The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome is the presence of the World Methodist Council in Rome. MEOR’s mission is advanced by a partnership of Methodist churches and Methodist councils of churches who provide resources and ministry oversight. With the World Methodist Council, MEOR is supported by the Methodist Church Britain, the European Methodist Council, the Evangelical Methodist Churches in Italy (OPCEMI), and The United Methodist Church.
The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome traces its roots to the emergence of fruitful ecumenical engagement between Methodists and Catholics in the mid-20th century. Pope John XXIII invited the World Methodist Council to appoint several Methodist fraternal delegates including Bishop William Cannon and Prof. Albert Outler to the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). Soon after the close of Vatican II, Pope Paul VI invited the World Methodist Council to bilateral theological dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church. This bilateral theological dialogue has met continuously over the next half century since the close of Vatican II, publishing 11 reports since its inception. Additionally, an English-speaking Methodist congregation was established in 1955 in a chapel of the Italian Methodist Church located at Ponte Sant’Angelo on the Tiber River whose ministers served as an informal link to the Vatican and further strengthened the ecumenical connection.
This productive relationship with the Vatican led the World Methodist Council, the Methodist Church in Britain, and the Evangelical Methodist Churches in Italy to form a unique partnership with several Methodist church partners, culminating in the establishment of the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome. The Revd Dr Tim Macquiban opened MEOR in 2014 and the current partnership configuration was implemented in 2016.
On 7 April 2016, Pope Francis said, “I was pleased to learn of the opening of the Methodist Ecumenical Office in Rome. It is a sign of our growing closeness, and particularly of our shared desire to overcome all that stands in the way of our full communion. May the Lord bless the work of the office and make it a place where Catholics and Methodists can encounter one another and grow in appreciation of one another’s faith, whether they be groups of pilgrims, those training for ministry, or those who guide their communities. May it also be a place where the progress achieved through our theological dialogue is made known, celebrated, and advanced.”
MEOR’s first full-time director – the Reverend Matthew A. Laferty – was appointed in 2020.
Mission Statement
The Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome is a presence for the World Methodist Council:
- to be a channel of dialogue with other churches in the search for a deeper unity;
- to foster relationships with other agencies and faith communities in order to promote better understanding and joint action for justice and peace;
- to offer a ministry of prayer and reflection, of learning and growth;
- to be a place of open hospitality to Methodists and all visitors to Rome.
The Forum
MEOR’s oversight committee – The Forum – supervises and enables the work of the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome. Each institutional partner is entitled to two representatives on The Forum. The Rev. Dr. Reynaldo Ferreira Leão Neto, general secretary of the World Methodist Council, and the Rev. Luca Anziani, president of the Evangelical Methodist Churches in Italy, serve as co-chairs of The Forum.
The Forum gives “attention to the following functions including receiving regular reports from the Director, approving an annual work plan, [and] authorising new initiatives after consultation.” Furthermore, members of The Forum commit to “promote MEOR and its activities within its organization, encourage the Methodist family to make use of MEOR when arranging tours or planning ecumenical initiatives, [and] assist the smooth running of the Office to meet the demand on its services.”
The Forum members are Rev. Dr. Reynaldo Ferreira Leão Neto (co-chair), Rev. Luca Anziani (co-chair), Rev. Dr. Heather Morris, Rev. Dr. Jean Hawxhurst, Rev. Steven Cooper, Rev. Myron Howie, and Rev. Matthew A. Laferty (ex-officio).
The Director
The Reverend Matthew A. Laferty is the director of the Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome, overseeing worldwide Methodist relations with the Catholic Church and Holy See (Vatican). Rev. Laferty is also the co-secretary of the Methodist-Roman Catholic International Commission, the official theological dialogue commission between the World Methodist Council and the Holy See.
Learn more about our Director.
You may contact the director at director [at] meorome.org.
Methodist Ecumenical Office Rome 