Ecumenical Christian Dialogues and the Catechism of the Catholic Church, The

Insofar as the Reformed had broken with the ministerial structure handed down by tradition, they had deeply wounded the apostolicity of their churches.

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The severity of this judgment is moderated today because ecumenical contacts have made Catholics more aware of the features of authentic Christian identity preserved in those churches. We diverge, however, on the matter of the closer identification of the Church with its visible aspects and structure. They admit likewise that many "elements" or "attributes" of great value by which the Church is constituted, are present in the "separated churches and communities" and that these last are "in no way devoid of significance and value in the mystery of salvation" Unitatis Redintegratio 3.

The question is, therefore, to what degree they can recognize that the Church of Christ also exists in the Reformed churches. The Reformed for their part do not understand the Church as reducible to this or that community, hierarchy or institution. They claim to belong to the Church and recognize that others also do Nevertheless, considerable theological and structural convergence will be required before we can give full recognition to one another. In the meantime, much interchange and sharing is possible on the basis of the recognition already achieved and in the hope of further progress.

In the churches of the Lutheran World Federation concluded an agreement on this issue in a Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification with the Catholic Church. The international dialogue shows that there is also a major consensus with Reformed and Catholic churches on this issue: We recognize that there is a betrayal of God's trust in us and that God's heart is saddened by our separation. From this condition we cannot free ourselves by our own strength Because of sin, the law intended for life judges, condemns and leads to death In Jesus, the unique mediator, in his death and resurrection, we are radically freed from this situation: To speak in this way of our justification and reconciliation with God is to say that faith is above all a reception Rom 5: By faith, we are liberated from our presumption that we can somehow save ourselves; by faith, we are comforted in spite of our terror of losing ourselves… The person justified by the free gift of faith, i.

Together we confess the church, for there is no justification in isolation. All justification takes place in the community of believers or is ordered toward the gathering of such a community… This presence and this action are enabled and empowered by the Spirit, by whom Christ calls to unite human beings to himself, to express his reality through them, to associate them in the mystery of his self-offering for them.

Convergences in Worship Reformed and Catholic churches have defined the sacraments differently and therefore counted them differently. Catholics, while recognizing the centrality of baptism and the Eucharist, affirm seven sacraments. While there are theological emphases that differ they have never been considered church dividing.

For example, the Catholic baptismal rite clearly implies that the sacrament extends well beyond the boundaries of any particular community. In its name, I claim you for Christ our Savior by the sign of the cross. Administered in obedience to our Lord, baptism is a sign and seal of our common discipleship. Through baptism, Christians are brought into union with Christ, with each other and with the Church of every time and place. Our common baptism, which unites us to Christ in faith, is thus a basic bond of unity.

BEM as quoted in doc 18 In many parts of the world there have been formal agreements for the mutual recognition of baptism. In many parts of the United States there are joint baptismal agreements in which Catholic and Reformed churches participate. The present seventh round of the dialogue is expected to provide a formal articulation of common Reformed and Catholic faith in the sacrament and what gifts we receive from our different understandings. Recent Catholic teaching on Baptism uses similar language. The Directory for the Application and Norms on Ecumenism says that the koinonia established in Baptism is intimately related to the Eucharistic communion that is its goal.

The Church becomes not merely a community of those who have chosen to join it through the ritual of Baptism but the communion of those incorporated by the Holy Spirit through Baptism into the Paschal Mystery: Baptism … constitutes the sacramental bond of unity existing among all who through it are reborn. Baptism, of itself, is the beginning, for it is directed towards the acquiring of fullness of life in Christ. It is thus ordered to the profession of faith, to the full integration into the economy of salvation, and to Eucharistic communion.

The specific focus of the report is on how this matter affects interchurch families but much of its background is of a far more general nature. As call, our baptismal unity should move us to ecumenical engagement.

As gift, however, our baptismal unity should give our ecumenical engagement confidence. Baptism and the Unity of the Church Grand Rapids: Three of the Reformed churches in this dialogue and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America have resolved their differences on this issue. Contemporary liturgical reform and theological research have enabled Catholic and Reformed scholars to come much closer. It is hoped that the current seventh round of dialogue will make substantive contributions to resolving this issue central to our worship life. The very first round in this series of consultations expressed identified this as a priority concern.

In The Unity We Seek that priority is expressed in urgent terms: Clearly, steps must be taken to clarify misunderstandings, resolve genuine disagreements, and move toward shared Eucharists. We Roman Catholic and Presbyterian-Reformed Christians profess in faith that the Eucharist is the sacramental meal which Christ has given to his disciples.

