Initially when I read about the Faith and Order movement I was intrigued. This of course comes from my own conviction that if people, communities, societies and eventually the world is going to change, our belief systems have to change first. The Faith and Order movement, within the World Council of Churches seems to capture this conviction as well. Faith and Order recognizes that it isn’t enough to simply team up and ‘do’. Rather, our being; the very ethos of who we are needs to have some sort of uniformity if we are to be unified. That is, we cannot truly be unified in action if we are divisive in belief. Yet, while I still hold to this conviction generally, I question the methods and the aims of Faith and Order in this postmodern context.
The more I read about the spiritual roots of ecumenism, and Martin Robra’s assessment of the changing global context with the needs that these changes bring, I wonder what Faith and Order will look like in a world where diversity is celebrated and knowledge is contextual. I wonder, like Robra how much evangelicals, pentecostals and other emerging denominations have been included in the conversations of Faith and Order. Will the denominations with more power and history impose their theological convictions on the group? (especially those groups that may be underrepresented or simply new to the movement). Not only that, but does the goal of Faith and Order weaken theology as a whole because of the search for agreeable doctrine? Are God’s dynamic character and attributes limited because of our need for a system of belief?
Ambivalence is the best word to describe how I feel about Faith and Order. On one hand, I see theological revisioning being a necessary thing for us all. Faith and Order can help us critique and balance one another (if everyone’s voice is heard equally). On the other hand, I’m afraid that the need to have uniformity of belief can not only stifle our diversity, but it can also limit the ways we think about God.
I look forward to learning more about this movement, and exploring the ways in which it will function in our postmodern world.
For more information on the Faith and Order movement, and on the World Counsel of Churches see the link below.
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