Lambeth Speaks on Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations
Episcopal News Service. August 11, 1988 [88176]
CANTERBURY, England (DPS, Aug. 11) -- The Lambeth Conference has approved over a dozen resolutions relating to the Anglican Communion's ecumenical relations. Most were passed unanimously with little discussion in plenary sessions, though there were extensive debates in the small groups that produced them. Two resolutions on interfaith dialogue, on the other hand, received considerable attention in the plenaries.
Describing the World Council of Churches' "Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry" (BEM) study as a document that provides a "coherent framework" for all ecumenical dialogues, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Robert Runcie, urged the bishops to be cautious about a partisan ecumenism that might separate Anglicanism's Catholic and Reformed heritage. But he also referred to the progress in various dialogues as a "harvest of bilateral agreements" and urged that the overall balance in the resolutions be maintained.
In introducing a resolution on BEM, Bishop Edward Buckle of Auckland (New Zealand) said of the multilateral document, "We can no longer look out and see other confessions as satellites. We are all satellites." The Conference then unanimously adopted a resolution praising BEM and urging its "reception (the process of being "owned" and recognized by the Churches).
Regarding the Anglican-Lutheran dialogue, which has gone further than any of the Communion's other bilateral conversations, the Conference unanimously adopted a resolution welcoming the "Niagara Report," released a few weeks ago, outlining agreement on episcope (oversight in the Church), outlining specific steps to be taken toward full communion, setting up an Anglican-Lutheran International Commission, and providing for "interim eucharistic sharing." The Episcopal Church and the main Lutheran body in the Unites States, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, already participate in "interim eucharistic sharing".
The Lambeth Conference unanimously adopted resolutions welcoming the new relationships being formed with Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox churches, encouraging further conversations and suggesting that the filioque clause in the Nicene Creed be dropped in future liturgical revisions. The filioque clause says the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father "and the Son." The words "and the Son" were added to the creed by the Churches in the West.
Though the Anglican-Reformed discussions have not been an ongoing dialogue, the Conference welcomes the jointly produced "God's Reign and Our Unity" report on building community and the quest for justice. It also urged further dialogue on the issue of ministry.
The resolution on the work of the first Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC I) solicited the most discussion. The resolution recognized the Agreed Statements on Eucharistic Doctrine, Ministry and Ordination as in essential agreement with the faith of Anglicans. It is also welcomed ARCIC's work on Authority in the Church as a firm basis for the direction of continuing dialogue on that subject. An amendment from some in the Church of England's evangelical wing seeking to insert mention of "the continuing anxieties and conscientious convictions of many Anglicans unable to support this resolution" was overwhelmingly defeated in favor of the positive judgment that had come from the Provinces through the worldwide evaluation process of The Final Report. The original resolution passed with just seven against and three abstentions.
Resolutions approved on Anglican relations with three traditions are brief. They propose dialogues with Methodists and Baptists, and encourage "where possible...personal contact and theological dialogue with Pentecostal churches, especially at the local level."
Another resolution offers "full membership" in the Lambeth Conference to the 50-plus bishops of the Churches of North India, South India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh (in which Anglicans united with Christians of other traditions), and inclusion of their bishop-moderators in future Primates' Meetings. These united churches already have relationships with world bodies of other parent traditions.
The same resolution welcomes proposals for a united ministry among several denominations in Wales, including Anglicans, and "encourages the development of similar proposals in other parts of the world".
Another resolution recognizes the World Council of Churches as a "special instrument of God in bringing [churches] into fuller unity and mission".
The Conference has also passed resolutions on interfaith relations. One encourages dialogue with other faiths, and another seeks to provide a framework for establishing conversations between Jews, Muslims, and Christians.
The bishops gave long and serious attention to both resolutions, which passed on a show of hands but not until after lengthy debates centering on two questions: 1) Does firm commitment to a dialogue undermine evangelization? 2) Is it possible to engage in dialogues with other faiths without compromising one's Christianity?
In the end, the bishops strongly endorsed interfaith dialogue by acknowledging that "such dialogue, which is not a substitute for evangelism, may be a contribution in helping people of different faiths to make a common cause in resolving issues of peacemaking, social justice, and religious liberty."
The second resolution suggests that the Anglican Consultative Council study the idea of a new interfaith committee to work on relations among Jews, Muslims, and Christians "and other faiths as appropriate." The resolution further recommends that the 27 provinces of the Anglican Communion begin talks on a three-way basis with Jews and Muslims. The more general interfaith dialogue resolution, "Interfaith Dialogue," had earlier commended each province to initiate dialogues in partnership with other Christian churches.