Following up on their 1998-2003 dialogue and ground-breaking document, Called Together to Be Peacemakers Mennonite and Catholic leaders met together for a brief conference October 23-25, 2007 in order to offer joint suggestions for the World Council of Churches’ Decade to Overcome Violence (DOV). The DOV will culminate in an International Ecumenical Peace Convocation (IEPC) in 2011. In preparation, representatives from the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Mennonite World Conference met at the Centro Pro Unione in Rome with the goal of submitting theological reflections that Mennonites and Catholics, committed to overcoming violence, might affirm together as a witness to peace in the ecumenical context.
The document they produced begins by identifying biblical and theological foundations of peace, around the themes of Creation, Christology, and Ecclesiology. It then presents a section on peace and discipleship. It concludes with challenges and recommendations for workshops at the IEPC.
The document, entitled “A Mennonite and Catholic Contribution to the World Council of Churches’ Decade to Overcome Violence,” is now available at http://overcomingviolence.org/resources/documents/peace-declaration/declarations-statements/a-mennonite-and-catholic-contribution-to-the-wccs-dov.html