JUST ASK THE QUESTION

Christians gathering in an Ecumenical dialogue to learn more about each other's church.

1B – CAN WE TALK?

Question 1: What is your church’s view on dialogues with other churches or communities of different doctrinal beliefs?

To view previous questions and responses simply scroll down to archives and click on the topic or church of your choice.

Baptist (Ryan) writes:

The Baptist Faith in its very essence is a people of dialogue. It has not always been positive, open minded dialogue, but Baptists give Martin Luther’s “priesthood of all believers” new meaning. It stems from the Puritan movement in and continued here in.  Baptist roots are from those who wanted to “purify” the Church from dogmas that they felt didn’t allow the freedom of differing opinions from the people. While this has its pie in the sky appeal, the obvious fall back is the breakdown of community. Like the old story of the Baptist man stranded, alone on an island. When a ship rescued him the captain noticed 3 buildings on the shore. “The middle one is my house and the one on the left is my church.” When the captain asked the man about the building on the right the man replied, “Oh, well, that was my old church, but I didn’t agree with it so I built the other one instead.”

You can glean from this humorous illustration the cliché, no two Baptists are alike (we don’t even agree with ourselves). I would contend, however, that this is all the more reason why dialogue is our strongest attribute. While Believer Baptism (most generally by Immersion) is our “won’t budge” position of faith, most Baptists have a heritage of relatives and families from other denominations and religious backgrounds. While our comfort levels of conversation tend toward those who are “like us,” it is very common that decisions made in the Baptist church have Catholic roots, Presbyterian roots, Methodist roots, etc. We are in its best and worst form a people of dialogue. And, if you don’t believe me, we can always form a committee to discuss the matter further.

posted by: muniz at 22:12 | link | comments |
c-baptist, t1-dialogue

1N – CAN WE TALK?

Question 1: What is your church’s view on dialogues with other churches or communities of different doctrinal beliefs?

To view previous questions and responses simply scroll down to archives and click on the topic or church of your choice.

Non-Denomination (Chad) writes:

I don’t believe that anyone can speak for all of the people who fall into the category of Non-Denominational because there are differences from one church to the next, as with many denominations. That being said, I will do my best to answer the question in a way that will best describe the Non-Denominational point of view on this topic.

Open dialogue can be very beneficial a person’s growth in their faith. It is not a bad thing to have someone challenge what you believe in or for you to challenge what someone else believes in. This process helps a person understand why they believe in what they do. So often people go through their lives following a faith only because that is how they were raised and know very little about what they believe in outside the basics. Open dialogue can help someone to examine themselves and light a fire in them to develop a greater understanding of what they believe.

Taking this topic to the level world religions, it is important to be open to discussing religion with someone who is Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Jewish or any of the other thousands of religions/faiths that people follow. We as Christians need to be willing to listen to and understand someone else’s beliefs to know where they come from (as in how they came to believe what they do) that way we will know how best to minister to them.

posted by: muniz at 22:35 | link | comments |
c-non-denomination, t1-dialogue

1C – CAN WE TALK?

Question 1: What is your church’s view on dialogues with other churches or communities of different doctrinal beliefs?

To view previous questions and responses simply scroll down to archives and click on the topic or church of your choice.

Catholic (Kevin) writes:

In the Catholic Church, dialogues with others of different beliefs are highly encouraged for the faithful.  In the heart of the Catholic Church, there is a huge desire to strive for unity amongst all Christian believers just as Christ prayed for it at the hour of his Passion in Jn 17:21.  It is so much a desire of the Church that the Bishops wrote an entire document on the matter during the 2^nd Vatican Council (1964) entitled Unitatis Redintegratio (Decree on Ecumenism) [Side Note: there were only 16 documents in that council.]

By holding these dialogues, every church grows closer towards unity due to a fuller understanding of the beliefs of the others and the dispelling of common misunderstandings.  Not to mention, by doing so, we are fulfilling our calling as Christians to spread, defend, and promote the faith amongst all peoples.

In regards to Church teachings, the 821^st paragraph of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 821) with references to the Vatican II document Unitatis Redintegratio ( UR ) states that certain things are required in order to respond adequately to this call towards unity such as:

 

-          a permanent renewal of the Church in greater fidelity to her vocation; such renewal is the driving-force of the movement toward unity (Cf. UR 6);

-          conversion of heart as the faithful "try to live holier lives according to the Gospel" ( UR 7 § 3); for it is the unfaithfulness of the members to Christ's gift which causes divisions;

-          prayer in common, because "change of heart and holiness of life, along with public and private prayer for the unity of Christians, should be regarded as the soul of the whole ecumenical movement, and merits the name 'spiritual ecumenism;"' ( UR 8 § 1)

-          fraternal knowledge of each other; (Cf. UR 9)

-          ecumenical formation of the faithful and especially of priests; (Cf. UR 10)

-          dialogue among theologians and meetings among Christians of the different churches and communities; (Cf. UR 4; 9; 11)

-          collaboration among Christians in various areas of service to mankind. (Cf. UR 12) "Human service" is the idiomatic phrase.

So if one continuously renews themselves to spread the faith, seek holiness, pray with other Christians, learn about each other and the facts, talk with others, and work with each other in service to mankind, then they can adequately promote unity in dialogue like the Church encourages.

 

John 17:21  ²¹ so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me.

posted by: muniz at 04:19 | link | comments |
t1-dialogue, c-catholic