WORKING FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY

WORKING FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY

Ecumenism or the Ecumenical Movement is made up of the initiatives and the activities, planned and undertaken, according to the various needs of the Church and as opportunities offer, to promote Christian unity. Broader and more fundamental is Ecumenicity that is the Church’s radical catholicity or universality that keeps it open to all men of all faith persuasions. This is the Church’s communitarian expression of the universal saving will of God.
Basic Mentality and Extent of Ecumenism
 “Concern for restoring unity pertains to the whole Church, faithful and clergy alike. It extends to everyone according to the potential of each, whether it be exercised in daily Christian living or in theological and historical studies” (UR 5). “In ecumenical work, Catholics must assuredly be concerned for their separated brethren, praying for them, keeping them informed about the Church, making the first approaches towards them” (ibid. 4). “There can be no ecumenism worthy of the name without a change of heart. For it is from newness of attitude (Eph 4, 23), from self-denial and unstinted love, that yearnings for unity take their rise and grow towards maturity. This change of heart and holiness of life, along with public and private prayer for the unity of the Christians, should be regarded as the soul of the whole of the ecumenical movement” (ibid. 8).
The Goal of Ecumenism
Ecumenical action will promote truth and justice, concord and collaboration, as well as the spirit of brotherly love and unity. In this way, when the obstacles to perfect ecclesiastical community have been gradually overcome, all Christians will at last, in a common celebration of the Eucharist, be gathered into the one and only Church which Christ bestowed on his Church from the beginning.

Basic Guidelines for Ecumenical Activities

 As a basis for ecumenical activities and for participation in them, it must be remembered that every renewal of the Church is essentially grounded in an increase of fidelity to her own calling. The Church, as an institution for men, is always in need of reformation. According to various times and circumstances, deficiencies in moral conduct, church discipline and even the formulation of doctrine, can and should be set aright at the opportune moment. Church renewal, therefore, has notable ecumenical importance. Hence, to be faithful to the demands of the ecumenical apostolate the priest must exhibit a sympathetic interest towards various facets of the renewal of ecclesiastical life, viz., the biblical and liturgical movements, the preaching of the word of God, catechetics, and apostolate of the laity, new forms of religious life, the mission of married life, and the Church’s social teaching and activity. The renewal of the liturgy holds great promise for participation in the ecumenical movement and for prayer in common. In the various ecumenical activities the faithful should refrain from superficiality and imprudent zeal, which only serve to hinder real progress towards unity. Ecumenical action must be faithful to the truth and in harmony with the faith that the Church has always professed. There can, therefore, be no diluting of Catholic tenets if such action is truly to be directed towards the attainment of unity.
Sharing in Worship is of two kinds: common spiritual activities (“communicatio in spiritualibus”) and liturgical worship (“communicatio in sacris”).
“Communicatio in spiritualibus” is a broad term standing for the sharing in spiritual activities and resources, viz., common prayer, common use of sacred places for prayer assemblies and liturgy.
The stricter term, “communicatio in sacris”, expresses the participation in the liturgical worship or in the sacraments of another Church or ecclesial community. By liturgical worship is meant the official worship carried out according to the approved texts, prescriptions or customs of a church or community, celebrated by a minister or delegate of such a church or community in his capacity as a minister of that community. Anything else is “communicatio in spiritualibus”.
One example of the latter is prayer in common in which members and even ministers of different communities take an active part. For Catholics, this kind of participation is committed to the guidance and encouragement of the local ordinary. The particular concern of common prayer should be the restoration of Christian unity, centring, for example, on the mystery of the Church. The occasion could be some common interest such as the call for peace, projects for social justice, mutual charity, ministry of the family, occurrences of disaster, national festivals, and thanksgiving. The service could take the form of readings, prayers, hymns, exhortations, meditations, witnessing to faith in Christ, etc. The place of the service should be acceptable to all participants. This may be the church premise of one or other community, as with the Eastern brethren. With Protestants and Anglicans, any place that is acceptable.

