ECCLESIOLOGY AND MISSION WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF AN ORTHODOX EVANGELICAL DIALOGUE

Preliminaries: a) common affirmations, views and approaches: -deep commitment to Scripture, to the genuine preaching of the Apostolic Faith (pure Gospel) and to an authentic life in Christ (ethics); -a «beyond confession» identity b) differences of emphasis and nuances due to historical, contextual and cultural hermeneutical keys c) towards a mission oriented ecclesiology and its dilemas in the wider ecumenical encounters

The Church: its nature and purpose. An Orthodox view Par excellence, it is a pneumatological event. Pentecost is the Birthday of the Church. Short definition: the realized communion of God with humanity and creation through Christ in the Holy Spirit. It is a real though mystical/sacramental reality rather than a sociological, humanly agreed upon gathering.

Biblical images and definitions: People of God (1 Peter 2,9) (ekklesia/qahal) covenant assembly, gathering (Dt 29,1, 9,10). Close to the word «synagogue» :exceptions Acts 7,38 use the word ekklesia when speaks about the Jews in the desert and James 2,2 uses the term synagogue to define Christian community. Other images: Body of Christ united to Christ organically (John 14,16; 1 Cor 12,13, Col.1,18); temple (1 Cor 3,16); bride, new Jerusalem (Rev.21), one tree and branches

Orthodox Hermeneutical keys to ecclesiology and mission. -The role of Tradition in shaping the discourse on the work of Christ who is the same yesterday, today and forever. The importance of Patristic heritage and of liturgical doxological theology

The Church is a pneumatological event but realized through and in Christ. The Spirit is not separated from the Son as it rest hypostatically from eternity in the Son. Spirit of the Son: (2 Cor 3,17; 1 Cor 12,3; Rom.8,9, Gal.4,6); Philip. 1,19). «The Church is full of Trinity» (Origen) In Christ and the Spirit, in the achieved koinoinia of the Church, God comes to us and in us (life in Christ; theosis).

The Church is One because Christ remains one and is holy because her head is holy. There are not the members which make the oneness of the church or the ones who sanctify the Church by their lives. The members cannot affect the marks of the Church.

The Church, within the history of salvation is the «hidden eternal mystery, unkown even by the angels» (Rom 16,25; Ephesians 3,8- 10; 5,32; Col. 1.27, 1 Tim. 3,16) The Church has a cosmic dimension as the work of Christ who is the Lord of the universe

- In Him all were created and in him hold all things (cosmic Christ) Logos of God and the logoi of creation (St Justin, Clement of Alexandria, Maximus the Confessor etc - Human being-synthesis and «laboratory of creation». Its priestly vocation in the «cosmic church». «The paradisiac church…

The «fallen church» and the mission of the Logos: theophanies to the patriarchs, prophets and even to certain from among gentiles (St John Chrysotomos, Gr Nyssa, Irinaeus, Leo the Great etc. Jesus Christ – the eternal Logos incarnated: the reestablishment of the whole of creation. The role of incarnation and its implications for ecclesiology. He came to bring «grace upon grace» ( John 1,16)

The vocation of the Church within the missio Dei -laboratory to unity and transfiguration as preparatio eschatologica of the whole of creation

The role of the members of the Church in witnessing to the good news Mission is ontological rather than functional. It belongs therefore to the whole Church not only to some. It is not a function or an activity of a specialized group or agency. ”And you shall be my witnesses”(Acts 1,8): it is existential not legalistic. It is a criterion for authentic Christian life. It is not a luxury or an option, is not an action and activity that one may be free to choose or to opt for. It is, by grace, an ontological reality.

HOWEVER -we witness but God converts (Acts 2), Church growth and salvation of souls is God’s work not ours. Not interest in statistics, success stories. - sensitivity for and respect for any local context looking first for the presence of the signy of the kigdom upon which the Church will be built (oikodome) -interest in creating worshiping communities as salvation comes only in and through a community… -openness to the surprizes of the Holy Spirit

Building bridges between Orthodox and Evangelicals: towards a new look to hermeneutical keys holistic views and approaches (Scripture against Tradition, clergy/laity, institution and charismatic, individual versus community, forensic, juridical and external justification versus an ontological change and transformation. The role of Pentecostal theologies (Steven Land, Miroslav Volf, Clark Pinnock, Amos Young, Mel Robeck, Simon Chan, Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, Frank Machia