The Ecumenical Commitment of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church

Abstract

The Ecumenical Commitment of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church has been at the centre of its ecclesiology and theological thought especially in relation to its sister-church the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch since the Second Vatican Council. The Antiochene context has provided a unique and creative context for a renewed ecumenical engagement as viewed through the developing relations between the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and the Melkite Greek Catholic Church. This paper sets out in detail how these relations have developed over the last decades, however, with the caveat that the author, Patriarch Gregorios III who has been deeply involved in these discussions, notes that the significant proposals mentioned in the final part of this article remain to be received within the wider ecclesial communities.