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Koinonia



                        THE JOURNAL OF THE ANGLICAN &

                         EASTERN CHURCHES ASSOCIATION

                                        Editorial

            FIRST, I must offer sincere apologies for the late appearance of this edition of
            Koinonia – the unfortunate consequence of moving house and changing job in
            a short period of time. Thank you for your patience.
                  However,  the positive  aspect  of  such  a  late publication  is  that it has
            enabled  me to include material relating to  the Pan-Orthodox Council,  which
            otherwise could not have been included. The Council took place in Crete from
            17th-26th June and has been long expected (and some would say long overdue),
            and its planning and organisation has been fraught with difficulties involving a
            change  of  location  and  some  members  of  the  Orthodox  family  not  in
            attendance.  Despite this the Council is one of  the most important events in
            Orthodoxy in over a millennium and two of its official documents are included
            in this issue. The first is the Message of the Council, which is addressed ‘To the
            Orthodox people and  all people of good  will’ which acts as a  summary of  all
            main points raised and discussed  at the Council. The second  document ‘The
            relations  of  the  Orthodox  Church  with  the  rest  of  the  Christian  world’  is
            particularly important for its emphatic commitment to continuing ecumenical
            dialogue in the light of contemporary issues, and for its description of a process
            of reception by which ecumenical discussion can be progressed and considered
            as concluded. As  a  complement to  these  official documents,  there  is also  an
            excellent  extended  reflection  and  interview  with  Bishop  Christopher  Hill
            (former Bishop of Guildford), who was the Conference of European Churches
            observer at the Council. The content of the reflection appeared in the Church
            Times over several weeks,  but importantly,  appears together here as one text
            for the first time. It provides a thoughtful insight into the work of the Council
            and  its  successes  despite  the  challenges  it  faced.  The  following  interview
            provides  some further  food  for thought,  about what the Council means  for
            Anglicans and the future of the Council might be.





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