priorities as Orthodox is to continue our struggle for peace, reconciliation and friendship among peoples and nations.”

Archbishop Chrysostomos underlined the importance of the theme. “Orthodox theology is primarily ecclesiological,” he said. “Christianity cannot be understood except as the church”. He said that by his incarnation Christ made all human beings part of his own body. Orthodox contributions to ecumenical theological reflection consisted in the fact that Orthodoxy, rather than defending a “confessional” interpretation of ecclesiology, shared the existential experience of the church.

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Inter-Orthodox consultation begins discussion on the nature of the church

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Another article this morning from the March edition of CTE News. 

A week-long inter-Orthodox consultation with the aim of studying the Faith and Order document “The Nature and Mission of the Church” began its work on Thursday 3 March in Ayia Napa, Cyprus. The aim of the consultation is to offer distinctly Orthodox insights as part of a world-wide discussion of the doctrine of the Church, or “ecclesiology”. The gathering is hosted by the Orthodox Church of Cyprus (This is a brilliant website!). Nearly forty participants from Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, church leaders, university professors, theologians, men and women as well as youth, most of whom are members of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Commission on Faith and Order, will discuss the document and produce a common Orthodox response to this important theological text.

After a Te Deum celebrated by Archbishop Chrysostomos II of Cyprus in the historic monastery of Ayia Napa, Metropolitan Prof. Dr Gennadios of Sassima, co-moderator of the consultation, expressed gratitude to the archbishop for his generous hospitality, extended regularly to inter-Orthodox and ecumenical gatherings, and highlighted the archbishop’s life-long struggle to overcome dividing lines, in his own country and elsewhere in the world. Unfortunately, Metropolitan Gennadios added, “walls of separation and division still exist in the world and one of our priorities as Orthodox is to continue our struggle for peace, reconciliation and friendship among peoples and nations.” Archbishop Chrysostomos underlined the importance of the theme. “Orthodox theology is primarily ecclesiological,” he said. “Christianity cannot be understood except as the church”. By his incarnation, the archbishop continued, Christ made all human beings part of his own body. Orthodox contributions to ecumenical theological reflection consist in the fact that Orthodoxy, rather than defending a “confessional” interpretation of ecclesiology, shares the existential experience of the church.

Revd Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, the WCC general secretary, expressed appreciation both to Archbishop Chrysostomos for his hospitality, which is a tangible sign of his ecumenical commitment, and to Metropolitan Dr Vasilios of Constantia-Ammochostos, moderator of the Faith and Order Commission, for hosting the consultation in his diocese and for his many contributions to the work of Faith and Order. The general secretary referred to the work of the Special Commission on Orthodox Participation in the WCC a decade ago and stressed the Orthodox contribution to both ecclesiological reflection in general and to the ecclesial character of the fellowship of the World Council of Churches in particular. The general secretary concluded by reminding participants of the forthcoming peace convocation in Kingston, Jamaica. “Our task will be to affirm that we aim at being one, so that the world may believe that a just peace is possible. We know that in this island there is a struggle for justice and peace. It is as part of our journey towards unity and common witness that we participate in this struggle.”

Related articles

• Experiencing Unity Globally (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• Calls for Unity after Alexandria Church Bombing (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)
• The Orthodox Churches in the UK (ecumenicalissues.blogspot.com)

The Nature and Mission of the Church

Along with other member churches of the World Council of Churches, the British Methodist Church has written a response to The Nature and Mission of the Church - A Stage on the Way to a Common Statement. (Follow this link for the full text of Nature and Mission.)  Drawing on the consensus reached in Baptism Eucharist and Ministry this document seeks to express common convictions about the church, its nature and mission, and to identify the ecclesiological issues which continue to divide the churches today. 

The Methodist Church response was presented to Methodist Conference in 2009.  I have updated the entry on the Methodist Church website and if you go there you will find a link to the churches' response.  This document is too long to reproduce in this post but it's worth a look!