I agree that the winter for ecumenism is well and truly upon us. The election of various anti-ecumenical church leaders hasn`t helped, given that the idea of ecumenism never really entered the bloodstream of most denominations. We still like to know that we are in control of appointments, buildings, money and therefore stimey efforts at collaboration.
I heard the other day that the Methodist Church was trying to draft its `ecumenical vision`. Why are we reinventing the wheel? There is a very simple vision that remains timeless - it`s to be found in John 17. The outworking of that vision was enunciated at Lund - `to do apart only those things which, for conscience sake, we cannot do together`. What more is needed?
As for CTBI and other ecumenical instruments - like the UN, these supra-denominational bodies have always been starved of resources and denied real power, meaning that they end up little more than expensive talking shops, peddling platitudes.
Ecumenism won`t work until it focuses on that for which it is named - the whole inhabited earth. That means working with people of all faiths and none, and dropping claims to privilege in favour of servant leadership.
An ecumenism what simply spends its time making smaller Christian bodies more acceptable to larger ones is doomed to be lost up its own proverbial
Thank you for your post Sam, I don`t often remember to check out this site, hence the long delay.
I have recently been appointed Assistant Ecumenical Officer on the Connexional Team. I do feel a bit like poacher turned gamekeeper. Much of what you say rings true to me and I think we need a new paradigm as the original ecumenical vision has become tarnished and many people are voting with their feet. The trouble with new paradigms is getting free of the old ones because it is easy to dress up the old in new clothes.
In my own time I have started a blog, which does not in any way necessarily reflect the policy of the Methodist Church. The aim is, primarily for my own entertainment (as it has attracted zero interest so far), to explore how this new paradigm might appear and it does (or will as it develops) cover many of the issues you mention in your article. The address is http://chrississons.typepad.co.uk/ .
One last thing. Council did not accept the first version of the new Methodist Ecumenical Vision because (as far as I can tell) it wasn`t radical enough. If you contact my office I could send you a copy of the latest version but it will be at the beginning of January as I (and everyone else it seems)am on leave for a fortnight. It would be good to have your comments sissonsc@rm.methodist.org.uk .
