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There are only two legitimate purposes of the church...

There is at least one more -- the works of Christian charity. The Biblical support for it is quite clear.

I see no instances in the Scriptural record where the church that the Apostles Shepherded ever got involved in national politics.

The problem is that "national politics" exceed far and wide what could be reasonably considered "political." One of the big worldwide moral issues that suddenly became "political" is abortion. In many countries it is human rights (or basic human dignity issues). And from the recent history... some non-Christians blame Pope Pius XII for not being Christian enough in his pronouncements.

Grouping: i would lump that purpose in with #2 on my list, but if you want to separate it, fine with me.

i do not consider abortion a political issue, it was a moral issue that was politicised, a subtle difference.

This is indicative of what happened in Protestant Churches in the late 19th Century. A majority of Protestant Clergy actively promoted abortion, because they chose to listen to bad science, and not the Word of God. Hence the neccessity to publish and proclaim what is true. In the issue of sexuality, the Roman Catholic Church has made historical, authoritative statements, the Bishops chose not to listen, trusting in "science falsly called". Same thing, both wrong, both factions(Catholic Bishops who bought this nonsense, and Protestant Clergy who devalued human life) need to repent.

It is also obvious that we both need to start by proclaiming the truth IN OUR OWN RESPECTIVE CONGREGATIONS.
A simple rule that Protestants should have learned with prohibition: WHAT WILL NOT BE TOLERATED WILL EITHER NOT COME INTO BEING OR CEASE TO EXIST IF IT DOES.
In our respective traditions, we need to restore the didactic -authoritative teaching-, and stop dialoging to consensus. It seems funny to me that -in spite of the claims of ecumenism- the churches spoke in a more unified voice when they were emphaic about their distinctions from one another. RC's and PC's (Roman Christians, Protestant Christians), spoke as a unified voice on social issues (for the most part) all the while spitting and hissing at each other. Now we're divided on those issues, but nice to each other (again, for the most part, i don't want to get into differences, there is another thread for that!).

There is at least one more -- the works of Christian charity. The Biblical support for it is quite clear.

And don't forget the most important function of The Church: to bring everyone the grace that leads to salvation primarily through the Sacraments.

Sanctifying grace, the title to salvation, is peculiarly the grace of those who are united to Christ in the Church: it is the birthright of the children of God. The primary purpose of those actual graces which God bestows upon those outside the Church is to draw them within the fold. Thus, even in the case in which God Saves men apart from the Church, He does so through the Church's graces. They are joined to the Church in spiritual communion, though not in visible and external communion. In the expression of theologians, they belong to the soul of the Church, though not to its body.