Ecumenical in the context of "Catholic ecumenical councils"

In Christian theology, ecclesiology is the study of the Church, the origins of Christianity, its relationship to Jesus, its role in salvation, its polity, its discipline, its eschatology, and its leadership.

In its early history, one of the Church's primary ecclesiological issues had to do with the status of Gentile members in what had become the New Testament fulfilment of the essentially Jewish Old Testament church. It later contended with such questions as whether it was to be governed by a council of presbyters or a single bishop, how much authority the bishop of Rome had over other major bishops, the role of the Church in the world, whether salvation was possible outside of the institution of the Church, the relationship between the Church and the State, and questions of theology and liturgy and other issues. Ecclesiology may be used in the specific sense of a particular church or denomination's character, self-described or otherwise. This is the sense of the word in such phrases as Catholic ecclesiology, Protestant ecclesiology, and ecumenical ecclesiology.

An ecumenical council, also called general council, is a meeting of bishops and other church authorities to consider and rule on questions of Christian doctrine, administration, discipline, and other matters in which those entitled to vote are convoked from the whole world (oikoumene) and which secures the approbation of the whole Church.

The word "ecumenical" derives from the Late Latin oecumenicus "general, universal", from Greek oikoumenikos "from the whole world", from he oikoumene ge "the inhabited world" (as known to the ancient Greeks); the Greeks and their neighbors, considered as developed human society (as opposed to barbarian lands); in later use "the Roman world" and in the Christian sense in ecclesiastical Greek, from oikoumenos, present passive participle of oikein ("inhabit"), from oikos ("house, habitation"). The first seven ecumenical councils, recognised by both the eastern and western denominations comprising Chalcedonian Christianity, were convoked by Roman Emperors, who also enforced the decisions of those councils within the state church of the Roman Empire.

The Passion Play or Easter pageant is a dramatic presentation depicting the Passion of Jesus: his trial, suffering and death. The viewing of and participation in Passion Plays is a traditional part of Lent in several Christian denominations, particularly in the Catholic and Evangelical traditions; as such, Passion Plays are often ecumenical Christian productions.

Passion Plays have had a long and complex history involving faith and devotion, civic pageantry, religious and political censorship, large-scale revival and historical re-enactments.

The Feast of the Ascension of Jesus Christ (also called the Solemnity of the Ascension of the Lord, Ascension Day, Ascension Thursday; or sometimes Holy Thursday, which can also mean the Thursday before Easter) commemorates the Christian belief of the bodily Ascension of Jesus into Heaven. It is one of the ecumenical (shared by multiple denominations) feasts of Christian churches, ranking with the feasts of the Passion and Pentecost. Following the account of Acts 1:3 that the risen Jesus appeared for 40 days prior to his Ascension, Ascension Day is traditionally celebrated on a Thursday, the fortieth day of Easter according to inclusive counting, although some Christian denominations have moved the observance to the following Sunday, sometimes called Ascension Sunday. The day of observance varies by ecclesiastical province in many Christian denominations, as with Lutherans and Catholics, for example.

Ascensiontide refers to the ten-day period between the Feast of the Ascension and the Feast of Pentecost. The Sunday within that period may be referred to as the Seventh Sunday of Easter or the Sunday in Ascensiontide.

The Use of Sarum (or Use of Salisbury, also known as the Sarum Rite) is the liturgical use of the Latin rites developed at Salisbury Cathedral and used from the late eleventh century until the English Reformation. It is largely identical to the Roman Rite, with about ten per cent of its material drawn from other sources. The cathedral's liturgy was widely respected during the late Middle Ages, and churches throughout the British Isles and parts of northwestern Europe adapted its customs for celebrations of the Eucharist and canonical hours. The Sarum Rite has a unique ecumenical position in influencing and being authorized for liturgical use by the Roman Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox Church, as well as the Anglican Communion.

Christian Theological Seminary is an ecumenical seminary related to the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and located in Indianapolis, Indiana. It provides five degree-level education courses, three dual-degree programs, a Doctor of Ministry (D.Min.) program, and a Ph.D. in African American Preaching and Sacred Rhetoric. As of 2019, the seminary had an enrollment of 139 students.