Christians together

It is a cruel paradox that the history of Christianity should be marked by festering antagonism among the followers of Christ.

Many South African Catholics will recall being seen by Dutch Reformed Christians as subversives, die Roomse gevaar. Likewise, many Orthodox Christians continue to bear a grudge against Catholics over events that happened many centuries ago.

This, of course, never was new. Even before the gospels were written, Paul responded to reports of conflict among the Christian community in Corinth (1Cor 1:10-12).

In Christian relations, there are wounds that are slow to heal, and divisions that are difficult to bridge. Not all involve Catholicism. The relationship between the Orthodox and Protestant churches, for example, are particularly tense.

The Second Vatican Council noted that Christ founded only one Church (whose division he anticipated during the last Supper, John 17:21-23), and placed the business of Christian unity high on its agenda. Ecumenism thus became an official programme of the Church, supplanting an obsolete air of insular triumphalism.

Ecumenism, and indeed inter-religious dialogue, has been one of the hallmarks of Pope John Paul II’s pontificate. Indeed, future generations may remember this pope for his ecumenical initiatives more than any other.

Apart from a long series of symbolic actions, Pope John Paul has repeatedly defined the challenges and opportunities, as well as the hazards, in ecumenical dialogue.

In his momentous encyclical Ut unum sint (“That they may be one”, 1995), the pope warned Catholics against using language or symbolism that might undermine the relationship between churches. He also called on churches, not least of all his own, to examine their histories and postures to effect a “purification of past memories”.

Much has been accomplished since Ut unum sint, especially in the Catholic Church’s rapprochement with Protestant churches.

However, differences on questions of theology, doctrine and discipline still loom large. Thus, last year’s episcopal election of an active homosexual in the Anglican Church in the United States will have complicated Anglican-Catholic relations. Similarly, papal primacy remains an ecumenical conundrum, as does the validity of holy orders and the associated dilemma of eucharistic sharing.

Churches are learning that some old approaches to dialogue no longer work. Commenting earlier this month on talks between the Lutheran and Catholic churches in the United States, Catholic participant Professor Susan Wood pointed out that “in working towards church unity, the challenge is to find a common line that bypasses old differences. In the past, things have been seen through juridical eyes that didn’t get us very far.”

Ecumenical commitment must not be limited to the pope and talkshops, however. It must extend to local churches, even on parish level.

Pope John Paul in Ut unum sint wrote that Christian relations must go beyond dialogue and common prayer to involve practical initiatives, on pastoral, social and cultural levels.

In its guide for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity this year, which is dedicated to peace, the Vatican suggests that churches share in ceremonies such as baptisms, marriages, and funerals.

Unity in Christ therefore does not presuppose an amalgamation of churches’ welcome though structural unity would be but community in purpose and spirit.