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News archive for 2016

Archives d'actualités pour 2016

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According to a story often repeated in the diocese of Quebec, when the first Anglican bishop, Jacob Mountain, arrived in Quebec City in 1793, he was greeted on the dock by his Roman Catholic counterpart, Bishop Jean-François Hubert.

“Your people are waiting for you,” said Hubert, welcoming Mountain to his new home.

While relations between French Catholics and English Protestants in Quebec have not always been so cordial, the leadership of the two churches have long understood the practical need to work together in a province where religion historically has played an outsized role in public life.
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Posted: Dec. 16, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10394
Categories: Anglican JournalIn this article: Anglican, bishops, Catholic, Québec
Transmis : 16 déc. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10394
Catégorie : Anglican JournalDans cet article : Anglican, bishops, Catholic, Québec

A group of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops have acknowledged both churches’ failure to protect children, women and indigenous peoples. In a statement issued by the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) today following the group’s historic meeting in Canterbury and Rome last month, they call on the Church to repent and seek justice for victims. They say that, “at the foot of the Cross we, as bishops, have reflected on an ‘ecumenism of humiliation’. We lament our failures and share the brokenness of our church communities.”

They continue: “We failed to protect vulnerable people: children from sexual abuse, women from violence, and indigenous peoples from exploitation.

“In this communion of shame, we confess that our own feeble witness to God’s call to life in community has contributed to the isolation of individuals and families, and even to that secularisation which removes God from the public space. We, as bishops, are called to lead the church in repentance and to seek justice for the abused.”

The bishops have called their statement “an appeal from the IARCCUM bishops to the bishops and the people of the Anglican and Catholic communities.”
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Posted: Nov. 25, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10388
Categories: ACNSIn this article: Anglican, bishops, Catholic, IARCCUM, pilgrimage
Transmis : 25 nov. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10388
Catégorie : ACNSDans cet article : Anglican, bishops, Catholic, IARCCUM, pilgrimage

A call for Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops from around the world to work more closely together in witness and joint mission is part of the ongoing fruit of a unique eight-day gathering held earlier this fall in Canterbury and Rome, says Regina Archbishop Donald Bolen.

“We were commissioned as pairs of bishops to go and work together, to witness together wherever possible, and to encourage our brother bishops to work together,” says Bolen, one of the bishops from around the world commissioned for the task by Pope Francis and Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.

“The ongoing story is what the pairs of Anglican and Catholic bishops can do together across Canada, and across the world.”

The purpose of the summit was to discover where Catholics and Anglicans can give greater witness to their common faith and collaborate in mission to the world, based on 50 years of dialogue and the agreed statements of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) and the IARCCUM document, “Growing Together in Unity and Mission.”
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Posted: Nov. 23, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10390
Categories: NewsIn this article: Anglican, bishops, Catholic, IARCCUM, pilgrimage
Transmis : 23 nov. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10390
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Anglican, bishops, Catholic, IARCCUM, pilgrimage

The appointment has been announced today of the Revd Dr Will Adam as the Archbishop’s Ecumenical Adviser. As well as these duties, the role includes being Ecumenical Officer at the Council of Christian Unity (CCU).

This post will build on the creative joint working that has been established between Lambeth Palace and CCU to further the ecumenical ministry of the Archbishop.

Archbishop Justin Welby said: “I am delighted that Will Adam will be bringing his considerable experience and expertise to this post. His understanding of both national and international ecumenism will be a real asset to the work at Lambeth and at CCU. There are wonderful opportunities in ecumenism in these times, and we must always strive to be obedient to Jesus’ desire that his Church ‘may be one’.”
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Posted: Nov. 21, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10392
Categories: NewsIn this article: Anglican, Archbishop of Canterbury, ecumenism
Transmis : 21 nov. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10392
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Anglican, Archbishop of Canterbury, ecumenism

Third Meeting of the Informal Dialogue Group between the International Lutheran Council and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. On October 14-15, the Informal Dialogue Group between the International Lutheran Council (ILC) and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity met. This time the gathering took place at the Johann-Adam-Möhler-Institute for Ecumenism in Paderborn, Germany.

The conversations centered on the Lutheran perception of the Roman Catholic liturgy. They focused particularly on the Roman Catholic understanding of the presence of Christ’s sacrifice and the sacrifice of the Church in the Lord’s Supper. It became apparent that there were different ways of thinking—not only between Lutheran and Roman Catholic approaches to the topic, but also in the various Roman Catholic Eucharistic prayers themselves. The debate centered in particular on the problem whether and to what extent the Church might play a distinct, or “active”, role in the performance of the liturgy.

The next meeting is scheduled for June 2017 in St. Louis, Missouri. In preparing for this meeting, cross-confessional pairings were formed. They are meant to engage with the following topics: the understanding of co-operation of the Church (“synergeia”) and sacrifice; the theological understanding of “time”, that is to say the relationship between the history of salvation and the “event” of salvation, or the issue of the realization of salvation in the liturgy; the understanding of sacrifice against the background of article 24 of the Augsburg Confession and its Apology, and in The Examination of the Council of Trent by Martin Chemnitz, looking also at the document “The Eucharist” (1978); and questions concerning the office of the ministry and ordination. Moreover, they plan to identify and describe areas of major agreement between the Roman Catholic Church and the churches in the International Lutheran Council. The resulting texts will serve to steer the further debates in the year to come, and secure the results of this informal dialogue.
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Posted: Nov. 7, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9581
Categories: Communiqué, NewsIn this article: Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, International Lutheran Council, liturgy
Transmis : 7 nov. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9581
Catégorie : Communiqué, NewsDans cet article : Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, International Lutheran Council, liturgy

The Catholic Church insistence that it cannot ordain women to the priesthood and episcopacy is a teaching likely to last forever, Pope Francis said.

After being hosted by the Lutheran Church of Sweden, which is led by Archbishop Antje Jackelen of Uppsala, the nation’s first woman primate, Pope Francis was asked Nov. 1 if the Catholic Church might one day have women priests and bishops.

As he has done in the past, the pope responded that the question was settled in 1994 by St. John Paul II, who taught that because Jesus chose only men as his apostles, the ordination of women in the Catholic Church is not possible.

He was asked, “Really? Never?” And he responded, “If one carefully reads the declaration of St. John Paul it goes in that direction, yes.”
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Posted: Nov. 1, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9564
Categories: CNSIn this article: ordination, Pope Francis, women
Transmis : 1 nov. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9564
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : ordination, Pope Francis, women

Commemorations of next year’s 500th anniversary of the Reformation – which led to the separation of protestant churches from the Catholic Church – have begun with a combined prayer service in Lund Cathedral, Sweden, attended by Pope Francis and the Revd Dr Martin Junge, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation. The participation of Pope Francis at the start of the year of commemorations is hugely significant and symbolises the growing ecumenical thaw which has been taking place over the past 50 years.

