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Partial communion exists where elements of Christian faith are held in common, but complete unity on essentials is lacking. For example, the Catholic Church sees itself as in partial communion with Protestants , and as in much closer, but still incomplete, communion with the Eastern Orthodox Church es (see '' Catechism Of The Catholic Church '', 838). {Link without Title} The word "communion" is used not only of the ''bond'' uniting Christian individuals and groups, but also of ''groupings'' of Churches that explicitly recognize the existence between them of this bond in its full form. Examples are the Anglican Communion and the Porvoo Communion . Full communion (in different senses) exists between: # The , the Maronite Catholic Church , the Syrian Catholic Church , etc. # The (approximately 16) Autocephalous Churches that likewise form the one Eastern Orthodox Church # The Coptic , Armenian Orthodox , Eritrean Orthodox , Jacobite , Indian Orthodox and Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Churches (called " Oriental Orthodox " Churches) # The Anglican Communion , the Old Catholic Church , the Mar Thoma Syrian Church Of India , and the Philippine Independent Church . # The Churches of the Porvoo Communion # The Episcopal Church In The United States Of America and the Evangelical Lutheran Church In America # The Anglican Church Of Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church In Canada # The Evangelical Lutheran Church In America and the Moravian Church , as well as the ELCA with the Presbyterian Church USA , the Reformed Church In America , and the United Church Of Christ , and the Moravians with the United Methodist Church . # The United Methodist Church is currently working diligently toward full communion with both the Evangelical Lutheran Church In America and the Episcopal Church In The United States Of America . # The Church Of England is currently working diligently toward full communion with the Methodist Church Of Great Britain . # Many of the Independent Catholic Churches are working diligently toward full communion with each other and with the Old-Catholic Union Of Utrecht . In the case of the last-mentioned groupings (from no. 4 on), full communion means little more than an arrangement for:
Full communion means much more for the first-mentioned. The constituent particular Churches of the Catholic Church see each of them as the embodiment of the whole unique Catholic Church in a specific area. Similarly, each of the Eastern Orthodox Churches is viewed as a particular embodiment of the one Orthodox Church. This oneness is understood differently in the latter-mentioned. The first-mentioned also see sharing the Eucharist as the sign of full communion, the goal to which those striving for unity look forward. Others view this sacrament rather as a means of achieving unity by fostering fellowship (see Open Communion ). |
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