A magisterial overview of the transformation receptive ecumenism has wrought is provided by a book of essays edited by Gregory A. Ryan, Paul Lakeland and Murray himself, Receptive Ecumenism as Transformative Ecclesial Learning: Walking the Way to a Church Re-formed (Oxford University Press). Animated by the conviction that the Church is a learning community, the transformation the contributors explore is not focused exclusively on the doctrinal elements of church- dividing issues, although many of these are considered in depth. Transformative ecclesial learning aims to engage dispositions, habits and emotions, and to attend to the affective as well as rational dimensions of division.

Receptive ecumenism does not shy away from exploring the wounds of bruised and broken relationships. Rather it aims to enable the exploration of one’s wounds with others. Commitment to one’s faith is never understood in purely intellectual terms, and division is rarely experienced purely rationally.

The potential ecumenical learning from other traditions is probed and new perspectives assessed; then, the reception of the new ecumenical learning “with dynamic integrity” is assessed and tested. Although difficult to define, many of the contributors convey what learning with dynamic integrity entails and demonstrate that the phrase is not a mere cliché. Anthony Currer’s discussion of recent ARCIC documents and Marcus Pound’s ­analysis of ecumenism in the north-east of England capture the distinctive challenges and benefits of this form of learning.

The contributors explore the ways that receptive ecumenism has been adopted and adapted in different traditions, as well as in inter-ecclesial ecumenical dialogues, and they examine the new dynamic it brings to ecumenical engagements on divisive issues. They also examine the relevance of receptive ecumenism in countries where colonisation was made more brutal by inter-church competition. The generally irenic tenor of ecumenical encounter among the leadership of Churches and religious traditions, particularly at the global level, provides an important spur for national and local ecumenical initiatives. The significance of this ecumenical and inter-faith global leadership is seen, for example, in the remarkable joint pilgrimage of peace to South Sudan last year made by Pope Francis, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields; the 2021 appeal on climate action by Pope Francis and 40 other faith leaders; and many symbolic gestures and shared prayer that bring attention to the moral dimensions of the global challenges of migration, inequality and violence. The openness to mutual ecumenical learning in this context is also striking, as in Pope Francis’ recognition of the leadership that the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew has shown on ecological responsibility, which is reciprocated by the Patriarch’s support for the encyclical Laudato si’.

Global ecumenical moral witness of this kind is of course exercised in a world where religious-inspired identity politics begets sectarianism, conflict and violence. In these contexts the disciplined self-criticism and transformative learning of receptive ecumenism hold great promise, particularly if adopted by religious leaders where conflict is often most intense. This witness of religious leaders is complemented by international, national and local ecumenical initiatives, often lay-led, on every continent.

Many of the most intransigent divisions today are within Christian denominations not between them, over issues including women’s ministry, gender and sexuality, and contributors demonstrate how receptive ecumenism can reframe some of these intractable disputes and forge a path towards greater understanding among communities divided by deeply held ethical and theological principles. Linda Nicholls’ essay on the experience of the Anglican Church of Canada and the Anglican Communion regarding human sexuality and gender identity is particularly illuminating.

Ecumenism also reflects and responds to global trends in the politics of religion as well as to the cultural trends at play in the contemporary landscape. Several contributors engage with this complicated picture. For example the growth of Pentecostalism challenges ecumenism traditionally conceived, since the majority of Pentecostal churches describe themselves as non-denominational, and are often simultaneously suspicious of ecumenism. The growth of non-denominational Christianity challenges traditional expectations about the likely evolutionary path of ecumenism and calls into question the resonance and relevance of the classic ecumenical objective of full visible unity.

Recent decades have seen a flowering of post-colonial theologies and ecclesiologies. In many African countries the “divided foreign religion” not only amplified existing divisions but created new ones, and, as highlighted by Agbonkhianmeghe E. Orobator, contemporary ecumenism must reckon with this post-colonial reality. In Asia and parts of Latin America comparable dynamics are evident, although the history, culture and indigenous religions create distinctive challenges. In Europe and North America the legacy of empire is evident too, as addressed by Sandra E. Barnes in a study of relations between black and white Churches in the US.

The new horizon opened up by Paul Murray and the vision and practical techniques of receptive ecumenism is compelling. It evokes the promise of a Church able to acknowledge its failures, restore fractured relationships, reform its structures and renew its mission.

Linda Hogan is Professor of Ecumenics, Trinity College Dublin.