The prayer service is taking place in Lund Cathedral, which began life in 1080 as the seat of the Catholic archiepiscopal diocese of Lund; but since Danish Reformation in the 1520s and 1530s, has been a Lutheran cathedral. It became part of the Church of Sweden when the Province of Skåne (Scania) was ceded from Denmark to Sweden in 1658.

Through the Porvoo Communion, the Church of Sweden is in full communion with several Anglican churches, including the Church of England, the Church of Ireland, the Lusitanian Church of Portugal, the Scottish Episcopal Church, the Reformed Episcopal Church of Spain, and the Church in Wales. Elsewhere across the globe, other Anglican churches are in varying degrees of unity and communion with other Lutheran churches.

“We are on our way from conflict to communion,” Archbishop Antje Jackelén, leader of the Church of Sweden, said at a press conference, referencing the ground-breaking 2013 joint report between the two churches. “We are going to express our joy and gratitude for what we have in common: namely, the Gospel of Jesus Christ which unites us – that can be celebrated never enough.

“But there are also things that we definitely do not want to celebrate; but to repent and express our lament and sorrow; and that is, of course, the pain that division has caused throughout so many centuries.”
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Posted: Oct. 31, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=11433
Categories: ACNSIn this article: Catholic, Christian unity, Lutheran World Federation, Pope Francis, Reformation
Transmis : 31 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=11433
Catégorie : ACNSDans cet article : Catholic, Christian unity, Lutheran World Federation, Pope Francis, Reformation

Professing belief in the resurrection of the dead and affirming that the human body is an essential part of a person’s identity, the Catholic Church insists that the bodies of the deceased be treated with respect and laid to rest in a consecrated place.

While the Catholic Church continues to prefer burial in the ground, it accepts cremation as an option, but forbids the scattering of ashes and the growing practice of keeping cremated remains at home, said Cardinal Gerhard Müller, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

“Caring for the bodies of the deceased, the church confirms its faith in the resurrection and separates itself from attitudes and rites that see in death the definitive obliteration of the person, a stage in the process of reincarnation or the fusion of one’s soul with the universe,” the cardinal told reporters Oct. 25.
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Posted: Oct. 25, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9545
Categories: CNSIn this article: cremation, death, Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, funerals
Transmis : 25 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9545
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : cremation, death, Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, funerals

Pope Francis will join people from all over the world in celebration of the ecumenical developments of the Catholic and Lutheran Churches. The event takes place 31 October in southern Sweden. The celebration will be divided into two, one in a cathedral in Lund and one for 10,000 people in a sports arena in Malmö.

The 31 October is called “Reformation Day” by Lutherans. It was the day Martin Luther posted his 95 theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg.

The Lund Cathedral ceremony will be a prayer with the pope and the president of the Lutheran church together. It’s the first time for something like this to happen. Then later that day, there will be performances, songs and prayers in Malmö. All of them will be under the general theme of “Together in Hope”.

The programme will include testimonies of people from around the world. One of the speakers is Marguerite Barankitse, the “Mother of Burundi”. She is the founder of “Maison Shalom”. It helps orphans of the civil war lead a normal life. They can get an education and have a chance at a good future. She has experienced brutal war, but continues to have hope for peace.
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Posted: Oct. 25, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9528
Categories: NewsIn this article: Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, Lutheran World Federation, Pope Francis, Reformation
Transmis : 25 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9528
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, Lutheran World Federation, Pope Francis, Reformation

The leader of the Russian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Kirill of Moscow and All Russia, paid a private visit to the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby at Lambeth Palace yesterday (Tuesday). Patriarch Kirill was in the UK to mark the 300th anniversary of the Diocese of Sourozh – the Russian Orthodox Church in Britain and Ireland. Earlier, Archbishop Welby and the Bishop of London, Richard Chartres, were in attendance when Patriarch Kirill visited The Queen at Buckingham Palace.

Bishop Chartres takes the lead on the C of E’s relationships with the Orthodox Churches, and was also present at Lambeth Palace for the meeting with Patriarch Kirill and his delegation.

Archbishop Welby and Patriarch Kirill spoke about “their shared compassion for Christian, and other, minorities in many parts of the world, especially in the Middle East, where they have been systematically targeted and persecuted and their communities decimated,” a Lambeth Palace spokesperson said.
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Posted: Oct. 19, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9535
Categories: ACNSIn this article: Justin Welby, Lambeth Palace, Moscow Patriarchate, Patriarch Kirill
Transmis : 19 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9535
Catégorie : ACNSDans cet article : Justin Welby, Lambeth Palace, Moscow Patriarchate, Patriarch Kirill

Canada’s Catholic bishops will no longer be part of Canada’s ecumenical social justice coalition known as Kairos.

The decision taken by a majority of bishops at the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops’ annual plenary meeting was prompted by a combination of ideological differences and minor legal changes in the structure of the ecumenical coalition to meet tax compliance concerns of the Canada Revenue Agency. For legal and tax purposes, Kairos has been a part of the United Church of Canada since it was founded in 2001.
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Posted: Oct. 18, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9562
Categories: Catholic RegisterIn this article: CCCB, KAIROS
Transmis : 18 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9562
Catégorie : Catholic RegisterDans cet article : CCCB, KAIROS

Joe Tosini believes that on the last day Jesus will judge people on whether they fed the hungry, clothed the naked and, especially, whether they loved one another, not on whether they were baptized with a sprinkling of water as an infant in a Catholic Church or by being plunged into a pool as an adult in an evangelical service.

Tosini, a Pentecostal Christian, is founder of the Phoenix-based John 17 Movement, an ecumenical initiative about forming relationships and friendships among Christians.

Unlike the formal ecumenical dialogues the Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican and mainline Protestant churches engage in, the John 17 initiative does not involve theological dialogue and the examination of doctrinal similarities and differences.
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Posted: Oct. 17, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9547
Categories: CNSIn this article: Catholic, Charismatic movement, Pentecostal, Pope Francis
Transmis : 17 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9547
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Catholic, Charismatic movement, Pentecostal, Pope Francis

If Christians are called to live their faith concretely, then they cannot leave out concrete signs of the unity to which Jesus calls them.

And just because the formal Anglican-Roman Catholic theological dialogue has been forced to grapple with new church-dividing attitudes toward issues such as the ordination of women and the blessing of same-sex marriages, it does not mean that common prayer led by Anglican and Catholic leaders and concrete collaboration by Catholic and Anglican parishes are simply window dressing.

Dozens of Catholic and Anglican bishops and several hundred priests and laity from both communities gathered in Rome in early October to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Vatican meeting of Blessed Paul VI and Anglican Archbishop Michael Ramsey of Canterbury, almost 50 years of formal theological dialogue through the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (known as ARCIC) and the 50th anniversary of the Anglican Center in Rome.