It is the great thanksgiving to the Father for all that he has done in creation and redemption, for all that he does today in the Church and the world, and for all that he will accomplish in the consummation of his reign. In the Eucharist the Church celebrates the unrepeatable sacrifice of Christ and shares in its saving power. Christ himself, with all he accomplished for us and all creation, is present in this memorial, which is also a foretaste of his coming reign.

This memorial, in which Christ acts upon his Church through its joyful celebration, implies this presence and anticipation.

As the Church carries out this memorial of the suffering, death and exaltation of Christ, our high priest and intercessor, we receive from the Father the fruits of the unique and perfect sacrifice of his Son and beg the Father to apply its saving power to every human being. Thus, united with our Lord who offers himself to the Father, and in union with the universal Church in heaven and on earth, we renew and offer ourselves in a living and holy sacrifice, which we must express also in our daily lives.

The Reformed and Roman Catholics are convinced of the centrality of this common christological confession. The specific mode of Christ's real presence in the Eucharist is thus to be interpreted as the presence of the Son who is both consubstantial with us in our human and bodily existence while being eternally consubstantial with the Father and the Holy Spirit in the Godhead Jn By the taking of the bread and the cup the Church celebrates this life offering of the Lord and participates therein.

The international text explores our common faith in the mission dimension of the Eucharist, and urges theological work to resolve differences, so better to serve this evangelical imperative: We also believe that the way is clearly opening out before us on which remaining misunderstandings and disagreements about the Lord's Supper can be cleared up. The terminology which arose in an earlier polemical context is not adequate for taking account of the extent of common theological understanding which exists in our respective churches. Thus we gratefully acknowledge that both traditions, Reformed and Roman Catholic, hold to the belief in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist; and both hold at least that the Eucharist is, among other things: Lines of Investigation Our dialogue has convinced us of the urgent need to pursue the following questions: Study of these questions should take into account: The sixth round of the US dialogue has expanded on the pastoral issues that are raised in interchurch families.

In that context, joyful notice was taken of particular special circumstances in which Eucharistic sharing is possible: The Catholic Church allows its ministers to occasionally give Communion to members of other churches who hold a Eucharistic doctrine that is consonant with Catholic teaching.

This is done on special occasions, such as the marriage of two persons of different Churches and funerals when spiritual need can be most profound. It can also be done in unusual situations when, for a period of time, Christians of other churches have no ready access to Eucharistic services in their own congregations and their desire for the Eucharist cannot be satisfied. Catholics, however, may not receive Communion in Reformed Churches for any of these reasons.

In this way we hope to offer some help, guidance, and encouragement to those in this situation. It is one of the confessional documents held in common by all of the Reformed Churches that are part of the US consultation, though in some instances the accepted text varies slightly. After the Council of Trent, A question was added to this catechism, making a negative judgment on the Catholic Mass: After two intense and yet productive dialogues between the theologians of the two churches, the Christian Reformed Church team has reported that a change in HC 80 description is necessary.

The study has been recognized by the Catholic bishops as an accurate understanding of Catholic faith and practice. If the bishops of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States and Canada endorse the above report as an accurate presentation of official Roman Catholic teaching regarding the sacrament of the Eucharist, that will have significant implications on whether, and how, the Heidelberg Catechism ought to be modified.

The sections in parentheses were added for the first time in the third edition. A report entitled Presbyterian Church U. It says, in part: Condemnations and derogatory characterizations of the Catholic Church grew from momentous doctrinal disputes, especially in the areas of ecclesiology and the sacraments. Real differences in doctrine remain. These differences are being explored, and agreement sought, in the ongoing series of national and international Reformed-Catholic dialogues.

The issue before the church now is far narrower in scope, dealing only with the Presbyterian Church U. Specific statements in 16th and 17th century confessions and catechisms in The Book of Confessions contain condemnations or derogatory characterizations of the Catholic Church: While these statements emerged from substantial doctrinal disputes, they reflect 16th and 17th century polemics.

Their condemnations and characterizations of the Catholic Church are not the position of the Presbyterian Church U. However, they do differ in regard to the role of the lay faithful in the governance of the Church. At every level of Reformed church life there are collegial bodies that incorporate both the lay and ordained in the oversight of the church. Catholics do not incorporate the lay faithful in the canonical governance structures of the church, though there are a wide variety of consultative bodies and ministries open to all the baptized.

The agreement is most clearly attested in the international dialogue: The extension of Christ's ministry, including his priestly office, belongs to all members of his body cf. Each member contributes to that total ministry in a different fashion; there is a distribution of diverse gifts cf. This calling to the priesthood of all those who share in the body of Christ by baptism does not mean that there are no particular functions which are proper to the special ministry within the body of Christ. This text, Laity in the Church and in the World , is designed for congregational study and is oriented for empowering the laity for ecumenical ministry together.

