An international gathering of the broadest range of Christian traditions ever met for a four-day conference beginning Tuesday.
High level church leaders met near Nairobi, Kenya, in an unprecedented ecumenical showcase to discuss what Christians are called to do – and if possible together – in the world. The Global Christian Forum in Limuru convenes about 250 high level representatives of all the main Christian traditions and their global organizations. Evangelicals and Pentecostal make up about half of the participants.
Under the theme of “Our Journey with Jesus Christ, the Reconciler,” participants will discuss how best to promote dialogue and cooperation on issues of Christian unity and common witness to the world. Attendees will also debate proposals for the future of the forum.
The stated purpose of the forum is to create a new, open space in which a broad range of Christian churches and interchurch organizations can gather in a multilateral setting to foster mutual respect and explore and address together common challenges. It aims to include all streams of Christianity, including those which have not been in conversation with one another.
The idea for the forum was first proposed in the mid-1990s by then World Council of Churches general secretary the Rev. Konrad Raiser with the recognition that the ecumenical movement was broader than the WCC, which represents 560 million Christians in 110 countries.
Although WCC helped initiate the process, the ecumenical body sees itself as a participating organization alongside others.
The faith groups represented at the meeting in Limuru are: African Instituted, Anglican, Baptist, Evangelical, (Roman) Catholic, Disciples (Churches of Christ), Friends, Holiness, Lutheran, Mennonite, Methodist, Moravian, Old Catholic, Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, Pentecostal, Reformed, Salvation Army, Seventh-Day Adventist, United and Uniting Churches.
In addition to these denominations or “families,” a number of Christian organizations are also represented: regional ecumenical organizations, youth and student international movements, YMCA and YWCA, United Bible Societies, World Vision International, the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelization, the World Council of Churches and a number of forum-type organizations.
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say this as tactfully, and as lovingly as I can to all who side with Rick Warren in this ecumenical drive to unite the worlds religeons. Be warned, for this is what the Bible says: God is gracious and merciful, and will forgive those who turn to Him thru Jesus Christ with a repentant heart, and choose to fllow Him. However, He is the Righteous God, and He will judge those who deliberately turned their backs on Him and His Son - Jesus Christ because of their obstinate rebellion and continual rejection of His Son. Read the Bible in context, and then comment on it. We cannot, and should not have felowship with those who claim to be Christians yet don't obey His Word, and HIs Salvation Message. The post modern liberal Emergent church, and it's seeker sensitive counterparts want people to believe that if we all save the environment, and save the whales, the events of the Book of Revelation will not happen, and we can actually prevent it from happening. This similar social gospel which claims that we should make the world a better place, and usher in peace prior to Jesus' second coming, as well as unite with all people of faiths has been adopted by Rick Warren, and has caused whole splits in the Southern Baptist Convention, because he has gone down the Purpose Driven P.E.A.C.E Plan agenda, which by the way is a false doctrine my friends. These movements which align themselves with Bono from U2 and the whole COEXIST crowd have more in common with humanism, one world religeon, and the new age than what the Bible says will transpire. The problem today is that we have so many "Bible teachers" who are more motivational speakers than true shepherd's of the flock of God. No wonder the Body of Christ is split. The Bible talks of a great falling away in the end times. Men will naturally gravitate towards what their "itching ears" want to hear. What more itching do you need than what you hear on TBN, and the like: "find success", "you are the controller of your own destiny" "God will prosper you if you just have faith [and send me your money]". They take Scripture out of context to suit their own desires, and fleece the flock of God for their own matierial gain. OPEN YOUR EYES and STUDY the WORD IN CONTEXT; for Christ will return soon.
Praise God! If we can begin by acknowledging that we're brothers and sisters in the same family and see the GOOD that exists in each denomination, we're much further along to achieving the perfect unity that Jesus prayed we would have with each other in John 17:21 and 17:23.
Unity at the price of Orthodoxy is only anarchy of the most heinous kind.