The celebrations, highlighted by an ecumenical evening prayer service Oct. 5 with Pope Francis and Anglican Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury, coincided with a meeting of a newer body, the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, known as IARCCUM.
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Posted: Oct. 6, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9542
Categories: CNSIn this article: Anglican, ARCIC, Catholic, David Moxon, Donald Bolen, IARCCUM, Justin Welby, Pope Francis
Transmis : 6 oct. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9542
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Anglican, ARCIC, Catholic, David Moxon, Donald Bolen, IARCCUM, Justin Welby, Pope Francis

Members of the official Anglican-Orthodox dialogue have met this week to discuss a range of bioethical and moral issues. The discussion was “a practical follow-up” to their agreed statement In the Image and Likeness of God: A Hope-Filled Anthropology, which was published last year after their talks in Buffalo, New York. At this week’s talks in Armagh, Northern Ireland, the International Commission for Anglican–Orthodox Theological Dialogue (ICAOTD) began to explore issues including contraception, abortion, reproductive technology, stem cell research, organ transplants, artificial life support, assisted dying and euthanasia.

The Commission studied four papers unpacking the themes: “Christian Ethics and the Beginning and End of Life: Themes in Anglican Reflection”, by the former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams; “Bioethical Themes: Transplants and Euthanasia”, by Metropolitan Chrysostomos of Kition; “Survey of Anglican Church Documents on Beginning and End of Life Issues”, by the Revd Canon Philip Hobson; and “Medical Bioethics: An Orthodox Christian Perspective for Orthodox Christians”, by Protodeacon Basil Andruchow.

“What is new for Anglican-Orthodox dialogue is the discussion of morals, and the practical outworking of the common vision of the human person finalised last year in the agreed statement,” the Anglican Communion’s director for unity, faith and order, the Revd Canon John Gibaut, said. “This year’s meeting signals a new direction, which is both theological and deeply pastoral.
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Posted: Sept. 30, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9557
Categories: ACNSIn this article: Anglican Consultative Council, dialogue, ethics, moral discernment, Orthodox
Transmis : 30 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9557
Catégorie : ACNSDans cet article : Anglican Consultative Council, dialogue, ethics, moral discernment, Orthodox

The bishops of Alberta and the Northwest Territories have issued pastoral guidelines for clergy dealing with Catholics who are considering euthanasia or assisted suicide, which is now legal in Canada.

The 32-page document, written for priests and parishes, gives guidance on when people in such situations are eligible to receive certain sacraments or a Catholic funeral. It includes references to canon law and pastoral guidance for special circumstances.

The document specifically addresses the sacraments of reconciliation and anointing of the sick.

“In our day a priest may encounter a penitent who has officially requested physician-assisted suicide or euthanasia,” the document says. “The penitent has not yet been killed, nor has he/she committed suicide, but he or she has initiated the process, which is already a grave matter.

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Posted: Sept. 20, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9568
Categories: CNSIn this article: Alberta, Canada, Catholic, euthanasia, pastoral care, physician assisted suicide
Transmis : 20 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9568
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Alberta, Canada, Catholic, euthanasia, pastoral care, physician assisted suicide

Following the common lunch in the Sacred Convent of the Franciscans in Assisi, at approximately 15:15, the Pope met individually His Holiness Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople; His Holiness Ignatius Ephrem II, Patriarch of Antioch Syrian Orthodox His Grace Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury and Primate of the Church of England; Professor Zygmut Bauman, sociologist and philosopher (Poland); Professor Din Syamsuddin, chairman of the Ulema Council, (Indonesia); Chief Rabbi David Rosen (Israel).

At 16:00, the representatives of different religions prayed for peace in different places of Assisi. All Christians gathered in the Lower Basilica of St. Francis for an Ecumenical prayer during which all the countries of war are named and a candle is let for each country. The Holy Father then offers the following meditation:
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Posted: Sept. 20, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10386
Categories: NewsIn this article: Assisi, peace, Pope Francis
Transmis : 20 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10386
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Assisi, peace, Pope Francis

As leaders of dozens of religions gathered in Assisi for dialogue and prayers for peace, they honored Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople as an exemplar of one who is so deeply rooted in his own religious tradition that he can reach out to others without fear.

Jewish, Anglican and Catholic leaders paid tribute to Patriarch Bartholomew as he was about to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his enthronement as spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians. Pope Francis was scheduled to participate in a celebratory luncheon for the patriarch Sept. 20 in Assisi.

The Assisi celebrations Sept. 18-20 were organized by the Rome-based Community of Sant’Egidio, the Diocese of Assisi and the Franciscan friars.
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Posted: Sept. 20, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9553
Categories: CNSIn this article: Assisi, Bartholomew I, David Rosen, Justin Welby, peace, Pope Francis, prayer
Transmis : 20 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9553
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Assisi, Bartholomew I, David Rosen, Justin Welby, peace, Pope Francis, prayer

Leading Catholic and Orthodox bishops were meeting in Italy to continue discussions on the key issue keeping their Churches apart: the role of the bishop of Rome, the pope.

The Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue Between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church was meeting in Chieti, September 15-22.

Participants were to discuss the draft document, “Towards a common understanding of synodality and primacy in the service to the unity of the Church,” which was finished during a meeting in Rome in 2015, the Vatican press office announced September 15.

Participants were being asked “to determine whether the draft accurately reflects the current consensus on the delicate question of the theological and ecclesiological aspects of primacy in its relation to synodality in the life of the Church or whether it will be necessary to continue to delve deeper into the issue,” said the Vatican communique.
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Posted: Sept. 16, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9566
Categories: CNSIn this article: Catholic, dialogue, Orthodox, petrine ministry, primacy, synodality
Transmis : 16 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9566
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Catholic, dialogue, Orthodox, petrine ministry, primacy, synodality

In a change to church law, Latin-rite Catholic deacons may not preside at a wedding when one or both of the new spouses are members of an Eastern Catholic church. The new rule is one of the changes to 11 canons in the Latin-rite Code of Canon law that Pope Francis approved in order to harmonize the laws of the Latin and Eastern Catholic churches on several issues involving the sacraments of baptism and marriage. After more than 15 years of study and worldwide consultation, the conflicting rules were resolved by adopting the Eastern code’s formulations for the Latin church as well, said Bishop Juan Ignacio Arrieta, secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts. The bishop spoke to journalists Sept. 15 after the publication of an apostolic letter published “motu proprio” (on his own initiative) in which Pope Francis ordered the changes to the Latin Code of Canon Law, the 1983 text governing the majority of the world’s Catholics. In the Eastern Catholic and Orthodox traditions, the blessing of a priest is necessary for the validity of a marriage. In the Latin-rite church, a deacon can preside over the sacrament. The new law specifies, “Only a priest can validly assist at the matrimony of two Eastern parties or between a Latin and Eastern Catholic or non-Catholic,” meaning a member of an Orthodox Church.
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Posted: Sept. 15, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9520
Categories: CNSIn this article: canon law, Eastern churches, marriage, Pope Francis
Transmis : 15 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9520
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : canon law, Eastern churches, marriage, Pope Francis