It sets out the common theology, articulates the differences of perspective on the authority of the laity in the Church and talks about the unique and essential role of the laity in building bridges both between the divided churches and between the Church and the world. It is as important as the technical theological task of clearing away the divisions of centuries, or the serious institutional task of reforming church structure and practice.

The central issue is the understanding of apostolic succession in ordained ministry, which for Catholics entails ordination by bishops who themselves have been ordained in the succession of bishops. These differences and convergences were explored by US rounds one, two, and six. Churches that have not kept the Episcopal order are not seen as in full conformity with apostolic tradition. The international dialogue has enabled a helpful clarification of some of the issues to be resolved: The whole Church is apostolic.

To be an apostle means to be sent, to have a particular mission… The mission of the Holy Spirit belongs to the constitution of the Church and her ministry, not merely to their effective functioning… This power manifests itself in a variety of ways which are charismata - gracious gifts of the one Spirit cf. Guided by and instrumental to the work of God in this world, the Church has a charismatic character… Within apostolicity in general there is a special ministry to which the administration of Word and Sacrament is entrusted… Ordination, or setting apart for the exercise of these special services, takes place within the context of the believing community… This is important to underline because we need to go beyond an understanding of ordination which suggests that those consecrated to the special ministry are given a potestas and derive a dignity from Christ without reference to the believing community.

There is a difference in the way each tradition approaches the question of how far and in what way the existence of the community of believers and its union with Christ and especially the celebration of the Eucharist necessitates an ordained office bearer in the Church… When it comes to the relations between ministry and sacrament, the Roman Catholics find that the Reformed minimize the extent to which God, in his plan for salvation, has bound himself to the Church, the ministry and the sacraments.

The Reformed find that too often Roman Catholic theology minimizes the way the Church, the ministry and the sacraments remain bound to the freedom and the grace of the Holy Spirit. This [episcopal] pattern of leadership developed from some New Testament forms, while other even earlier New Testament forms did not develop. The spread and theological interpretation of ecclesial leadership in the immediate post New Testament period must be seen against the background of the wider development of the early Church and its articulation of the faith see I Clem , especially 42, , 4; 44, ; Ignatius of Antioch, Eph 2, ; Magn 2; Hippolytus, Apost.

In the course of history some of the functions of such leaders underwent change; even so the ministry of bishops, presbyters and deacons became in the ancient Church the universal pattern of church leadership. Reformed and Catholics affirm, however, the unique role of the minister of Word and Sacrament, the transmission of orders by the Church through the laying on of hands and prayer to the Holy Spirit.

These ministers have a teaching office. We agree that the basic structure of the Church and its ministry is collegial. When one is consecrated to the special ministry, one accepts the discipline of being introduced into a collegial function which includes being subject to others in the Lord and drawing on the comfort and admonition of fellow ministers. This "collegiality" is expressed on the Reformed side by the synodical polity, and, on the Roman Catholic side, by the episcopal college, the understanding of which is in process of further development.

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In the Reformed polity, the synod functions as a corporate episcopacy, exercising oversight of pastors and congregations. The communion in Christ and the Spirit celebrated in Baptism runs deeper than the problems aroused by teaching on the Church and the practice of ministry. Common Pastoral Challenges A. Our ethical common calling 1 Human Rights The US dialogue has done pioneering work by taking up some of the most divisive ethical issues.

The Reformed and Catholic traditions both have very well developed theological approaches to the teaching of ethics and to the formation of conscience in congregations. Likewise, both traditions treat not only of personal morality, but also of public morality and social justice: The agreement states that there is both a personal and social dimension to human rights, and therefore a responsibility of Christians to be active in societal change. The dialogue faces the difficult question of moral resistance without offering a simple solution: The abortion question was addressed head on within the communion of faith and ethical conviction that characterizes both churches.

This text is still a major resource available to local communities as they confront this difficult issue in charity and truth. We believe that our defining traditions have much to contribute through dialogue towards the clarification of principles and the exercise of charity in this matter… Abortion decisions exist in a milieu of closely related social evils which 'limit peoples' choices.

Social, educational, and economical inequities suffered by women are part of the problem. Any discussion of abortion in our times should proceed with a recognition of the pervasive bias of cultural and ecclesial traditions which devalue women… If our churches are to be credible in addressing abortion, they must take the lead in accepting women as full and contributing members of the human and ecclesial communities… Some of the basic principles on which the Consultation was able to reach agreement include the following: Some of the areas in which substantial differences were discovered and which call for further dialogue between our two traditions including the following 1.

In the light of our common Christian heritage… We will always respect the personal dignity of those involved in making decisions about abortion. Regardless of the ultimate decision reached, we will offer pastoral support insofar as our personal conscience and moral convictions allow. We will not resort to stereotypes and abusive language. We will work to transform societal arrangements which press people into untenable moral dilemmas. We will attempt to create compassionate community which overcomes alienation, loneliness, and rejection and which makes real a genuine community of moral discourse and decision.

