[Tantumergo]

"And it is statements such as this that ensure there will never be a reunification."

Quite so!

I would be interested to know if you think that the statement gives an accurate presentation of the issues from an E.O. perspective.

I am always a little wary of ecumenists from either side watering down their beliefs to make them sound acceptable to the other side!

[FormerLib]

I am always a little wary of ecumenists from either side watering down their beliefs to make them sound acceptable to the other side!

And appropriately so, for exactly those reasons!

Several years ago, the Patriarch of Constantinople visited the US. On his tour, he was to address a Roman Catholic/Orthodox ecumenical group. Given his previous statements, everyone was expecting him to give a talk such as you describe.

Quite frankly, people on all sides of the issue were stunned to hear him say that reunification would never be possible as the two churches now had a differing ontological understanding of God. That understanding was directly related to the filioque.

Ultimately, that understanding of God is directly linked to our understanding of the Church: is it headed by a single Patriarch or the Ecumenical Councils? Clearly, our two churches will always answer these two questions differently.

[Hermann the Cherusker]

I would be interested to know if you think that the statement gives an accurate presentation of the issues from an E.O. perspective.

I would say it gives an accurate depiction of the present status of the theology of both sides.