Our Evangelical Neighbours

Dialogue has been a key element of the work of the Canadian Bishops before the Council and especially after the Second Vatican Council.  Formal dialogues have been established with the mainline Christian Churches and with other religions. These dialogues have borne much fruit. One of the groups with which the Canadian Conference of Bishops has entered into a dynamic and fruitful dialogue is the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. With the decline of mainline Protestantism in Canada, Evangelicals are more and more likely to be the non-Catholic Christians that Catholics encounter today. There are Evangelical churches, educational institutions, and service projects all across Canada, and they are growing and vibrant. Catholics also meet Evangelicals in the halls of power, where they are frequently on the same side of contentious social issues.

Today, to celebrate the Feast of St. Luke the Evangelist, the Canadian Bishops Conference published an important document that is one of the results of the very fruitful dialogue that exists with our Evangelical brothers and sisters. The document is entitled Our Evangelical Neighbours: A Catholic Reflection on Evangelical Christianity.

This resource on Evangelical Christianity was developed in close consultation with dialogue partners at the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada. The aim was to create a resource that reflected faithfully the Christian identity of our Evangelical brothers and sisters. Mister Bruce Clemenger, the President of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada sent a letter to His Excellency, Douglas Crosby, O.M.I., Bishop of Hamilton and President of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops, remarking that the new resource Our Evangelical Neighbours ... offers a clear overview of Evangelical beliefs and practices; I believe that most Evangelicals in Canada would find themselves fairly represented in its pages.