December 14, 2007

A consultation to review the progress of the report of the Anglican-Methodist International Commission, "Sharing in the Apostolic Communion," which was received by the World Methodist Council in 1996 and the Lambeth Conference in 1998, was held October 30-November 1 at the historic Wesley's Chapel in London. The meeting was chaired by the Rev. Professor Robert Gribben, chair of the Standing Committee for Ecumenics and Dialogues of the World Methodist Council, and Bishop Harold Miller of Down and Dromore in the Church of Ireland, nominated by the Archbishop of Canterbury and the secretary general on behalf of the Anglican Communion. Five members were nominated by each church for the purpose of this review.

The consultation noted the fruits of the international dialogue in two recent Covenants in Britain and Ireland, an agreement for Interim Eucharistic Sharing between the Episcopal Church and the United Methodist Church in the USA and conversations in other parts of the world. Recommendations are now being considered by the World Methodist Council's Standing Committee and the Joint Standing Committee of the Anglican Consultative Council to set up an Anglican-Methodist Commission for Unity in Mission (AMICUM) with the principal task of advancing Anglican-Methodist unity, monitoring dialogues and relationships between the two churches, gathering information and insights, reviewing and evaluating agreements and theological statements, and then sharing the best practice learned.

The Commission intends to be a resource for ecumenical conversations around the world, and in all possible ways encourage closer relationships between Anglican, Methodist and United and Uniting churches related to them. A detailed set of guidelines or terms of reference has been set out for the work of the Commission, addressing specific, practical issues, such as ways of defining ‘membership,' the transferability of ‘members' between the churches, aspects of eucharistic sharing, the use of common liturgical rites, and steps towards a common Ministry. It is proposed that there be ecumenical consultants to the Commission, particularly from the (Roman Catholic) Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Lutheran World Federation. It is hoped that the first meeting might be held late in 2008.

"It is good to see the Anglican Communion Office recognizing and affirming the work The Episcopal Church and the United Methodist Church have been doing together over these last years, leading to our interim Eucharistic sharing arrangement," said Bishop Christopher Epting, ecumenical officer for the Episcopal Church. "We were able to make a full report on our bilateral dialogue at the recent meeting of the Inter Anglican Standing Commission on Ecumenical Relations meeting in Cairo."

The full report from the consultation is available at http://www.aco.org/ministry/ecumenical/dialogues/methodist/docs/amir_2007.cfm.

Episcopal News Service