The Roman Catholic Bishops of Alberta and the Northwest Territories have issued some new guidance for priests, deacons, and pastoral workers in caring for individuals and families in difficult contemporary situations. One document aims to answer the call of Pope Francis in his Apostolic Exhortation Amoris Laetitia, particularly to assist priests in their duty to accompany those Catholics who are divorced and remarried without having received a decree of nullity. The other follows the legalization in Canada of assisted suicide and euthanasia (“Medical Assistance In Dying”), and focuses on spiritual and sacramental considerations in caring for individuals and families who may be considering death by these means. “The ultimate aim of these guidelines is to help the faithful understand the beautiful teachings of the Church on sacramental marriage, the dignity of the human person, and the inviolable sanctity of human life,” said Archbishop Richard Smith of Edmonton, who serves as president of the Alberta-NWT Bishops. “We know that many Catholics, often due to the messages they receive through the secular culture, have come to some serious misunderstandings around life and family issues,” he said.
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Posted: Sept. 14, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9523
Categories: NewsIn this article: bishops, Catholic, divorce & remarriage, eucharist, euthanasia, pastoral care, physician assisted suicide
Transmis : 14 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9523
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : bishops, Catholic, divorce & remarriage, eucharist, euthanasia, pastoral care, physician assisted suicide

Among the thousands of pilgrims and visitors present in St Peter’s Square for the Pope’s general audience on Wednesday was a group of Anglicans from all over the world who are taking part in a week long study course on Christian leadership.

Organised by the Anglican Centre in Rome, the course is based on Biblical scholarship, case studies of exemplary leaders, past and present, and field work in Rome and Assisi.

Participants from the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Nigeria and Myanmar were among those attending the audience, while the director of the Anglican Centre, Archbishop David Moxon and Zambian Bishop William Mchombo of the Central African province were also able to exchange a few words with Pope Francis.
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Posted: Sept. 12, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10384
Categories: Vatican NewsIn this article: Anglican Centre in Rome, Pope Francis
Transmis : 12 sept. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10384
Catégorie : Vatican NewsDans cet article : Anglican Centre in Rome, Pope Francis

To promote Catholic social teaching and ensure appropriate assistance to vulnerable people — especially victims of war, refugees and the sick — Pope Francis has established a new office combining the responsibilities of four pontifical councils.

In an apostolic letter given “motu proprio” (on his own initiative) and published by the Vatican Aug. 31, the pope said the new “Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development” will merge the pontifical councils for Justice and Peace, Cor Unum, Migrants and Travellers, and Health Care Ministry.

The pope named Cardinal Peter Turkson, current president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, to serve as prefect of the new office, which will begin functioning Jan. 1.

In his letter signed Aug. 17, the pope said, “This dicastery will be competent particularly in issues regarding migrants, those in need, the sick, the excluded and marginalized, the imprisoned and the unemployed, as well as victims of armed conflict, natural disasters, and all forms of slavery and torture.”
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Posted: Aug. 31, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9555
Categories: CNSIn this article: Dicastery for Justice and Peace, Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Peter Turkson, Vatican
Transmis : 31 aoüt 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9555
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Dicastery for Justice and Peace, Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Peter Turkson, Vatican

The reconciliation process between the Lutheran World Federation and Mennonite World Conference has created fertile ground for collaboration. A report summarizing the LWFMWC action of reconciling with Mennonites over the condemnations in the Augsburg Confession aims to help LWF churches, pastors, seminaries and congregations to “implement the LWF commitment to teach differently about Anabaptists, especially to how they are described in the Augsburg Confession.”

“The seeds of reconciliation sown more than 30 years ago, which flowered at the service of reconciliation in Stuttgart in 2010, are now truly bearing fruit,” says John D. Roth, MWC representative on the LWF Task Force and contributor to the document. “Mennonite and Lutheran pastors and church leaders will find lots of ideas for how they might engage each other at the local level.”

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Posted: July 22, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9514
Categories: NewsIn this article: Christian unity, Lutheran World Federation, Mennonite World Conference, mission, witness
Transmis : 22 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9514
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Christian unity, Lutheran World Federation, Mennonite World Conference, mission, witness

The Russian Orthodox Church, whose boycott of a major summit of Orthodox Christian leaders in Crete last month threatened to slow down efforts to promote greater unity, has declared the meeting “an important event in the history of the conciliar process.”

The church’s synod, in its official reaction to the June 20-26 Holy and Great Council, also said the meeting could not be called “pan-Orthodox” because four of the 14 independent Orthodox member churches did not attend.

The Moscow Patriarchate, which represents between half and two-thirds of the world’s 300 million Orthodox, has been disputing the summit’s pan-Orthodox character since announcing its boycott in early June. Officials at the council said Russia’s Patriarch Kirill could not come to Crete because archconservatives in his ranks opposed it.

But the synod took a more positive approach by calling the session “an important event” and asking its theological commission to study the six documents the council approved and report back on its findings.
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Posted: July 22, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9498
Categories: RNSIn this article: Great and Holy Council, Russian Orthodox, synods
Transmis : 22 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9498
Catégorie : RNSDans cet article : Great and Holy Council, Russian Orthodox, synods

For the first time in its history, the Anglican Church of Canada will enter into a bilateral ecumenical dialogue with Mennonite Church Canada (MC-Canada) following a motion passed at General Synod, July 12.

The motion’s mover, Bruce Myers, coadjutor bishop of the diocese of Quebec and former coordinator of ecumenical relations for the national church, explained that as the Anglican church’s relationship to mainstream society changes, it could benefit from talking to a church that has always had a fraught relationship with the mainstream.

“Mennonites have often existed as a church on the margins, both historically and in the contemporary Canadian context,” he noted. “As the Anglican Church of Canada enters a new stage of its life, some of us have been asking if there is something we can learn from our Mennonite sisters and brothers, about living faithfully as disciples of Jesus on the margins of society.”

Myers said the bilateral dialogue would be based on a new approach to ecumenism based not on an attempt to minimize differences, but to receive it as a “gift.”

This “receptive ecumenism” is a way for churches to learn from the differences in each other’s theology and lived experience, without feeling the need to push toward reunion or a full communion relationship.
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Posted: July 18, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9488
Categories: Anglican Journal, DialogueIn this article: Anglican Church of Canada, dialogue, Mennonite Church Canada
Transmis : 18 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9488
Catégorie : Anglican Journal, DialogueDans cet article : Anglican Church of Canada, dialogue, Mennonite Church Canada

Assembly 2016 held in Saskatoon from July 6-10 may become known as a watershed year by delegates in attendance.

