A Brief History of Christian Unity

The history of the ecumenical movement goes back to the time of the apostles. This timeline does not move in a progressive fashion but experiences the ebbs and flows of a faith that is expressed in the real world by real people. That is why it has been said that ecumenism is not words on a page but the interaction of people seeking to understand one another and Christ’s work within us.

It is important to see every official dialogue, every new declaration or encyclical and every publication on the road to Christian unity as holding a history of conversation, relationship, argument and prayer that ultimately, with the work of the Spirit, manifests Christian unity.

For more information and key points in the history of Christian unity pertinent to Evangelical and Catholic relations please follow the links below:

Ut Unum Sint
New Delhi Statement on Unity
Evangelicals and Catholics Together
Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification