Newman, Wesley and the logic of unity : an inductive approach to ecumenism
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Morris-Chapman, Daniel John Pratt
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Abstract
It is a privilege to be invited to contribute to the Festschrift dedicated to Professor Johan Buitendag, Emeritus Dean, Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Pretoria, South Africa. While his own work often examined the relationship between theology and natural science, he was also passionate about ecumenism and, in that spirit, the present essay utilised what might be described as an inductive approach to an important ecumenical question, the unity between
Methodists and Catholics. Ecumenical dialogue is often undertaken from a theological and dogmatic perspective. This essay took a different approach in that it sought to inductively examine what might be described as the inner logic of two ecclesial systems (Methodist and Catholic). In doing so, it was premised upon an Aristotelian philosophical principle, epistemic fit, in that it presupposed that both these ecclesial bodies possess an intrinsic logic that can be brought to the surface in order to exhibit parallel contours in the wider ecclesial terrain.
Description
This research is part of The research project ‘Understanding Reality (Theology and Nature)’, directed by Prof. Dr Johan Buitendag, Department of Systematic and Historical Theology, Faculty of Theology and Religion, University of Pretoria.
DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT: Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analysed in this study
DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT: Data sharing is not applicable to this article as no new data were created or analysed in this study
Keywords
Epistemic fit, Ecumenism, Unity, Methodist Catholic dialogue, Ecclesiology, John Henry Newman, John Wesley, William Abraham
Sustainable Development Goals
Citation
Pratt Morris-Chapman, D.J., 2023, ‘Newman, Wesley and the logic of unity: An
inductive approach to ecumenism’, HTS Teologiese Studies/Theological Studies 79(2), a8158. https://doi.org/10.4102/hts.v79i2.8158.