How do you see reformed Christianity relating to the wider larger Christian family, and Roman Catholicism in particular?
I am strongly in favour of principled ecumenism in our relationships with Roman Catholicism and other Christian traditions. Principled ecumenism is not interested in sacrificing biblical concerns in order to create a false unity. It is not interested in lowest common denominator compromises or in sweeping our distinctives under the carpet. In my experience, it is often in the articulation of my deepest concerns that I am brought closest together with Christians in other traditions. Principled ecumenism seeks to work towards a biblical unity with people from other theological and ecclesiastical backgrounds and to sustain a dialogue in which our concerns and differences can be expressed and talked through. Such approaches can be incredibly fruitful and often lead to an appreciation of how close we are to each other. We will also often find that such engagement brings to the surface certain dimensions of the biblical message that have been neglected to some degree or other within our own
