Indianapolis - The Board of the Council on Christian Unity at its April meeting focused on new strategies to communicate, teach and grow the message of ecumenical formation.
In a continuation of their November retreat that identified new "frontiers" as part of a "mapping process," the Board zeroed in on creative steps to be taken.
The Rev. Robert Welsh, president of the CCU, said, "In this process we were seeking a larger vision of setting a table of hospitality and welcome in the midst of the polarities that divide us as Christians within the church and as citizens within the global community."
Board members identified next steps for implementing the three frontiers: becoming a multi-cultural and inclusive church, developing a deeper ecumenical spirituality and understanding what it means to live in an interfaith context. A rich array of ideas was suggested ranging from Web site enhancements and higher visibility of missionary stories to cross-cultural internships for seminary students. The executive committee will bring a report with specific actions and timelines to the next meeting of the CCU board, in Portland, Ore., during the General Assembly July 24 to 27.
"I was excited about the work of the Board in this meeting as our focus was clearly upon the future of our church and of the ecumenical movement," Welsh said. "It was a hopeful and refreshing discussion where the issues we dealt with were not so much about our institutional life as a general unit of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) but rather, we were addressing the wider vision of what we need to be doing to strengthen our church's witness, mission and service in a new day and a new context.
"One common theme that surfaced related to every 'frontier' was the critical task of ecumenical formation of a new generation of leaders to meet the challenges of our society and world in the 21st century."
As it has done annually for the past six years, the CCU board met jointly with the Council for Ecumenism of the United Church of Christ as an expression of ecumenical partnership and to address common involvements and programs.
In the joint meeting, the boards reviewed the new proposal from Churches Uniting in Christ on the reconciliation of ordained ministries and offered feedback as Disciples and UCCs to the study process and materials.
"Members identified several common concerns about issues related to the ordained ministry of the church that need to be carefully addressed," Welsh said, "especially from our two traditions that have not claimed 'episcopal succession' as part of our life but are open to receiving this gift for the sake of witnessing to our greater unity in Christ."
The meeting was held at the Chicago headquarters of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America April 21 to 22. "We met at the ECLA as a way to get to know this partner communion," Welsh said. The UCC has a full communion relationship with the ELCA, and a formal bilateral dialogue between Disciples and ELCA has recently been launched.
In the joint Disciples-UCC session, ELCA ecumenical officer Randy Lee gave a brief history of the denomination and its current ecumenical activities. The joint boards also heard updates on common programming in the World Council of Churches, inter-religious initiatives, Christian Churches Together in the USA and our Disciples-UCC Partnership Committee.