Coptic Church & Ecumenical Movement - Saint Mina Coptic ...

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• Theologia reformata et semper reformanda (Theology reformed and in need of being constantly reformed) – this is the main characteristic of Reformed theology and its birthright which should not be forfeited. The Oriental Orthodox View Father K. M. George presented a paper. Here is the summary: ‘Theology’ (from theologia) in the Oriental Orthodox tradition, refers primarily to the triune mystery of God. At this level of ‘theology’ the church worships the Holy Trinity and does not pretend to inquire into the divine mystery with human conceptual and linguistic tools. So all theology is doxology, praising the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit – the triune God, in joy and gratitude. Since God is essentially incomprehensible, the spiritual tradition of the Oriental churches recommends total silence before the awe-inspiring reality of the divine presence. In the incarnation of God in Jesus Christ, our Saviour, the ineffable God manifested great compassion for humanity. As human beings are given the grace of perceiving the incarnate God with their external senses, we are also given the privilege of talking about Jesus Christ and the divine plan for salvation. The Gospels bear witness to Christ, the only-begotten Son of God. The prophets and the Apostles proclaimed him in different cultures and languages of the world. The Disciples of Christ, like the Apostles John and Paul, interpreted the mystery of our salvation making use of the cultural and intellectual categories of their contemporary world. What they did for the proclamation and interpretation of the Gospel is a model for theology in the church. Thus in our act of theology we are also encouraged by the Apostles to announce and interpret the Gospel of the Kingdom to the world by using all the gifts of God including, science and the wisdom of this world. At this level of oikonomia (economy) where we participate in the compassionate love of God for humanity, we can use human concepts, languages, literary-intellectual gifts and human imagination, as long as they bear witness to Christ and edify the <strong>Church</strong>, the Body of Christ. A theologian in the Oriental Orthodox <strong>Church</strong> is called upon to be a teacher to instruct the people in the way of the Word Incarnate and to reflect on the meaning of the reality of our daily existence in the light of the Gospel. A theologian’s power of speech (logos) has to be derived from the true Word of God, the Logos incarnate. The quality of a theologian’s work is measured by the degree to which the theologian becomes Christ-like, conforming to the image of God as well as possible. A theologian has constantly to call upon the Holy Spirit so that he/she can be guided into all truth. Listening to the mind of the worshipping community, the Body of Christ, and being rooted in the faith of the church are essential conditions for the proper guidance of the theologian. A theologian’s authority is dependent on the authority of the Holy Scripture, the faith of the worshipping community and the Christian quality of his/her personal life. Extensive discussions took place on the two papers. Despite the differences realized, points of convergence emerged: 176
• Almighty God’s Eternal Divine Essence cannot be comprehended. Human reason can only approach God when illumined by the Holy Spirit, through prayers and Scripture. • Theology is not only an act of thinking but should be practically related to life and to our salvation. • A Christian theologian is one who is rooted in the faith community and nurtured by it. • Theologians are called upon to express the beauty and splendor of the divine presence in their theological work. Story and poetry, music and iconography, art and architecture, rites and rituals have been used in various Christian traditions precisely to bring out this aesthetic dimension of theology. • Our ultimate goal is to reach a common theological understanding, which is based on our Lord Jesus Christ, and on the Holy Scriptures and is related to the needs and sufferings of humanity at large. Plans for the future The delegates agreed to hold the fourth session of the dialogue at the Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, Virginia, USA from 10 th -15 th January, 1998. The theological theme to be discussed at this session is ‘The nature and mission of the church.’ Two papers each from the Orthodox and Reformed perspective on ‘The nature of the church’ and ‘The mission of the church’ will be presented at this dialogue. 177
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THE COPTIC ORTHODOX CHURCH AND THE
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DEDICATION This book is dedicated t
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VI SYNDESMOS Statement; May 1991...
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FOREWORD vi By H.H. Pope Shenouda I
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THE ONE CHURCH CHAPTER 1 UNITY AND
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phrase: “One nature of God the Wo
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centuries they had managed to maint
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Later doctrinal and papal developme
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Byzantine Tradition There are nine
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maintain a degree of flexibility in
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CHAPTER 2 THE ECUMENICAL VISION Der
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5. Youth Ecumenical Committee Under
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Since the beginning the Church used
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etween the two traditions of Orthod
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THE UNOFFICIAL CONSULTATIONS Throug
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Participants Eastern Orthodox Orien
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does not appear therefore to be inc
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THE THIRD UNOFFICIAL CONSULTATION G
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the nature of the Church be safe gu
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(h) To explore the possibilities of
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THE FOURTH UNOFFICIAL CONSULTATION
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more clarity of thought and more ea
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THE OFFICIAL CONSULTATIONS After tw
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MEETING OF THE JOINT SUB-COMMITTEE
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JOINT COMMISSION OF THE THEOLOGICAL
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(atreptos), without separation (ach
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REPORT OF THE JOINT SUB-COMMITTEE A
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1 - In the area of the relation bet
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JOINT-COMMISSION OF THE THEOLOGICAL
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4. Both families agree that the nat
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RECOMMENDATIONS ON PASTORAL ISSUES
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e) Abortion. 12.A joint consultatio
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Joint Commission Of The Theological
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iii) A Liturgical Sub-Committee sho
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POPE SHENOUDA III’S ADDRESS TO PO
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HOMILY OF POPE PAUL VI May 6th, 197
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From this new knowledge of God foll
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conscious of its duty of witnessing
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RESPONSE OF POPE PAUL VI TO POPE SH
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POPE PAUL VI’S ADDRESS BEFORE THE
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We shall always keep in our memory
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COMMON DECLARATION SIGNED BY POPE P
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THE INTERNATIONAL JOINT COMMISSION
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esurrection and ascension. It is fr
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pastoral activities and exert a mor
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Participants in the meeting were: C
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some other bishop. The universal Ch
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THIRD MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL
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1. The authorities of the Catholic
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His Divinity. This explains the mos
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Excellency, Msgr. Youhanna Kabes au
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A) The Holy See of Rome a) Consider
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of the theological, ecclesiastical
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DIRECTIONS TO THE WORK OF THE I.J.C
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ADDRESS OF POPE JOHN PAUL II TO A C
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PRINCIPLES FOR GUIDING THE SEARCH F
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Frequent contacts at all levels of
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THE RESUMPTION OF THE DIALOGUE When
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We must bear witness to this common
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Members Of The Commission Coptic Or
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SIXTH MEETING OF THE INTERNATIONAL
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MEETING OF THE POPE OF ALEXANDRIA A
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PRO ORIENTE ORIENTAL ORTHODOX - CAT
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The Second Consultation At the seco
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and the Ecumenical Councils, as the
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Page 174 and 175: CHAPTER 6 COPTIC ORTHODOX AND WORLD
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Page 182 and 183: • How do our historical contexts
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Page 220 and 221: CHAPTER 10 ECUMENICAL ORGANISATIONS
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Patriarch of Jerusalem for the Gree
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SYNDESMOS It is the World Fellowshi
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APPENDIX I CHRISTOLOGICAL AGREEMENT
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APPENDIX II ADDRESS BY H.H. POPE SH
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St. John the divine, a pillar of th
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CHURCH UNITY IS AN HISTORICAL INHER
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“We all believe that Our Lord, Go
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An excursion was organised to visit
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You will understand, therefore, tha
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tradition of our Church, is changed
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feeling in themselves the pain of d
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The Coptic Orthodox have been assur
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APPENDIX IX LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS
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APPENDIX X TELEGRAM FROM H.H POPE J
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eport that only a few priests have
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Bibliography Arruda, M. (ed.), Ecum
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