By turns intense and emotional, joyful and worshipful, the gathered made significant decisions that will impact the Mennonite Church Canada body of Christ for years to come.

On Thursday evening, delegates voted in favour of repudiating the Doctrine of Discovery – a settler teaching that has marginalized and taken rights away from indigenous people for centuries. While much education on the Doctrine of Discovery has already begun among congregations, much more is required.

On Saturday morning, 85% of delegates voted in favour of the Being a Faithful Church (BFC) recommendation to create space and test alternative understandings to traditional beliefs on committed same-sex relationships. Congregations who are asked to bless same sex marriages will now be given space to do so, even as the national family of faith continues testing to see if such discernment is a nudging of the Spirit of God.
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Posted: July 12, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9364
Categories: NewsIn this article: human sexuality, Indigenous peoples, Mennonite Church Canada, synods
Transmis : 12 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9364
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : human sexuality, Indigenous peoples, Mennonite Church Canada, synods

Several American-based religious denominations remain defiant in the face of new laws that would ban them from proselytizing in Russia.

The so-called “Yarovaya laws” make it illegal to preach, proselytize or hand out religious materials outside of specially designated places. The laws also give the Russian government wide scope to monitor and record electronic messages and phone calls.

The package of laws, billed as anti-terrorism measures, were passed by the Russian Duma, or parliament, on June 24, and signed by Russian president Vladimir Putin on July 7.

The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, a bipartisan government panel which makes policy recommendations, condemned the new laws.

“These deeply flawed anti-terrorism measures will buttress the Russian government’s war against human rights and religious freedom,” Thomas J. Reese, a Jesuit priest and chair of the commission said after the measures were passed. “They will make it easier for Russian authorities to repress religious communities, stifle peaceful dissent, and detain and imprison people.”
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Posted: July 12, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9361
Categories: RNSIn this article: human rights, religious freedom, Russia
Transmis : 12 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9361
Catégorie : RNSDans cet article : human rights, religious freedom, Russia

The Vatican and Sunni Islam’s leading institution of higher learning have begun looking for ways to restart formal dialogue.

Acting on Pope Francis’ expressed desire, the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue was sending a top-level official to Cairo to visit al-Azhar University, the council said in a written press release July 12.

Spanish Bishop Miguel Ayuso Guixot, secretary of the pontifical council, will attend a “preliminary meeting” July 13 with Mahmoud Hamdi Zakzouk, a member of the university’s Council of Senior Scholars and director of the al-Azhar Center for Dialogue. Archbishop Bruno Musaro, the apostolic nuncio to Egypt, was to also attend the meeting.

The meeting, which was requested by the pontifical council following the pope’s “expressed desire, will evaluate how to begin the resumption of dialogue between the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and al-Azhar University,” the press release said.

The encounter follows the landmark meeting at the Vatican May 23 between Pope Francis and the university’s grand imam, Ahmad el-Tayeb.
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Posted: July 12, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9359
Categories: CNSIn this article: Al-Azhar, dialogue, Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, interfaith, Vatican
Transmis : 12 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9359
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Al-Azhar, dialogue, Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, interfaith, Vatican

Pope Francis has named Bishop Donald Bolen of Saskatoon, Sask., as the new archbishop of Regina.

Archbishop Bolen’s appointment was announced July 11 at the Vatican. He succeeds Archbishop Daniel Bohan, who died in January.

Archbishop Bolen is known nationally and internationally for his work promoting Christian unity. From 2001 to 2008 he worked at the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity at the Vatican, before returning to Regina in 2009. Since his return, he has served as a bishop member of the Christian unity council and as co-chair of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission. Since 2013 he has served as co-chair of the Joint International Commission for Dialogue between the World Methodist Council and the Roman Catholic Church.

Speaking of his new appointment, Archbishop Bolen, who was ordained a priest in Regina and served as archdiocesan vicar general and chair of the archdiocesan ecumenical commission, said: “To be moved from the Diocese of Saskatoon is painful, because it has been such a grace-filled experience to live and to serve here as bishop, but, at the same time, to move to the Archdiocese of Regina is to go home. I am profoundly grateful to remain in my home province.”
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Posted: July 11, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9355
Categories: CNSIn this article: Donald Bolen, Regina, Saskatchewan, Saskatoon
Transmis : 11 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9355
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : Donald Bolen, Regina, Saskatchewan, Saskatoon

Indigenous Anglicans took another step on the road toward self-determination July 10 when General Synod received two documents presenting the goals, objectives and features of a fully Indigenous province within the Anglican Church of Canada.

In a PowerPoint presentation titled Unique Features of an Indigenous Province: The Confederacy of the Indigenous Spiritual Ministry, Indigenous ministries co-ordinator Canon Virginia “Ginny” Doctor outlined 13 qualities a self-determining Indigenous Spiritual Ministry should have.

While some of the features were fairly aspirational long-term goals, such as “better relationships between Indigenous communities and with settler communities,” and “high value on elders and youth,” others were more immediate.
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Posted: July 10, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9399
Categories: Anglican JournalIn this article: Anglican Church of Canada, Indigenous peoples, synods
Transmis : 10 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9399
Catégorie : Anglican JournalDans cet article : Anglican Church of Canada, Indigenous peoples, synods

Seven years after the first Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue was held at the Anglican Communion offices in London, England, in 2010, a record 24 bishops – including four primates – came together in Accra, Ghana, from 25 – 29 May to learn about the unique contexts and challenges different parts of the African, North American and English churches are facing. In a testimony released following the consultation, titled “Unity in Diversity,” the bishops looked back on what has been accomplished since 2010, and said that in order to build a stronger sense of unity, the Communion needs to turn to the past.
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Posted: July 4, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9311
Categories: ACNSIn this article: Anglican Communion, Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue
Transmis : 4 juil. 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9311
Catégorie : ACNSDans cet article : Anglican Communion, Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue

The next World Mission Conference is to be held in Arusha, Tanzania, 8-13 March 2018. The proposal to hold the conference was approved today by the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee at its meeting in Trondheim, Norway. Bishop Geevarghese Mor Coorilos, Moderator of the WCC’s Commission on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME), presented the proposal. The conference theme is “Moving in the Spirit: Called to Transforming Discipleship.” More than 700 delegates from churches worldwide are expected to gather for the event hosted by the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Tanzania. The conference is the first to be held in Africa since 1958, when it was hosted in Ghana. “CWME recognizes that the African continent is one of the most vibrant regions of world Christianity,” CWME Director, Dr Jooseop Keum explains. “It is important that the spirit of Africa pervade the conference from planning through to delivery. A significant numbers of speakers and participants will be from the region.” The mission executive adds that holding the conference in Africa will allow participants to learn about African ecumenical mission initiatives.
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Posted: June 29, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9490
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: evangelism/evangelization, mission, WCC Commission on World Mission and Evangelism
Transmis : 29 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9490
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : evangelism/evangelization, mission, WCC Commission on World Mission and Evangelism

