Ecumenism

"There is much in Luther that is interesting, perceptive, and true. However, there is also much that does not speak the same language as early Christianity. And herein lies the great divide in the ecumenical dialogue. For the ecumenical dialogue to bear fruit, the very controversies that separate the churches must not be hushed up. Rather they must be brought into the open and discussed frankly, respectfully, and thoroughly."

"Extra ecclesiam nulla salus"

"No one can have God for his Father, who does not have the Church for his mother."

"He cannot have God for his father who has not the church for his mother."

"There cannot be salvation for any, except in the Church."

"Our brethren who have been freed from the world by the summons of the Lord should not be mourned, since we know that they are not lost but sent before."

"All religions are a path to God. They are like different languages in order to arrive at God, but God is God for all. Since God is God for all, then we are all children of God."

"Söderblom urged his Christian brothers and sisters not to wait for consensus on every point of theology, but to unite in a “practical Christianity”, to serve the world together in the pursuit of peace, justice and human dignity. Although the Catholic Church was not represented at that first meeting, I can state, with humility and joy, that we stand with you today as fellow disciples of Christ, recognising that what unites us is much more than what divide us."