Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue

The Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue was first established by the General Synod as the Home Reunion Committee in 1905 and assumed its current name in 2007.  The Commission was previously known as the Committee for Christian Unity.  Its aims are:

• To promote within the Church of Ireland the vision of Church unity.

• To promote and support movements in Ireland towards co–operation among the various Christian bodies.

• To maintain Church of Ireland membership of, and participation in, national and international ecumenical bodies.

• To address, in consultation with the Standing Committee, developments within the Anglican Communion.

• To encourage and engage in inter–faith encounter and dialogue.

• To report annually to the General Synod.

The membership consists of up to 20 members elected annually by the General Synod.

The Church of Ireland has a rich network of relationships with fellow Anglican churches and other Christian traditions within Ireland and overseas.  It is a member of the Anglican Communion and the following ecumenical networks:

• the Irish Council of Churches (ICC);
• the Irish Inter Church Committee (IICC);
• Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI);
• the Conference of European Churches (CEC);
• the World Council of Churches (WCC);
• the Porvoo Communion (which brings together Anglican and Lutheran Churches); and
• the signatories of the Reuilly Common Statement (between Anglican and French–speaking Protestant Churches).

As an observer on the Meissen Commission, the Church also has links with the Evangelical Church in Germany.

The Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue’s three working groups focus on Anglican, European and inter–faith matters.

The Anglican Affairs Working Group considers the Church’s relations within the Anglican Communion and within the Porvoo Communion, and with the Moravian Church.  More information on the Anglican Communion is available at www.anglicancommunion.org

The European Affairs Working Group works closely with the ICC’s European Affairs Committee and the CEC to discuss and consider common concerns for European Churches.  More information on CEC is available at www.ceceurope.org

The Inter–Faith Working Group seeks to build relationships and encourage dialogue with people from other faiths who are living in Ireland.  The following resources may be helpful for developing a greater interest in inter–faith dialogue:

• Church of Ireland Guidelines for Interfaith Events and Dialogue

• Generous Love for All – from the Church of England

• Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity – from the World Council of Churches

The Church of Ireland is in full communion with the other members of the Anglican Communion and Porvoo Communion, the Methodist Church in Ireland, the Moravian Province of Great Britain and Ireland, the Union of Utrecht of the Old Catholic Churches, and the Mar Thoma Syrian Church.

The Commission’s members attend the annual conferences of other Christian denominations in Ireland and hold regular meetings with the Roman Catholic Church and with the Presbyterian Church. 

Methodist Covenant & Covenant Council

Relations between the Church of Ireland and the Methodist Church in Ireland are covered by the Covenant Council on the basis of the Covenant signed between the two denominations in 2002.  A bill to provide for interchangeability of ministry between the Church of Ireland and the Methodist Church in Ireland was approved by the General Synod in 2015.

Armagh Agreement & Moravian relations

The relationship between the Church of Ireland and the Moravian Province and the Church of Ireland has taken shape around the Armagh Agreement which was signed in 2021.  The Agreement received approval from the House of Bishops and in a resolution of the General Synod in 2022.

Porvoo Communion

The Porvoo Communion is a fellowship of Anglican Churches in Europe and Lutheran Churches from Scandinavia and the Baltic states. The Church of Ireland signed the Porvoo Common Statement in 1995.  More information on this relationship and related agreed documents is available on this page on the Church of Ireland website.

Please click here for Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue news and/or click here for resources published by the Commission.