Introduced by the Most Rev. Prof. Emmanuel Asante as an ecumenical contribution from the Methodist Church of Ghana, the Akan concept of sankofa served as a guiding framework for the Seventh Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue, which took place from May 25-29 in Accra, Ghana. The gathering brought together bishops from Canada, Ghana, Swaziland, Tanzania, Kenya, South Africa, Burundi, Zambia, England, and the United States. Sankofa—literally, ‘It is not a taboo to fetch what is at risk of being left behind’—refers broadly to the unity of past and present, where the narrative of the past is a dynamic reality that cannot be separated from consideration of the present and future. The Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue emerged after the 2008 Lambeth Conference as a way for bishops from different backgrounds to continue an ongoing, respectful dialogue in the midst of significant disagreements, primarily over the issues of human sexuality and same-sex marriage.
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Posted: June 23, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9313
Categories: Communiqué, NewsIn this article: Anglican Communion, Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue, Fred Hiltz, human sexuality, Michael Curry
Transmis : 23 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9313
Catégorie : Communiqué, NewsDans cet article : Anglican Communion, Consultation of Anglican Bishops in Dialogue, Fred Hiltz, human sexuality, Michael Curry

Religious leaders across Saskatchewan say doctors who don’t want to help patients die shouldn’t be forced to refer them to another physician who will.

Christian, Muslim and Jewish leaders met with Health Minister Dustin Duncan at the Saskatchewan legislature Tuesday and said facilities should not be forced to help people end their lives either. Duncan said the province is looking at ways to accommodate those concerns about the new federal law that allows medical assisted dying.

The law says doctors can’t be forced to provide the service. But the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan policy also says they “must not abandon a patient who makes this request” and they need to arrange “timely access” to another physician or resources.

“We also feel that people do have a right to information,” said Mary Deutscher, with the justice and peace commission of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Saskatoon. “We have no problem with providing that information, but there’s something different about a direct referral, that actually says that you need to find someone who will carry through on what we see as a very harmful action. Do you want to force doctors to have to harm people that they care for? And many of these doctors do see this as a harmful action.”
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Posted: June 21, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9204
Categories: NewsIn this article: freedom of conscience, palliative care, physician assisted suicide, religious freedom, Saskatchewan
Transmis : 21 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9204
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : freedom of conscience, palliative care, physician assisted suicide, religious freedom, Saskatchewan

Today, representatives from various faith communities united to issue a joint call to Canada’s elected officials to support a robust, well-resourced, national palliative care strategy and to raise awareness of inadequacies in palliative care, particularly in the wake of the debate over Physician-Assisted Dying/Suicide.

In addition to issuing an Interfaith Statement on Palliative Care, the organizations reaffirmed that compassion is a foundational element of Canadian identity that should directly shape Canadian public policy when it comes to end-of-life issues. The spokespersons warned that assisted dying/suicide must not become a default choice for those struggling with terminal illnesses, and that it is a national imperative to enhance access to and the quality of palliative care.
“The need for quality, widely accessible palliative care should be one of the most pressing concerns of our country,” said the Most Reverend Noël Simard, Bishop of Valleyfield, on behalf of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. “Faith communities, along with health care workers, have for centuries stood by the bedsides of the dying to comfort and protect, to heal and console. Today, as faith leaders, we recommit ourselves to this sacred task of providing the spiritual care so essential to palliative care.”
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Posted: June 14, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9600
Categories: NewsIn this article: Canada, euthanasia, interfaith, palliative care
Transmis : 14 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9600
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Canada, euthanasia, interfaith, palliative care

The relationship between the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) and the Roman Catholic Church was both broadened and deepened during a series of meetings at the Vatican on Friday, 10 June. WCRC and Roman Catholic officials, including Pope Francis, found reasons for celebration as well as a renewed urgency to work more closely together.

“It was both a joy and a mission fulfilled today to have a strong response from Pope Francis to affirm our common mission,” said Chris Ferguson, WCRC general secretary.

In his official address to Pope Francis, Ferguson stated that it was with a sense of both “joy and urgency” that these meetings were taking place. “Our joy comes from knowing that through repentance and dialogue we are growing closer to the unity that is Christ’s gift to the church, so that all may believe,” he said, noting the progress made through official dialogues and the process of associating with the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification (JDDJ).
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Posted: June 13, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9401
Categories: Communiqué, NewsIn this article: Dicastery for Justice and Peace, Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, Reformed churches, World Communion of Reformed Churches
Transmis : 13 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9401
Catégorie : Communiqué, NewsDans cet article : Dicastery for Justice and Peace, Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, Reformed churches, World Communion of Reformed Churches

Growing acceptance of euthanasia does not indicate increased compassion, but highlights the rise of a selfish “throwaway culture” that casts aside the sick, the dying and those who do not satisfy the perceived requirements of a healthy life, Pope Francis said.

In a culture that is increasingly “technological and individualistic,” some tend to “hide behind alleged compassion to justify killing a patient,” the Pope told health professionals from Spain and Latin America June 9.

“True compassion does not marginalize, humiliate or exclude, much less celebrate a patient passing away,” the Pope said. “You know well that would mean the triumph of selfishness, of that ‘throwaway culture’ that rejects and despises people who do not meet certain standards of health, beauty or usefulness.”
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Posted: June 10, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9198
Categories: CNSIn this article: euthanasia, physician assisted suicide, Pope Francis
Transmis : 10 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9198
Catégorie : CNSDans cet article : euthanasia, physician assisted suicide, Pope Francis

The Anglican-Roman Catholic Covenant between the Regina archdiocese and the Diocese of Qu’Appelle signed in 2011 continues to grow, with activities between the two faith communities. They gathered May 15, Pentecost Sunday, at St. Paul’s Cathedral for a traditional Anglican evensong service with a homily delivered by archdiocesan administrator Rev. Lorne Crozon and the apostolic blessing performed by Winnipeg Archbishop Emeritus James Weisgerber. Canon Michael Jackson, Anglican co-chair of the Covenant Implementation Committee, opened the service, followed by St. Paul’s Cathedral dean Michael Sinclair, who welcomed everyone.

Susan Klein, Roman Catholic co-chair of the Covenant Implementation Committee reported on the numerous activities the covenant participants have shared since the last time they met. Among the highlights was Signs of Hope: A Conversation on First Nations Ministry, held in the fall of 2015. It attracted Aboriginal and non-Aboriginals who engaged in conversations following presentations by Rev. Dale Gillman and Sister Re-Anne Letourneau.

