Reframing Ecumenical Theology in Local Churches

I was asked in a comment to my last post : how might we reframe our theology of ecumenism in real life terms for the average person in the pew?  This is of course in the context of the Global Christian Forum  and the increasing sense of Christianity as a global movement of people.

In my last post, I suggested local ecumenism in Britain might have more in common with global than national ecumenism.  This means local churches are perhaps less interested in the faith and order approach to ecumenism than they are in the practicalities of joint mission. 

The question is not an easy one to answer:

1. Each local area is different.  Some places still primarily comprise mainstream churches, whilst others may include a very diverse range of congregations .  This makes it difficult to generalise, especially if we include neighbourhoods outside of Britain too. 
2. It is even harder to generalise about local ecumenism because diversity is complemented by the commitment, experience and inventiveness of those who are involved in ecumenical work. Similar places might be very different depending on who is there and their approach to ecumenism.

I hear about a lot of local ecumenical work but I have not used much of this information in this blog for reasons of confidentiality.  Usually I hear from local churches when things are not going so well and however disguised a situation may be they are not too difficult to decode.  Also, I believe local churches should tell their own stories.  So, I would need to ask permission.  Certainly I would welcome stories about local ecumenism for this blog and so the invitation is there to make contact through the comments and we can have a conversation.

Throughout this blog I have suggested ways local churches might learn to work together.  What I will do here is list a few pointers for churches who wish to act locally as a part of the global church.  This cannot be a complete list but if anyone reads this and wishes to add suggestions, ideas or amendments, we might in time come up with a better list.

1. Mission  is the key to unlock local ecumenical work.  Churches collaborate over mission and experience suggests this draws them closer together.
2. Local collaboration can strengthen the work of all the churches involved.  It might be worth making an effort to identify the churches in a neighbourhood and then keep on knocking.  There are many reasons why some churches are wary of collaboration.  It can range from bad experiences or discrimination in the past through to a belief that a particular church is big enough and strong enough to go it alone.  At the very least, if a church or group of churches tries to make contact, it is indicating a willingness to communicate.
3. I have written at great length about the importance of conversations , not only between church leaders, but primarily between church members.
4. And conversations done well will lead to participation .
5. And I have many times suggested the reframing of formal talks  should be so they take seriously, not so much doctrinal matters, but matters of process.  How do churches work together?
6. We need to be clear that full visible unity  is a remote prospect and not something we need to insist upon.  Visible unity between some traditions might be a possibility.  They can follow this call to unity without assuming everyone else is going to follow them.
7. The common ground upon which conversations at all levels need to be based is our practical calling to be Christians in the world.  So, whilst conversations need to be rooted in mission, there are also other activities churches can do together.
8. In particular I would identify, (1) praying together and for each other , and (2) bible study.  The latter might seem risky but serious study of the Gospels bringing together experiences of the spirit in the word with the best of biblical scholarship is I am sure a unifying activity.  I will return to this in a future post.
9. Finally, our aim should be friendships between people who are confident in their own tradition and are able to share its richness, whilst being open to learning more by experiencing insights from other traditions.  Of course there will be disagreements, but friends do disagree.  It is when Christians feel they need to impose sanctions (in this life or the next) on their fellow Christians that the trouble starts.

None of these does anything to develop formal links between the local and the global and maybe that is something to consider another time.