An ecumenical summit of leaders from Anglican, Lutheran, Methodist and Presbyterian churches and organizations affirmed common theological ground and sought practical ways of working together during a recent conference in Dallas, TX.
In their statement, titled “Jesus Christ: Our common ground and common cause”, the leaders said “Even as we fully acknowledge the imperfections of Christian institutions and the broken nature of our collective witness to the world, we commit to strive together for a faithful way of being the Church together. Our hearts are burdened for the millions of our neighbors who are estranged from God and the Church.”
The gathering formed working groups and listened to plenary sessions on ecumenical relations and theological education, engaging North American culture, church planting and mission as well as social witness during the four-day meeting. Participants affirmed an ecumenical statement that addresses each of these subjects on the summit’s final day. The leaders agreed to explore working together in areas of church planting, theological education and training. They also committed to meet again for a second summit in 2013. While each of the participants endorsed the statement they were not necessarily doing so on behalf of their respective churches/organizations.
Nice — plus, one-fourth (8) of the 32 attendees had Anglican connections: 2 AAC, 6 ACNA.
Part of the manifesto:
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Church Planting and Missions
We are on common ground in obeying the Great Commission in reaching people for Jesus Christ through the salvation of souls both at home and abroad. We covenant together to communicate, cooperate and collaborate in living out our missional identity as disciples of Jesus Christ. We will look for ways, as God blesses and matures our relationships, to make authentic disciples who have a heart for following Jesus into the world. Therefore, we will explore together cooperatively planting churches and sending missionaries through:
1) Sharing training opportunities
2) Sharing information and resources, including the use of web-based technologies
3) Engaging in joint ministries and offering incubator facilities to support new church plants
4) Providing theological education, including remote theological education domestically and globally
5) Identifying locations where we can encourage catalytic leadership toward collaborative church plants.
6) Sharing space with dislocated congregations
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The parish I belong to has benefited greatly from #s 2 & 6.