Sinclair spent a week in Rome attending a Christian leadership course at the Anglican Centre, visited Assisi and attended a public audience with Pope Francis. Archdeacon Catherine Harper presented on the diaconate program, and Canon Jackson is in touch with the Roman Catholic Diaconate programs in Saskatoon and Prince Albert as well as Roman Catholic authors and diaconate leaders in the U.S.

In addition to these highlights, there were several joint parish activities, including a vacation Bible school, marriage course, Advent and lenten programs. “Concrete examples of what we are doing together,” said Klein in her report.
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Posted: June 1, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9216
Categories: NewsIn this article: Anglican, Catholic, covenant, Regina
Transmis : 1 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9216
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Anglican, Catholic, covenant, Regina

The Canadian Council of Churches and its Commission on Faith and Witness are proud to announce the release of the first episode of Faith & Witness, a podcast exploring ecumenism. Each month we’ll learn what happens when churches talk to each other, and about the people who have spent their lives in dialogue with Christians of other traditions.

This month’s episode features two segments. The first is a dialogue between Fr. Geoffrey Ready of the Orthodox Church in America (Canadian Archdiocese), and the Rev. Ian Sloan of the United Church of Canada. Fr. Geoffrey and Rev. Ian talk about the idea of salvation, and how Orthodox and United beliefs about salvation are the same, and how they differ.

In our second segment, Associate Secretary for the Commission Dr. Mary Marrocco interviews Fr. Damian MacPherson, SA, Director of the Office of Ecumenical & Interfaith Affairs for the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Toronto.

Please join us! You can download the episode here. If you have questions you would like to hear answered on the podcast, or about anything else, please email. Theme and interstitial music by Telepathic Teddy Bear (“Churches”; CC BY 4.0)
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Posted: June 1, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9144
Categories: NewsIn this article: Canadian Council of Churches, Faith & Witness
Transmis : 1 juin 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9144
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Canadian Council of Churches, Faith & Witness

On the occasion of US President Barack Obama’s visit to the Japanese city of Hiroshima on 27 May, WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit sent greetings, noting that this is a time when signs of peace and justice are sorely needed.

“We pray that you will be able to talk with the aging survivors of the atomic bombing – the hibakusha – who live to tell their story in the determined hope that no one will ever again suffer their fate,” Tveit wrote. “They speak for the hundreds of thousands of people from Japan, Korea and other countries whose lives were shattered by the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.”

Tveit urged Obama to share his vision of a world without nuclear weapons. “The World Council of Churches was founded in 1948, in the shadow of the atomic bombings,” Tveit wrote. “We believe that the case for the elimination of nuclear weapons is grounded in the responsibility to protect and care for goodness of all that God has created and for the dignity of all human beings, made in the image of God.”

Using the energy of the atom in ways that threaten and destroy life is a sinful misuse of the fundamental building blocks of God’s creation, Tveit added in the letter. “Churches in every region of the world refuse to accept that the mass destruction of other peoples can ever be a legitimate means of protecting one’s own people.”
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Posted: May 27, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9117
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: Barack Obama, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, peace
Transmis : 27 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9117
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : Barack Obama, Hiroshima and Nagasaki, peace

“There is a remarkable change towards acknowledging the role of faith-based communities and their resources to address humanitarian needs,” said Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), during the World Humanitarian Summit (WHS), held in Istanbul, Turkey, 23-24 May.

“This is promising for those who need more assistance, and it is promising for the constructive cooperation needed,” he added.

The summit was the first of its kind in the 70-year history of the United Nations. The motivation came from the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, who called for humanity to be placed at the heart of global decision-making.

The framework of the summit was built upon the principle that, in order to deliver for humanity, stakeholders must act on five core responsibilities: preventing and ending conflict; respecting rules of war; leaving no one behind; working differently to end need; and investing in humanity.

The WCC was represented at the WHS by the general secretary Tveit and the council’s representative to the United Nations in New York, Rudelmar Bueno de Faria, as well as by several member churches, national councils of churches and partner organizations, such as ACT Alliance and its members.
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Posted: May 26, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9115
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: advocacy, justice, peace, WCC
Transmis : 26 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9115
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : advocacy, justice, peace, WCC

The leadership and representatives of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) and the World Council of Churches (WCC) met in the Ecumenical Institute at Bossey, Switzerland to explore and discuss possible areas of future cooperation.

The 20 May meeting featured introductions to the work of the WEA and the WCC, and participants reflected together on current developments in society and churches, and on evangelical and ecumenical movements. The WCC general secretary and WEA secretary general took part.

The two organizations shared current plans and discussed possibilities for closer collaboration on thematic areas such as “public witness and peace-building in inter-religious contexts” and “theological reflection, education and formation.”

This was the second meeting with the leadership and representatives, although it was the first meeting with both heads of the organizations present and where perceptions about both the WEA and WCC were discussed.
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Posted: May 26, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9113
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: WCC, World Evangelical Alliance
Transmis : 26 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9113
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : WCC, World Evangelical Alliance

Starting preparations for a Global Ecumenical Theological Institute (GETI) in the context of the 2018 World Mission Conference in Africa was a tangible result of a meeting of 20 ecumenical educators from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Pacific. They met from 22-24 May in Halle (Germany) at the invitation of the World Council of Churches project on Ecumenical Theological Education (WCC-ETE).

Together they discussed ways of networking to enhance ecumenical theological education, which include curriculum development, sharing of learning models and new forms of partnerships between theological institutions and churches.

The meeting was motivated by the need to strengthen ecumenical education so theological institutions do not become more inward-oriented. To make the cooperation concrete, the group agreed to start the process for the formation of a network of ecumenical educators by contributing to preparations for GETI, planned for March 2018 in close collaboration with the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism (CWME) and the Mission and Evangelism team of the World Council of Churches (WCC).
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Posted: May 25, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9111
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: mission, theological education, WCC, WCC Commission on World Mission and Evangelism
Transmis : 25 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9111
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : mission, theological education, WCC, WCC Commission on World Mission and Evangelism

From 24 May to 21 June, the Christian Council of Norway (CCN) is promoting a pilgrimage from the Norwegian capital Oslo to Trondheim, an important Christian pilgrimage site and the location of the World Council of Churches (WCC) Central Committee meeting from 22-28 June.

CCN’s general secretary Rev. Knut Refsdal will walk the entire 29-day, 638.6-kilometer route, and is inviting local church leaders and congregations to join part or all of the pilgrimage. Several meetings and dialogue spaces are being organized at stops along the way.

“The main message we want to share along the way is that religious and philosophical leaders of each community can help promote mutual understanding and respect for shared values and therefore deplore violent extremism and hate speech,” said Refsdal.
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Posted: May 24, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9109
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: pilgrimage, spiritual ecumenism, WCC
Transmis : 24 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9109
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : pilgrimage, spiritual ecumenism, WCC

Pope Francis embraced the grand imam of Al-Azhar, the Sunni Muslim centre of learning, five years after Sheik Ahmed el-Tayyib suspended dialogue with the Holy See.

