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The Nature and Mission of the Church - Presentation by Rev. Prof. Viorel Ionita

The Porto Alegre statement «Called to be the One Church», with all the reactions from the churches to it, should be used to help Faith and Order Commission develop The Nature and Mission of the Church into a common statement, proposes the Very Rev. Prof. Dr Viorel Ionita in his contribution to the discussion on the future of the study "The Nature and Mission of the Church".

Commission on Faith and Order
13 October 2009
Church unity
Ecclesiology
Faith and Order
Koinonia

by Rev. Prof. Dr Viorel Ionita

The 9th WCC Assembly (Porto Alegre, Brazil, 2006) adopted an ecclesiological text, Called to be the One Church, which constitutes an invitation to the churches “to renew their commitment to the search for unity and to deepen their dialogue”. The short introduction to this statement explains that its purpose is two-fold: “(a) to reflect what the churches, at this point on their ecumenical journey, can say together about some important aspects of the Church; and (b) to invite the churches into a renewed conversation - mutually supportive, yet open and searching - about the quality and degree of their fellowship and communion, and about the issues which still divide them”. In the first footnote of this statement it is acknowledged that the draft of this text has been elaborated by the Faith and Order Commission and submitted as draft to the Porto Alegre Assembly.

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