ecumenical movement

ecumenical movement A movement whose name derives from the Greek oikoumenë (‘the whole inhabited world’) whose aim is to unite all believers in Christ, transcending all divisions of denomination. The beginnings of the modern movement culminated in the World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh in 1910, which led to the establishment of an International Missionary Council and to further interdenominational meetings. The institution of a World Council of Churches was held up by World War II, but in 1948 it met for the first time in Amsterdam, with the participation of representatives from 147 churches from forty-seven countries. As a result of more liberal attitudes within the Roman Catholic Church from the papacy of John XXIII, Catholic observers were sent to the Assembly of the World Council of Churches for the first time in 1961. Under John XXIII and his successor, Pope Paul VI, the conflict between the Eastern Orthodox Churches and Western Catholicism was bridged. There have been constant set-backs, for example the controversy between the Church of England (Anglican Communion) and the Roman Catholic Church over the ordination of women for the priesthood during the early 1990s, and the failure of Anglican-Methodist unity in 1972. However, there has been continued progress and dialogue between the denominations. This was witnessed by the establishment of more regional church councils and of a communion between the Anglican and Lutheran Churches in the early 1990s.