The Holy Spirit and Lived Communion from the Perspective of International Bilateral Dialogues (original) (raw)
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The Holy Spirit in Modern Ecumenical Thought
The Ecumenical Review, 1989
Ecumenical thought over the last several decades has developed into a considerable body of literature covering a wide range of subjects from theology, ethics and pastoral work. Given its origin in conferences and consultations bringing together people from the most diverse backgrounds, this ecumenical corpus has its own distinct character. It has inner cohesion, but not of a systematic kind. There is a clear profile, but it does not always show in straightforward affirmations.
2015
This paper critiques the framing of the pneumatological underpinning of ecclesiology as an Orthodox-Catholic conversation. The context for the Joint Commission for Orthodox-Catholic dialogue warrants the use of the metaphor " two lungs of the church " by official church leaders, ecclesiologists and theologians to speak of the Spirit's work in and between both communions. However, I want to call attention to the pneumatological and ecclesiological problems in the use of the image " two lungs of the church. " If the Holy Spirit breathes upon and through the Body of Christ, reading the Spirit's operation in the church (pneumatological-ecclesiology) cannot ignore, and much less dismiss or absorb (either explicitly or implicitly), the charismas outside of the Roman Catholic Church and Orthodoxy. Protestant denominations, such as Baptists, Brethren, Evangelicals, Presbyterians, Pentecostals and Charismatics are also contexts for studying the Spirit's work in the churches. The paper concludes by proffering a mapping of recent pneumatological contributions of other Christian denominations and churches to invite theologians to assist in reframing or reconceptualizing a more appropriate anatomic metaphor for the Spirit's work in and among the churches together.
What is the Spirit Saying to the Churches? Toward a Contemporary Ecumenical Pneumatology
There is a clearly articulated body of teachings and similarity of experiences within contemporary ecumenical Pneumatology that has been, to a large degree, neglected within the ongoing renewal of the Roman Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council. In my research, I have come to explore the role of Léon-Joseph Cardinal Suenens -a key progressive leader at the Council -and his promotion of both charisms and the charismatic dimensions of contemporary ecclesial life. Suenens surrounded himself with some of the most talented periti at the Council, whom he continually called upon in order to articulate a theology of charisms following Vatican II.
Scripture, Tradition, and Spirit in Local Ecumenical Dialogue
The author makes some observations on ecumenical reception as experienced in local ecumenical dialogue between Roman Catholic and Reformed communities, dialogue that is informed by Lonergan's method. She identifies reception of scripture and tradition as the work of the Holy Spirit and proposes a way of thinking about how the Spirit "guides us into all truth" (John 16.13). Given that Lonergan sets up an analogy between the processions in the divine nature and the human operations of understanding, judgment, and love, it should be possible to ground the phenomenology of lay dialogue in Lonergan's systematic theology of the Trinity. Such grounding provides a deeper understanding of how the Holy Spirit may guide separated believers into the true meanings which God has put into Scripture and history through Jesus Christ.
Towards an Ecumenical Ecclesiology: the Roman Catholic Church in Dialogue
MA Thesis, University of Manitoba, 1995
Interdenominational disputes originating in the Reformation are invariably affected by the dominant ecclesiology within each denomination. An assumption of the ecumenical movement which needs a critical examination is that there can be an ecclesiology that transcends these denominational divisions, and affirms that which each Christian tradition holds regarding the nature of the church. This thesis attempts to sketch the beginnings of such an "ecumenical ecclesiology." The search for an "ecumenical ecclesiology" undertaken in this thesis is in response to the current programme study of the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches. This study was inaugurated by the World Council's Seventh Assembly in Canberra, Australia in 1991. This thesis attempts to evaluate the assumption that such an ecclesiology is conceivable. The first part of this thesis begins with a study of the basic assumptions of Christian theologians regarding the nature of unity, then moves to an examination of the historical roots of the divisions in the church. The first part of this thesis concludes with a consideration of the historical progress of the twentieth Century rapprochement placing particular emphasis on the inauguration of the World Council of Churches and the Second Vatican Council. In the second part of this thesis, a consideration of the modern dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and her ecumenical partners is undertaken. Considering in separate chapters the dialogues relating to baptism, eucharist and ministry, this thesis examines the ecclesiological issues related to these dialogues. It is the intent of this thesis to point towards prospects for further dialogue, and to highlight the rapprochement already achieved.
The Holy Spirit and Communion, Shaping Receptive Ecumenism
Receptive Ecumenism, 2018
The theme of the Holy Spirit and communion is key to an understanding of the underlying theological nature of Receptive Ecumenism. This theme sees communion as a gift of the one triune God, rooted in a dependency on the Holy Spirit. Receptive Ecumenism is about identifying the Spirit’s presence at work in each other and, through that identification, being led by the Spirit towards the communion which is God’s gift. This paper refers to the interweaving of different levels of communion from the personal to the universal, and includes a discussion of one particular contemporary ecumenical dialogue, namely the International Reformed Anglican Dialogue, which began in 2015 between the Anglican Communion and the World Communion of Reformed Churches,
The Spirit in the Church: The Universal Christ, Particular Spirit and Christian Unity
International Journal of Systematic Theology Volume 11, 2009
Modern theology has had difficulty in producing an ecclesiology that makes the full visible unity of the church an essential aspect of the church's nature. One reason for this is that important modern ecclesiologies are built on a trinitarian model that either subordinates the Spirit to the Son, or reduces the Spirit to a vague, invisible 'domain of resonance', with the result that the church itself is either subordinated or rendered invisible. A new trinitarian model is needed, one that shows how the Spirit cooperates with the Son to produce a visibly united church.