MISSION STATEMENTUnder the mandate of the Archbishop, the Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission serves the Archdiocese and our partners in dialogue by promoting ecumenism and interfaith relations in the Archdiocese of Melbourne.
We carry out this mission in the following ways.
In Ecumenical relations, we:
- implement the decisions of the Archbishop and the teaching and directives of the Second Vatican Council on ecumenism
- maintain relations with the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference Committee on Ecumenism and Inter-Religious Relations and the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity
- foster spiritual ecumenism
- offer help and encouragement for ecumenical formation of both clergy and laity by such means as workshops and seminars
- promote friendliness and charity between Catholics and other Christians with whom full ecclesial communion does not yet exist
- initiate local ecumenical dialogues and consultations in Melbourne
- Promote joint witness to Christian faith
In Interfaith relations, we
- implement the decisions of the Archbishop and the teaching and directives of the Second Vatican Council on interfaith dialogue;
- maintain relations through the Commission with the Australian Bishops’
Conference Committee on Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations, and with
the Commission of the Holy See for Religious Relations with the Jews and
the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue
- foster a spirituality which welcomes and appreciates what is positive in others as a gift from God
- provide a high level of support and advice, service and information to the Archdiocese
- assist and encourage Melbourne Catholics in interfaith dialogue by offering workshops and seminars for interfaith formation
- initiate local interfaith dialogues and conversations in Melbourne
- network with other interfaith groups and organisations working in Melbourne
- promote joint witness to the importance of religious faith in society
VISION STATEMENT“The unity of all divided humanity is the will of God. For this reason he sent his Son, so that by dying and rising for us he might bestow on us the Spirit of love.” (John Paul II,
Ut Unum Sint §6)
- Since “the restoration of unity among all Christians is one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council” (UR §1), this is therefore also the ecumenical vision of our Commission.
- Furthermore, urged on by the Second Vatican Council, it is our vision that in Interfaith relations the Commission may “through dialogue and collaboration with the followers of other religions, carried out with prudence and love and in witness to the Christian faith and life, ...recognize, preserve and promote the good things, spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these people”. (cf. Nostra Aetate §2)