The Commission on Faith and Order is a study commission of the World Council of Churches. The purpose of the theological studies it undertakes is ecumenical: “to serve the churches as they call one another to visible unity in one faith and in one eucharistic fellowship…”

As a think tank constituted by official representatives of churches belonging to the main historical streams of Christianity, including the Roman Catholic Church, the commission is a unique multilateral, global forum of ecumenical theology.

The roots of the Faith and Order movement reach back to 1910, when the General Convention of the Episcopal Church USA called for a world conference “for the consideration of questions touching Faith and Order”, i.e. questions of doctrine (Faith) and questions related to the ministerial structure of the Church (Order). Following two world conferences in 1927 and 1937, the movement became the Commission on Faith and Order when the World Council of Churches was finally established in 1948.

Theologians from 33 countries in 5 continents

In 2014, the WCC Central Committee appointed a new Faith and Order Commission with theological expertise reflecting a wide range of contexts and areas of ecumenical work. It will meet every other year until the next assembly of the World Council of Churches (probably in 2021).

There are 49 commissioners, 4 consultants, and 1 minute taker. The commission includes representatives from the Ecumenical Disabilities Advocates Network (EDAN) and the Ecumenical Network of Indigenous Peoples.

Brief biographical profiles of Faith and Order leadership (pdf)