Ecumenicalism - Why bother?

[Sirach2]

How very timely! Pope Francis must have peeked at this thread.
Today’s homily at the closing mass for WYD, in part:
Where does Jesus send us? There are no borders, no limits: he sends us to everyone. The Gospel is for everyone, not just for some. It is not only for those who seem closer to us, more receptive, more welcoming. It is for everyone. Do not be afraid to go and to bring Christ into every area of life, to the fringes of society, even to those who seem farthest away, most indifferent. The Lord seeks all, he wants everyone to feel the warmth of his mercy and his love.

 

[cheezey]

Christ prayed that we all might be one…is that not something we ALL should be working for?

:clapping:

If we “kept to ourselves” instead of instituting dialogue with other faiths, then there would be less converts to Catholicism. That is why be bother.

:clapping:

We live in a multicultural world. St. Francis is often credited with saying “Preach always, and if necessary, use words.” People are won over more by our actions than by our words.
As a child, living overseas, I visited Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples along with my parents. We learned about the different religions in schools. [Contrary to public opinion this is not against current American law even today]. This in no ways means that I accepted Shintoism or Buddhism.
Dialogue always begins with respect. Those who asked my parents to sponsor their candicancy into the Catholic Faith based it on their observation of our family life. My parents were not theologians. They were simply Catholics who lived their faith in the world.

In one of his talks, Fulton Sheen talks about the importance of learning about different religions and faith communities, and what they teach. We begin with what we share in common without denying the differences that separate us.

:clapping:

Many of the posts on this thread reveal a gross misunderstanding of the meaning of ecumenism,and some smell pungently of proselyting. If only people would only pay more attention to the teachings of Pope Francis. He has said that we must stop banging on about stale concepts and realise that the urgent need is to proclaim the good news that Jesus the Lord is the One for this world of ours.Stop dwelling on musty theology books and old arguments, and reach out to people who think as we do: [We] are called Christians.We need to work and pray with [together] and work on a strategy on how best to bring Christ to the Nations.The people are thirsty .[We] are hungry for the Word.[We] do not need to hear sterile arguments about who is right and who is wrong.

How very timely! Pope Francis must have peeked at this thread.
Today’s homily at the closing mass for WYD, in part:
Where does Jesus send us? There are no borders, no limits: he sends us to everyone. The Gospel is for everyone, not just for some. It is not only for those who seem closer to us, more receptive, more welcoming. It is for everyone. Do not be afraid to go and to bring Christ into every area of life, to the fringes of society, even to those who seem farthest away, most indifferent. The Lord seeks all, he wants everyone to feel the warmth of his mercy and his love.

:clapping::clapping:

 

[andrewppp67]

Blessed Pope John Paul II once gathered representatives from many religions(Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist) to come together in Assisi, Italy to pray for ecumenism. I believe it is a great way to try and unite people of all denominations to worship and pray. I mean, we Christians all believe in the same God, right?

 

[commenter]

We live in a multicultural world. St. Francis is often credited with saying “Preach always, and if necessary, use words.” People are won over more by our actions than by our words.
…

My understanding is that this quote does not appear in the Franciscan literature until a couple centuries after Francis’ death (per a program on EWTN by Fr. Mitch Pacwa, S.J). Of course he might have said it, and it’s a good idea, but I am just frustrated there are so many other St. Francis quotes much more likely to actually come from him, that we hardly ever hear.