Faith and Order

Link to the broader organization: The NCC Faith and Order Commission

The USCCB is a member of The Faith and Order Commission, a multilateral ecumenical dialogue sponsored by the National Council of Churches in the USA. The commission strives to build unity among Christians by facilitating theological dialogue among scholars of various denominations.It is charged with a mission to affirm and illuminate the unity of the Church by healing division while honoring diversity. 

• It meets semi-annually in four year cycles
• The Bishops' Committee sends five theologians to participate in the study groups
• The current topic of discussion is "unity in mission," directed by Dr. Anton C. Vrame, Ph.D. of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.
• Professor Joseph Mueller S.J., of Marquette University, represents the Bishops' Committee in this dialogue.

Historical Note

Faith and Order is part of a global movement that began as early as 1910 under the guidance of Charles Brent, an American Episcopal bishop, and has continued to meet regularly on the global level with the participation of the Holy See.  In the United States, the Faith and Order Commission was inaugurated at a 1957 conference entitled, "The Nature of the Unity We Seek," and was placed under that auspices of the NCCC-USA. Its ecumenical work encompasses and reflects the nature and diversity of American Christianity.

For more information, please visit our previous website.