We will take responsibility as part of the mission of the church to create an ethos which values all life and which works toward a society where abortion need not occur. Catholics on the other hand, while being supportive of the public schools, most Catholics sending their own children to them, have also advocated for the freedom of parents to chose the educational environment for their children with whatever support from society that is provided for other parents. The dialogue develops the history of education in the United States and different Catholic and Reformed approaches to and participation in that history.

The dialogue outlines many areas of common concern in public education — values education, approaches to sex education, concern for the poor and the objective teaching of religion as an academic subject in the public schools. The dialogue coming as it did toward the end of the Cold War , concentrated on the pastoral teaching, during that period, on nuclear war, the criteria for just war in the modern context, and the role of the Church in witness to the state.

In that period as in subsequent generations, it seems that Catholic and Reformed church leaders shared more in common in the witness of the Gospel toward peace in society than they may have with the voting faithful of their churches in the United States. The dialogue ends by outlining some of the stress that burdens the churches in their common witness to the society relative to peace and to education.

Our concern for interchurch families Round six of the U.

Journey in Faith: Forty Years of Reformed-Catholic Dialogue:

Because the purpose was to assist these families, their pastors and congregations, the dialogue was quite comprehensive in touching on many aspects of the relationships between Catholic and Reformed Churches. The results of their discussion are published under the title Interchurch Families: Resources for Ecumenical Hope. Some of the matters covered there have been dealt with in the sections above on the Eucharist and Baptism.

As with several recent topics in this series of Reformed-Catholic dialogues, round seven focused as much on pastoral as on our theological and disciplinary convergences and differences. In discussing Baptism, Eucharist, marriage and church affiliation, case studies are used in conjunction with doctrinal and disciplinary presentations. They are intended to make the treatment more concrete and to allow readers to see the issues at stake by having them reflect on specific experiences.

Whatever differences there are between us are magnified in the experiences of these families; our agreements and similarities are joyfully embraced as gifts of the Holy Spirit upon their spiritual journey. Such a union obliges the partners, their families, and their communities to consider together what is held in common regarding marriage, family life, and church practice, as well as points of difference. Those who obey the prompting of the Spirit of truth are already on the way of salvation.

But the Church , to whom this truth has been entrusted , must go out to meet their desire , so as to bring them the truth. Because she believes in God 's universal plan of salvation , the Church must be missionary. It begins with the proclamation of the Gospel to peoples and groups who do not yet believe in Christ , continues with the establishment of Christian communities that are "a sign of God 's presence in the world ," and leads to the foundation of local churches. Furthermore , the Church herself finds it more difficult to express in actual life her full catholicity in all its aspects.

You are the eternal Shepherd. Through the apostles you watch over us and protect us always. You made them shepherds of the flock. From the beginning of his ministry , he " called to him those whom he desired ; In them, Christ continues his own mission: As "the Son can do nothing of his own accord ," but receives everything from the Father who sent him, so those whom Jesus sends can do nothing apart from him, from whom they received both the mandate for their mission and the power to carry it out.

Christ 's apostles knew that they were called by God as " ministers of a new covenant ," " servants of God ," " ambassadors for Christ ," " servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. But their office also has a permanent aspect.

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Christ promised to remain with them always. The bishops - successors of the apostles. They accordingly designated such men and then made the ruling that likewise on their death other proven men should take over their ministry. Peter and the other apostles , in communion of faith and life with her origin: All members of the Church share in this mission , though in various ways.

But charity , drawn from the Eucharist above all, is always "as it were, the soul of the whole apostolate. Then all those he has redeemed and made " holy and blameless before him in love ," will be gathered together as the one People of God , the " Bride of the Lamb ," "the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God , having the glory of God.

Since she still includes sinners , she is "the sinless one made up of sinners. She bears in herself and administers the totality of the means of salvation. She is sent out to all peoples. She speaks to all men.

The Ecumenical Christian Dialogues and the Catechism of the Catholic Church

She encompasses all times. She is " missionary of her very nature " AG 2. Know the Creeds and Councils. The Everything Guide to Catholicism. Living on the Border of the Holy. A Brief History of Christian Worship. Doors to the Sacred. A Textbook of Catholic Theology. The Mosaic of Christian Belief. The Great Tradition of Christian Thinking. Introduction to Christian Theology. What, Then, Is Liturgy? Augustine on the Christian Life. The Story of Christian Theology. This is Our Faith. Catechism of the Catholic Church. Reading the Early Church Fathers: From the Didache to Nicaea.

Daily Readings from Love Your Life. Three Views on Eastern Orthodoxy and Evangelicalism. Augustine and the Jews. Theology of the Body: