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Faith and Order Advisory Group

The Faith and Order Advisory Group (FOAG) is a statutory group which advises the House of Bishops and the Council for Christian Unity on matters of ecumenical and theological concern. The Chairman is the Right Reverend John Hind, Bishop of Chichester and the other members are appointed by the two Archbishops.

A few examples of FOAG's recent work in the area of ecumenical relations are outlined below:

In 2008 FOAG combined with the C of E's House of Bishops Theological Group to produce Women in the Episcopate? An Anglican - Roman Catholic Dialogue which includes reflections on Cardinal Walter Kasper's address to the Bishops of the Church of England. For more details click here

FOAG produced in 2007 the report The Mission and Ministry of the Whole Church which discusses ordained and lay ministry and the meaning of ordination, setting it all in the context of the mission of God through the Church in the contemporary world. The consideration of the role of a deacon in Christian ministry follows-up the 2001 report about the diaconate: For Such a Time as This: A Renewed Diaconate in the Church of England.Copies of both reports can be obtained from Church House Bookshop    To read the text of the report click here.

 FOAG helped the House of Bishops to prepare a response to One Bread One Body, the teaching document on the Eucharist by the Roman Catholic Bishops of Great Britain and Ireland. This response entitled The Eucharist: Sacrament of Unity was published in March 2001.

FOAG studied the document, Dominus Iesus, produced by the Vatican's Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and this discussion fed into an article by the Chairman of FOAG which was published in the Church Times.

FOAG has prepared a response to the WCC document The Nature and Purpose of the Church

FOAG sponsored a volume of independent essays entitled Unpacking the Gift: Anglican Resources for theological reflection on The Gift of Authority edited by Canon Peter Fisher. This wide-ranging group of essays: Addresses the question of authority in the Church; Sheds fresh light on questions of authority and the search for Christian unity in today's world; Will assist both Anglicans and Catholics in evaluating The Gift of Authority; Contains chapters on the ARCIC process, authority in the Church of England and reflections from a local context; Makes stimulating and rewarding reading for anyone concerned with how authority should be handled and how Churches and Christians of different allegiances relate to one another. Unpacking the Gift (ISBN 0-7151-5767-1) is available from Church House Bookshop price £8:95. 

 Members of FOAG have prepared a volume of essays entitled: Paths to Unity: explorations in ecumenical method. This volume includes essays by Professor John Webster, Canon Peter Fisher, Dr Martin Davie, Archdeacon Joy Tetley, Dr Paula Gooder, Dr Paul Avis and Bishop Christopher Hill. Paths to Unity (ISBN 0-7151-5768 X) is available from                    Church House Bookshop price £12:99.