As Sheik Ahmed el-Tayyib arrived for his audience in the Apostolic Palace, Francis said that the fact that they were meeting at all was significant.

“The meeting is the message,” Francis told the imam.

The meeting came five years after the Cairo-based Al-Azhar froze talks with the Vatican to protest comments by then-Pope Benedict XVI.

Benedict had demanded greater protection for Christians in Egypt after a New Year’s bombing on a Coptic Christian church in Alexandria killed 21 people. Since then, Islamic attacks on Christians in the region have only increased, but the Vatican and Al-Azhar nevertheless sought to rekindle ties, with a Vatican delegation visiting Cairo in February and extending the invitation for el-Tayyib to visit.
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Posted: May 23, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9092
Categories: NewsIn this article: Al-Azhar, Pope Francis
Transmis : 23 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9092
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : Al-Azhar, Pope Francis

A global gathering in the German city of Halle has called on churches to be inspired by the tradition of the Reformation to become agents of transformation.

“We came from different confessional and denominational traditions and together we sought to discover the transformative power of Reformation today, not as a past event but oriented to the future,” participants said in a statement at the end of the 18-22 May consultation.

Halle, in eastern Germany, lies in the heartland of the 16th-century Reformation of Martin Luther and his followers.

The Halle meeting gathered more than 120 people from 40 countries and was the second stage of a “Twin Consultation” on “Reformation – Education – Transformation” that began with a conference in São Leopoldo in Brazil in November 2015.
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Posted: May 23, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9107
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: Reformation, WCC
Transmis : 23 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9107
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : Reformation, WCC

Is doubt just the opposite of faith? Or is it more complicated?

Bishop Donald Bolen, of the Roman Catholic diocese of Saskatoon, says this is one of the central issues facing people today, and a question that’s been on his mind throughout his life as a priest.

For him, it’s definitely more complicated.

“In a sense, apathy is the opposite of faith, whereas a lively doubt is a part of our faith,” Bolen says. “Doubt wants faith to have its reasons… I think when people pay serious attention to their doubts and don’t give up on them, but work with them, the doubting becomes a motivation to think more, to search more, to pray more, to look harder, to find reasons, and I think that’s a motivation which leads to a deeper faith,” he says.

“The doubter is on a quest.”
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Posted: May 20, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9094
Categories: Anglican Journal, DialogueIn this article: Anglican, Anglican Church of Canada, Catholic, CCCB, dialogue, doubt, hope, resources, video
Transmis : 20 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9094
Catégorie : Anglican Journal, DialogueDans cet article : Anglican, Anglican Church of Canada, Catholic, CCCB, dialogue, doubt, hope, resources, video

Vibrant opening worship held at Luyanó Presbyterian Reformed Church in Havana, Cuba marked the beginning of the executive committee meeting of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) in Havana, Cuba from 7-13 May. The meeting was hosted by the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba, a member church of the World Council of Churches (WCC).

The WCRC’s executive committee is comprised of officers and members selected by a general council, as well as elected leaders of the regional councils. The executive committee’s mandate includes oversight of WCRC’s vision and activities between councils, including fostering church unity and coordinating common initiatives for mission, theological reflection and formation, church renewal, justice and dialogue.

In his annual report, WCRC President Rev. Jerry Pillay, a member of the Uniting Presbyterian Church of Southern Africa, stressed the theme of the upcoming General Council in 2017: “Living God, renew and transform us.” He urged the member churches to engage more deeply with this perspective. “We need to embrace a greater and deeper vision…as we continue to pursue our work and witness as an organisation. Our efforts of renewing and transforming the world must start with us if we are to earn respect and remain relevant in addressing the challenges in a changing world.”

The General Council will take place in Leipzig, Germany from 27 June to 7 July 2017. In preparation, the executive committee reviewed plans, focusing on the discernment and consensus process that will be used at the General Council. The committee also approved the final phase of the WCRC’s strategic plan.
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Posted: May 19, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9104
Categories: NewsIn this article: World Communion of Reformed Churches
Transmis : 19 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9104
Catégorie : NewsDans cet article : World Communion of Reformed Churches

More than 120 people from throughout the world have gathered in the eastern German city of Halle to reflect on how insights from the Protestant Reformation 500 years ago can contribute to transforming the world today.

“We want to initiate and encourage a truly ecumenical and global dialogue on the achievements, current challenges and new learnings about the relevance of Reformation principles,” said the Rev. Cornelia Füllkrug-Weitzel, president of the German Protestant development service Bread for the World, at the opening of the 18-22 May conference.

The Halle gathering is the second stage of a “Twin Consultation” on “Reformation – Education – Transformation” that began with a conference in São Leopoldo in Brazil in November 2015.

In advance of the Reformation Jubilee in 2017, the project aims to examine the contribution of Reformation traditions and theology to strengthening and transforming civil society to promote justice, peace, sustainability and human rights, both locally and globally, with a special emphasis on the role of education.

“2017 will not be an event that looks back historically but an occasion to reflect where reform and reformation is needed today in church and society,” the Rev. Margot Kässmann, ambassador of the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD) for the Reformation Jubilee, told the Halle meeting.

The idea of holding two consultations in Brazil and in Germany – with some participants attending both meetings – is to reflect on the same thematic areas in two different global contexts as a contribution to the 500th anniversary of the Reformation and its impact on society.
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Posted: May 19, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=9102
Categories: WCC NewsIn this article: Reformation, WCC
Transmis : 19 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=9102
Catégorie : WCC NewsDans cet article : Reformation, WCC

Anglican and Catholic theologians, meeting in Toronto, Canada this week, have agreed on the publication of their first ARCIC III document on the theme “Towards a Church fully reconciled”. The volume, which is likely to be published in the autumn, uses the ‘Receptive Ecumenism’ approach to look at the limitations within each communion and see how one Church can help the other grow towards the fullness of faith.

The third Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC III) is holding its sixth annual meeting from May 11th to 19th, hosted by the Anglican sisters of St John the Divine in Toronto. The 18 members of the Commission have completed work on the first part of their mandate, exploring tensions between the local and Universal Church within the two communions, and are continuing discussions on a second volume, looking at how Anglicans and Catholics make difficult moral and ethical decisions.
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Posted: May 17, 2016 • Permanent link: ecumenism.net/?p=10372
Categories: Vatican NewsIn this article: Anglican, ARCIC, Catholic
Transmis : 17 mai 2016 • Lien permanente : ecumenism.net/?p=10372
Catégorie : Vatican NewsDans cet article : Anglican, ARCIC, Catholic

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