What the Reformed Churches expect from the Orthodox Churches

This article is the transcript of a conference paper presented by the Reformed theologian Jean-Jacques von Allmen at the Theological Academy of Sofia in 1964. The author sets out, in a personal capacity but with the concern of representing his tradition, what the Reformed Churches may legitimately expect from the Orthodox Churches within the framework of ecumenical dialogue. Rejecting the oversimplification that schematically opposes "Catholicism" and "Protestantism," von Allmen identifies five areas where the Orthodox contribution would be decisive: Mariology, the theology of the icon, the non-verbal witness of the Church, sacramental eschatology, and the question of the *Filioque*. He further articulates two specific expectations: that the Orthodox Churches help the Reformed Churches to recover a vivid awareness of their ecclesiality, and that they contribute to rebalancing Western ecumenical dialogue by inviting Rome to reconsider the ecclesial legitimacy of the Churches born of the Reformation.