An international symposium on the priestly ministry in different Christian denominations has been held in Vienna, writes religion.ORF.at. The focus of the conference was an ecumenical doctrine of the priesthood, which exists in the Catholic, Orthodox, Lutheran and Anglican traditions.
Reports presented at the meeting were devoted mainly to the aims of pastoral and theological interpretations of a priest in the Church.
The Orthodox Church was represented at the symposium Romanian theologian Ioan Moga, who gave a presentation on the Eucharist as the focus of the priestly ministry, the Eucharistic and eschatological dimension of the Church.
The conference touched upon the celibacy of the clergy in different traditions and ways of life in priestly families in those traditions where celibacy is not a requirement for ordination.
The symposium was organised by the Institute of History and Theology of the Christian East at the Catholic Theological Faculty in the University of Vienna, in co-operation with the “Pro Oriente” foundation.