THE ECUMENICAL LEGACY OF THE SECOND VATICAN COUNCIL
On the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, students in professional or graduate programs in theology and religious studies are invited to consider how best to promote Christian unity today.
North American Academy of Ecumenists Académie des Oecuménistes de l'Amérique du Nord
The 2010 Student Essay Contest
New and Renewed Strategies for the Ecumenical Mission
On the 100th anniversary of the beginning of the modern ecumenical movement at the Edinburgh Missionary Conference, students in professional or graduate programs in Theology and Religious Studies are invited to consider how best to promote Christian unity today. Each contestant's conclusions should be presented in a scholarly essay of moderate length (20-30 pages, double spaced). It is permissible for essays written for course credit to be submitted as contest entries.
June 15, 2010 DEADLINE
The author of the winning essay will receive an award of $250 and funding to attend the 2010 NAAE conference in Montreal, PQ, CANADA, September 24-26, where he or she will be invited to present a précis of the essay. The Journal of Ecumenical Studies publishes winning essays of sufficient scholarly merit.
Requirements: The essays will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria: (1) awareness of the significance of the topic for the ecumenical movement; (2) soundness of argument (both from a logical and from a theological perspective); (3) use of primary sources (church documents, agreed statements from the World Council of Churches and ecumenical dialogues at the national or international levels); (4) familiarity with the relevant secondary literature; (5) creativity of approach to the theme and (6) scholarly style. In awarding points, readers will take into account the level of studies at which the entrant is currently working.
Submission: Essays (in English or French) and a brief biographical sketch of the author should be submitted (electronically if possible, preferably in MS Word format) by June 15, 2010 to the Essay Co-ordinator, Dr. Susan Mader Brown, at
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or at the following address: King’s University College at the University of Western Ontario 266 Epworth Ave., London, Ontario, CANADA N6A 2M3
Selected Resources
1. Gros, Jeffrey, Eamon McManus, Ann Riggs. “The History of Ecumenism.” In Introduction to Ecumenism, 9-34. New York: Paulist, 1998
2. Kinnamon, Michael and Brian E. Cope, eds. The Ecumenical Movement: An Anthology of Basic Texts and Voices. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1997.
3. Rouse, Ruth, Stephen Neill, and Harold Fey, eds. A History of the Ecumenical Movement 1517-1968. 2 vols. 2nd ed. with rev. bibliography. Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1967-1970.
4. Briggs, John, Mercy Amba Oduyoye and George Tsetsis, eds. A History of the Ecumenical Movement, 1968-2000. Geneva: World Council of Churches, 2004.
THE ETHICAL HORIZON FROM AN ECUMENICAL PERSPECTIVE
Does ecumenical dialogue contribute anything to ethical analysis?
Does analyzing ethical issues contribute anything to ecumenical dialogue?
Students in professional or graduate programs in Theology and Religious Studies are invited to probe either or both of these questions and to present their conclusions in a scholarly essay of moderate length (20-30 pages, double spaced). Essays submitted as contest entries can originally have been written for course credit.
June 15, 2009 DEADLINE
Award: The author of the winning essay will receive an award of $250 and funding to attend the 2009 NAAE conference in Washington, DC, September 25-27, where he or she will be invited to present a précis of the essay. The Journal of Ecumenical Studies publishes winning essays of sufficient scholarly merit.
Requirements: The essays will be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria: (1) General content, (2) Scholarly style, (3) Appropriateness to the theme, (4) Use of World Council of Churches references and/or agreed ecumenical statements and official church documents, (5) Advancement of Christian unity, and (6) Publishable quality. Academic background will be taken into consideration. Essays should meet JES submission requirements (Chicago Manual of Style, 14th ed; inclusive languae, etc.; see http://journal.jesdialogue.org/guidelines/#c216.
Submittal: Essays (in English or French) and a brief biographical sketch of the author should be submitted (electronically if possible, preferably in MS Word format) before June 15, 2009 to the Essay Co-ordinator, Dr. Susan Mader Brown, at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
or at the following address:
King's University College at the University of Western Ontario
266 Epworth Ave., London, Ontario, CANADA N6A 2M3
Selected Resources
1. World Council of Churches and the Roman Catholic Church, the Joint Working Group.
"The Ecumenical Dialogue on Moral Issues: Potential Sources of Common Witness or of Divisions," September 25, 1995. In Growth in Agreement II. Edited by Jeffrey Gros, FSC, Harding Meyer and William G. Rusch. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2000. #73.
2. Anglican Roman Catholic Dialogue II. "Life in Christ: Morals, Communion and the Church," September 5, 1993. In Growth in Agreement II. #36.
3. Anglican-Roman Catholic Dialogue in the United States, 1995. "Christian Ethics in the Ecumenical Dialogue: Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission II and Recent Papal Teaching." In Growing Consensus II: Church Dialogues in the United States, 1992-2004. Edited by Lydia Veliko and Jeffrey Gros, FSC. Washington, DC: United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2005. #14.
5. Roman Catholic-United Church Dialogue of Canada, 2004: "Sin, Reconciliation and Ecclesial Identity. Can be accessed at: http://www.oikoumene.ca/CCCBDocs/RCUC_Sin_Reconciliation_Eccl_Identity.pdf
6. Mudge, Lewis S. The Church As Moral Community: Ecclesiology and Ethics in Ecumenical Debate. New York: Continuum, 1998.
7. Rasmusson, Arne. "Ecclesiology and Ethics: The Difficulties of Ecclesial Moral Reflections." The Ecumenical Review (April 2000): 180-91.
8. Crossin, John. "Virtue as an Ecumenical Ethic." Ecumenical Trends (February 2005): 12/28-15/31.
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