Anglican and Eastern Association (for promoting Intercommunion between the Anglican and Eastern-Orthodox churches) , 1914- Eastern Churches Association , 1864-1914 Anglican and Eastern-Orthodox Churches Union , 1906-1914

Anglican and Eastern Association (for promoting Intercommunion between the Anglican and Eastern-Orthodox churches) , 1914- Eastern Churches Association , 1864-1914 Anglican and Eastern-Orthodox Churches Union , 1906-1914

The Eastern Churches Association was founded in April 1864 with the aims to inform the British public as to the state and position of the Eastern Christians, to make known the doctrines and principles of the Anglican Church to the Christians in the East, and to take advantage of all opportunities for intercommunion with the Orthodox Church and friendly intercourse with the other ancient Churches of the East, and to assist as far as possible the Bishops of the Orthodox Church in their efforts to promote the spiritual welfare and the education of their flocks. This committee issued sixteen Occasional Papers between 1864-1874. After 1874, the Association languished owing to the death of its leading members and was practically refounded in 1893 when the Committee for the Defence of Church Principles in Palestine was united with it. By 1914, the Association had only 56 members.

Anglican and Eastern [Orthodox] Churches Union (AEOCU) was founded in 1906, by Rev Henry Joy Fynes-Clinton (1875-1959), in concert with the Rev F R Borough, in order by practical effort to promote mutual sympathy, understanding and intercourse, and to promote and encourage actions furthering Reunion.

Their activities were chiefly educational, including promotion of lectures on re-union and the Eastern Churches, the hire of sets of lantern slides illustrative of the churches, rites, ornaments etc of the Orthodox Churches, and production of leaflets for distribution by members. They also published a journal titled Eirene, and established a small lending library. A branch of the Union was founded in the United States of America in 1908. By 1914 the Union had approximately 2000 members in Britain. Fynes-Clinton was General Secretary of the AEOCU (and its successor) from 1906-1920, when he was appointed Secretary to the Archbishop of Canterbury's Eastern Church Committee.

Anglican and Eastern Churches Association was formed by the amalgamation in 1914 of the Eastern Church Association with the Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Churches Union. The stated purpose of this organisation was to unite members of he Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Churches for the object of promoting mutual knowledge, sympathy and intercourse between the Churches, praying and working for re-union, and encouraging the study of Eastern Christendom. It was funded by subscription, though has since benefited from a bequest of £17000 received in 1974.

This association consisted of members who supported the Association by subscription. Administered by a General Committee, comprising two presidents - one Anglican and one an Eastern-Orthodox, two Vice-Presidents in England, one of each denomination, Branch Presidents, Treasurer and ex-officio General Secretary with 22 other members.

One area of particular interest to the Association was the continued use of the Cathedral of St Sophia in Constantinople (Istanbul) as an Islamic mosque. The St Sophia Redemption Committee was formed [1914-1919] in order to arouse the English church to assist in liberating Eastern Christians from Turkish oppression. This committee comprised representatives of a number of denominations, with Fynes-Clinton as one of the secretaries, and were involved in the circulation of literature circulated, meetings held, to no avail.

The Association also had periods of increased activity following WW1 and WW2 as it attempt to ascertain the state of the various branches of the Eastern Orthodox church effected by the fighting and in particular the whereabouts of church leaders in countries where the churches were oppressed by enemy occupation or unfriendly governments.

The association was also involved with the Serbian Church Students' Aid Council, which was formed for the support of the theological education of a number of Serbian students at Oxford around 1919.