Ecumenism what is it and why do it?
God's love is for the 'whole inhabited earth' (oikoumene), not just our familiar bit of it.
Ecumenism is the whole Church offering the whole Gospel to the whole earth
• in fulfilment of Christ’s prayer, on the night before his crucifixion
• according to the pattern of the early Christians who shared a common life
• making real the renewal and reconciliation which is God’s gift through Jesus
• acting as those who belong to one another as part of Christ’s body
These words taken from the Churches Together in England website are the basis for the work of the Ecumenical Portfolio. The Bristol District is called and committed to working ecumenically. It therefore has to play its part in the whole church offering the whole gospel to the whole of the Bristol District. It is called to work in partnership with other churches, as the introduction to ‘Priorities of the Methodist Church’ has stated
‘In partnership with others wherever possible, the Methodist Church will concentrate its prayers, resources, imagination and commitments on this priority:
To proclaim and affirm its conviction of God’s love in Christ, for us and for all the world; and renew confidence in God’s presence and action in the world and in the Church’
Offering the whole gospel to the whole world means working not only with other churches but also with other faiths and with civic authorities. Thus the Ecumenical Portfolio has three main areas of work.
- Inter-denomination
- Inter-faith
- Regional Government
