Page "Ecumenism" Paragraph 7

For some Protestants spiritual unity, and often unity on the church's teachings on central issues, suffices.

According to Lutheran theologian Edmund Schlink, most important in Christian ecumenism is that people focus primarily on Christ, not on separate church organizations.

In Schlink's book Ökumenische Dogmatik ( 1983 ), he says Christians who see the risen Christ at work in the lives of various Christians or in diverse churches, realize that the unity of Christ's church has never been lost, but has instead been distorted and obscured by different historical experiences and by spiritual myopia.

Both are overcome in renewed faith in Christ.

Included in that is responding to his admonition ( John 17 ; also Philippians 2 ) to be one in him and love one another as a witness to the world.

The result of mutual recognition would be a discernible worldwide fellowship, organized in a historically new way.