The following resource was developed by the Western Diocesan & Eparchial Coordinators of Ecumenism (WDECE), a Canadian Roman Catholic and Ukrainian Catholic association of ecumenical officers. The WDECE developed this and other resources at its regular meeting in October 1998 at Muenster, Saskatchewan. Special thanks to the Rev. Iain Luke, then ecumenical officer for the Anglican Diocese of Saskatoon, who participated in this working group and gave leadership in this project.

This resource is offered here for the use of any who find it helpful. Please feel free to adapt the material as necessary. Send us your experiences and suggestions to assist in the development of future resources. Contact the WDECE at .

Introduction

The following resource is based on the assumption that some leadership for ecumenism is already in place in the parish, whether in the form of a single officer or a committee. It has been developed to encourage the move from a structure supporting ecumenism towards real ecumenical action, an encounter with other Christians. It is based on the principle that encounter begins by finding someone else. It uses an empirical approach, beginning with people's experience of different degrees and styles of unity, of disagreement and agreement in the things of faith.

The situation envisioned is that of a parish ecumenical leader frustrated about lack of action and wondering where to begin. We suggest planning a one-hour exercise with a parish council to develop preparedness for and lead into an ecumenical encounter. The exercise is readily adaptable to other groups within the parish and to other contexts such as a school setting.

Exercise

The full exercise takes approximately an hour, and you will need to ensure that the group is aware of this in advance and has set aside sufficient time. It is a participatory exercise and requires some open space in the room (see section 2) where people can move around. If there are restrictions on time or space, section 2 will need to be adapted.

Depending on the exact context, you may need to add some introduction at the beginning of the exercise to focus the participants, e.g. prayer and reading from Scripture. If the exercise takes place within the agenda of a council meeting, this kind of focussing may already have taken place.

Sections 1 & 2 introduce the conceptual basis of the exercise to the group. You are encouraged to draw out from the participants their own conception of what unity means, first in a variety of contexts and then particularly in the church.

1. What models of unity do we draw from everyday experience? (family, army, country, choir) 10 mins.

Draw on people's experience of unity and disunity in various life contexts. You might suggest the examples given above. What are the strengths and weaknesses of particular models of unity? For example, a family may become inwardly focussed; an army gains power from uniformity; and so forth. Involve people in this discussion and ask for their contributions or suggestions of other models. Do not at this stage allow discussion to focus on the church.

2. What picture of unity do we have for the church? (unity of love, truth, witness) 15 mins.

These three elements (love, truth, witness) are described in Bernard Thorogood, One wind, many flames, Geneva: WCC Publications, 1991, p. 58

Each person has different pictures of what Christian unity means. One author has identified three elements to those pictures: the unity of love, the unity of truth, the unity of witness. The first emphasis is primarily about relationships with other Christians, the second stresses agreement in faith and the gospel message, the third focuses on Christian action and proclamation in the world. This exercise invites members of the group to identify which of these emphases is personally most important to them.

Explain these concepts to the group, and make sure they understand the distinctions you are drawing. Identify four corners of the room as "love", "truth", "witness" and a fourth corner for those who cannot relate to any of the others, ("Don't know, don't care, let me out of here"). Ask participants to go the place in the room that they feel most identified with. This could be a corner, or it could be partway between two or three corners expressing a sense of balance. Ask them to do this quickly without thinking too hard about it.

Once everyone is in position, put the question, "How does it feel to be where you are?" It may be best to put this question first to people who are 'out on a limb' or at the extreme corners of the room, and then to people located more towards the centre. Allow people to express their comfort level at being alone or in a cluster. This can be quite a lively process as people relate to each other's positions. Some may wish to move once they hear others' sentiments!

Put a second question, "Ideally, in your personal opinion, where should we be located as a parish [or group] in our ecumenical action?" Some people may move when you ask this question, and you can ask them to explain why.

Put a third question, "Realistically speaking, what can our ecumenical action express in our particular situation?" Likely more people will move as they think about what the parish is prepared to do or about the interests of your potential ecumenical partners. Ask them to explain. After any discussion, invite people to sit down again.

This "human graph" in itself illustrates a model of unity-in-diversity within the parish as foreseen by the Directory on Ecumenism, § 67. If you have time, you may wish to comment on or explore the ramifications of what you have learned about the different approaches to ecumenism within the parish.

3. Lund principle - introduce and explain (5 mins.)

The third world conference on Faith and Order at Lund, Sweden, in 1952 issued this challenge:

Should not our churches ask themselves whether they are showing sufficient eagerness to enter into conversation with other churches, and whether they should not act together in all matters except those in which deep differences of conviction compel them to act separately?

This challenge has been adapted in many forms as the Lund principle. One current formulation is "that we should not do separately what conscience permits us to do together". This principle is affirmed in the 1995 papal encyclical Ut Unum Sint.

Read the longer or shorter form (or both) of this principle to the group. Note how the principle includes the unity of love, truth, and witness through its commitment to other Christians (love), its recognition of deep convictions (truth) and its movement towards action (witness).

4. What would we like to do together? (5 mins.)

From the Lund principle advocating shared action, move the discussion towards the kinds of activity the group would like to see the parish becoming involved in. What are their hopes or wishes for ecumenical action? Brainstorm and write people's ideas down on newsprint or blackboard. If the group is short on ideas, you may draw suggestions from many ecumenical resources such as materials produced by regional covenanting groups.

5. Who are we going to do it with? (10 mins.)

This is the point at which the group will begin making concrete plans for the next step in ecumenical action -- the ecumenical encounter. Move the discussion from the ideal (what we would like to do) to the practical -- who our potential partners are, what they might be interested in working on. Ask people to identify potential encounters: who is in our neighbourhood? Make a list of churches, coalitions, prayer groups. Also identify particular projects/action already being undertaken by other Christian communities where you could offer help (collecting clothes, soup kitchen, action for justice...).

6. What preparation do we need to make a connection? (15 mins.)

One aspect of preparation for the ecumenical encounter is to develop or practise "encounter skills" such as hospitality, listening, and icebreaking -- skills that will be called on as you forge connections with other Christian communities.

This section also includes a practical exercise Ask group members to find the person they know least well in the room, and take 5 minutes to discover something they have in common. After the conversations, ask each pair to say what they learned and how. As follow-up, invite people to make a point of using those same skills at least once each day next week.

As the workshop concludes, be sure to establish who is going to approach whom as you move towards ecumenical encounter(s), and a timeline within which they will work. Which ecumenical partners do you want to approach? Do you know if they have ecumenical contact people? Who is the most appropriate person from your parish to make the connection? (This may well be the ecumenical co-ordinator or committee, but it may be someone else - a social justice convenor in the case of a social project, a music leader in the case of a liturgical event, and so on...)

Allow time for any final questions or observations.

Stress the importance of prayer support for these encounters and the work they will give rise to. Conclude the workshop with a prayer which you ask people to pray daily through the preparation stage:

Lord Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles, "Peace I leave with you, my peace I give to you": look not on our sins, but on the faith of your church, and grant to it that peace and unity which is acceptable to your holy will...

Encountering other Christian communities

The person who is delegated to make overtures to another Christian community or communities will need to be prepared for that task. The next section suggests ways of making an approach.

1. Whom do you contact?

2. Explain your process

3. Invite response

The focus here is on encounter, so there will be no presuppositions about what can or should be achieved. You will, however, need to carry into the encounter a sense of what your own community hopes for and is prepared to engage in.