GOTHENBURG, SWEDEN (MEOR) – The World Methodist Council officially acknowledged and received the latest report of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission (MERCIC) – God in Christ Reconciling: On the Way to Full Communion in Faith, Sacraments, and Mission – on 14 August 2024 at the Council meeting in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The report is the culmination of 5 years of theological dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and the World Methodist Council. Building on previous themes and reports, MERCIC’s report on reconciliation marks the first comprehensive report on reconciliation in a major bilateral dialogue with the Catholic Church or the World Methodist Council. The report broadly addresses the themes of reconcilation with God, reconciliation with one another through Christ, liturgical rites of reconciliation, and the Church’s call to reconciliation in the world.
The WMC Steering Committee, the Council’s executive body, affirmed the report ad interim in August 2022 until the Council’s meeting in Gothenburg.
Download the report in PDF format (1.32 MB).
The Rev. Matthew A. Laferty, director of the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome and the co-secretary of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission, said, “this report on reconciliation is a significant milestone in Methodist-Catholic dialogue and brings Catholics and Methodists closer in our pilgrimage journey to fuller unity in Christ.”
The report was presented to Pope Francis by the Commission on 5 October 2022. When receiving the report, Pope Francis reminded the Commission that both Catholics and Methodists embody the prodigal son who left the father and are returning home together (cf. Luke 15).
RELATED: Pope Francis receives Methodist-Catholic Commission, 5 October 2022
The World Methodist Council now commends the report to its 80 member churches for their consideration, reflection, and education.
Additionally, the Council also extended “its deep appreciation to the Revd Dr David Chapman of the Methodist Church in Great Britain and the Rev Dr Karen Westerfield Tucker of The United Methodist Church (USA) for their service as the Methodist co-chair and Methodist co-secretary of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission” and “its gratitude to outgoing Methodist commission members of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission for their contributions and commitment to the cause of Christian unity.”
Following an invitation to theological dialogue by Pope Paul VI, the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission was established in 1967 and has meet in continuous session since its inception. The Commission has published 11 comprehensive reports in 55 years, making it the World Methodist Council’s most productive and published bilateral dialogue commission. The Commission has 16 members – 8 Methodists and 8 Catholics – who meet yearly. The Rev. Prof. Edgardo Colon-Emeric, dean of Methodist-related Duke Divinity School in Durham, NC, USA, and H.E. Mons. Shane Mackinlay, Catholic bishop of the Diocese of Sandhurst near Melbourne, Australia, are the Commission’s current co-chairs.
Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome 