Pope John Paul II, in issuing a fresh initiative to promote Christian unity, has provided Protestants and Catholics a rare opportunity to work through long-standing theological differences in a modern context.
In North America, evangelicals and Catholic leaders say the pope’s invitation to examine together the role of the papal office is historic and significant. But there is disagreement on whether meaningful unity is achievable, even with the pope’s endorsement in the May 30 encyclical on Christian unity, Ut Unum Sint (“That They May Be One”). A common concern that Orthodox and Protestant believers share is opposition to the pope’s claim to a unique role in Christendom.
“The Catholic Church’s conviction that in the ministry of the Bishop of Rome she has preserved … the visible sign and guarantor of unity constitutes a difficulty for most other Christians, whose memory is marked by certain painful recollections,” the pope acknowledges. “To the extent that we are responsible for these, I join my predecessor Paul VI in asking forgiveness.”
Richard John Neuhaus, a Catholic priest and former Lutheran, now with the New York-based organization Religion and Public Life, says the statement is “historic” and “unprecedented.”
Neuhaus has formed an important link to the evangelical movement through working with Prison Fellowship’s Charles Colson. From this coalition emerged the controversial “Evangelicals and Catholics Together” (CT, March 6, 1995, p. 52). … Read more »… lire la suite »
by Richard John Neuhaus, Theology Today 53.2 (Jul 1996): 171. The Catechism of the Catholic Church is the authoritative reference or baseline for understanding Catholic faith, sacramental practice, moral doctrine, and prayer. As the title suggests, the chief purpose is catechetical, to provide a doctrinal framework from which the Church in various parts of the … Read more »… lire la suite »
by John R. Quinn for the National Catholic Reporter 32.34 (Jul 12, 1996): 13. Following are excerpts from Archbishop John R Quinn’s lecture on June 29, 1996, at Campion Hall, Oxford. Quinn is a visiting fellow at Campion Hall. I. The challenge of John Paul II … The pope himself, in apostolic discernment, sees that … Read more »… lire la suite »
by Paul Hanley, for “Urban Banter” in the Saskatoon Star Phoenix What is truth? The question has been around for a long time, but finding an answer isn’t getting any easier. The question, which was put to several speakers at an interfaith symposium at the University last Saturday, becomes more difficult to answer as society … Read more »… lire la suite »
Thirty years ago, my father, Charles Davis, then a secular priest and considered by many the leading Catholic theologian in Britain, publicly denounced the Roman Catholic Church as corrupt, and left. It was a move which sent shock waves around the Catholic world. At the same time he married my mother, then Florence Henderson, a long-standing member of the international Catholic lay women’s organisation, the Grail. They had become friends through their joint work in the ecumenical movement in Britain. She followed him in his decision to leave the Church and together they went into a form of exile, which my father, in different contexts, has often referred to as the desert. It was in the desert that my brother and I were born and raised. … Read more »… lire la suite »
In the furore surrounding the ex-communication of Fr Tissa Balasuriya, very little has been said about the overall project of his book, Mary and Human Liberation. Beyond specific theological questions, Fr Balasuriya’s treatment of Mary touches on issues which go to the heart of the conflict between traditionalists and reformists which is dividing the Catholic Church today.
As in so many of Christianity’s decisive theological moments, the role of Mary is pivotal. The saying, “As Mary goes, so goes the Church,” is as true today as it was of the fifth century when the Council of Ephesus affirmed Christ’s divinity by declaring Mary Theotokos, or Godbearer. … Read more »… lire la suite »
Ecumenism is not an appendix to the Church’s mission. Rather the search for Christian unity touches the very heart of what it means to be a disciple in the modern world. As Christian people, and as a Church, our ecumenical vocation calls us to examine our relationships with all who bear the name of Christ. In humility, and with integrity, we must be prepared to confess our failures and our sins of disunity, and forgive those of our Christian brothers and sisters where they have sinned against us.
These principles described above are the insight and commitment of the Catholic Church expressed at the Second Vatican Council and repeated in a number of other forums since. Our formal commitment and collected energies as a Church have strongly influenced the ecumenical agenda, and given a needed boost to the search for Christian unity in our day. … Read more »… lire la suite »
by John A. Bolt. Reprinted from “The Presbyterian Outlook” [DALLAS] Nearly four decades of Presbyterian presence in the Consultation on Church Union (COCU) could come to an end in Syracuse as commissioners to the 209th General Assembly consider whether to proceed in the face of overwhelming presbytery rejection of the mechanism proposed to participate in … Read more »… lire la suite »
By Nicholas Jesson Growing up in Winnipeg, I had a stereotypical image of Saskatchewan and Alberta. Albertans were cowboys and oilmen while people from Saskatchewan and rural Manitoba were all grain farmers. Saskatchewan was flat, dull, and almost barren. We used to joke, half seriously, that when driving west from Winnipeg one should leave in … Read more »… lire la suite »
Cooperation between the churches of Canada is at a significant level. We share our problems, we share our plans, we even share our resources. But what of dialogue? Are we talking about our theological perspectives as we cooperate? Or, has dialogue fallen into a secondary or tertiary importance? … Read more »… lire la suite »