Liturgical Worship

 With the Oriental Churches: since these Churches possess true sacraments, apostolic succession, the priesthood and the Eucharist, some worship in common is not only possible but also advisable, granted proper circumstances and the approval of the ecclesiastical authority. Catholics are allowed to participate in the Eucharistic liturgy of the Oriental Churches for reasons of public office, blood relationships, friendship, desire to be better informed, etc. They can take part in the common responses, hymns and actions. Sunday obligation is thus fulfilled. It is a good thing (though no obligation) for Catholics who are hindered from attending Sunday Mass in their own church to go to the Oriental Church.
Eastern Christians, who are separated in good faith from the Catholic Church, if they ask of their own accord and have the right dispositions, may be granted the sacraments of Eucharist, Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick. If circumstances make it materially or morally impossible to receive the sacraments of Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick, there is just cause for sharing in these sacraments. In these cases Catholics must observe the discipline of the Eastern Churches as far as they can.
It is particularly opportune that Catholic authorities not extend permission to share in the sacraments of separated Orientals on a regular basis until satisfactory consultations with Oriental authorities have been completed, at least on the local level.
A sacramental sign not only points to an underlying reality, but actually produces it. The Eucharist is one such (in fact, preeminent) sign, one of the realities of which is unity. Concelebrating the Eucharist with the Eastern Churches will help bring about that longed for unity, even though at the moment it indicates an incomplete one. There is no reason why Eucharistic concelebration with the Eastern Churches cannot take place on certain occasions. The practical details of the rites and ceremonies can be worked out for each occasion. A Catholic may read lessons at an Oriental liturgical service if invited to do so. Similarly, a separated Oriental Christian may assist at the services in Catholic churches.
An Oriental Christian godparent is permitted at a Catholic baptism for a just cause, like blood relationship or friendship, together with a Catholic godparent. Catholics can similarly be godparents for an Oriental child, but the responsibility of Christian education belongs to the Oriental godparent.
With the permission of the local ordinary, separated Eastern priests and communities are allowed the use of Catholic churches, buildings and cemeteries, and other things necessary for their religious rites, if they ask for them, and have no place in which they can celebrate sacred functions properly and with dignity.
         Since with Protestants and Anglicans the unity of sacramental faith is lacking, there can be no participation in the Eucharist and Reconciliation. On the other hand, since the sacraments are factors of unity and sources of grace, Protestants may be given the Catholic sacraments for adequate reasons and under certain conditions. They are as follows: spiritual necessity, no access to their pastors, spontaneous request, and their faith must reflect the Catholic faith in regard to that sacrament. Outside the cases of necessity, the episcopal conference or local bishop can decide upon regular administration of the sacraments to the Protestants. A Catholic in urgent necessity cannot approach a Protestant minister unless the latter is validly ordained. Catholics may be allowed occasional attendance at the liturgical services of the Protestants and Anglicans if they have reasonable grounds for doing so, e.g. public office, blood relationship, desire to be better informed, an ecumenical gathering, etc. In these instances, Catholics may take part in the common responses, hymns and actins of the community of which they are the guests, so long as they are not at variance with Catholic faith. As a rule, a separated brother is not to function as a Scripture reader or to preach or to receive Holy Communion at a Eucharistic celebration of the Catholic Church. The same holds for a Catholic at the Protestant celebration of the Lord’s Supper or the principal liturgical service of the Word. At other services, including liturgical ones, Baptism, for instance, it is permissible for both to exercise some function that is usually exercised by lay folk attending the service.
 Since a godparent is a representative of the community of faith and stands as a sponsor for the faith of the candidate, it is not permitted for a Protestant or Anglican to be godparent at a Catholic baptism, nor a Catholic at a Protestant baptism. But for reasons of blood ties or friendship, a Christian of another community, since he has faith in Christ, can be a godparent as a Christian witness of the baptism. However, he must be accompanied by a Catholic godparent. A Catholic can do the same in comparable circumstances, but the responsibility of education is not his. These difficulties and restrictions should not cause any bitterness. Rather, they should act as incentives for working more perseveringly for Christian unity.
 Separated brethren of all denominations may act as official witnesses at a Catholic marriage. Catholics may fulfil these functions at a valid marriage properly celebrated between separated brethren.
 The authorities of Catholic schools and institutions should take care to offer to ministers of other communities every facility for giving spiritual and sacramental ministrations to their communicants who attend Catholic institutions. In hospitals and similar institutions conducted by Catholics the authorities should promptly advise ministers of their communions of the presence of their communicants and afford them every facility for visiting the sick and giving them spiritual and sacramental ministrations.
 For a complete and adequate understanding of the principles of the ecumenical movement, the pastor and layman should be familiar with the following documents:
1. Vatican II, Constitution on the Church, “Lumen Gentium,” 21 Nov. 1964.
2. Vatican II, Decree on Ecumenism, “Unitatis Redintergratio”, 21 Nov. 1264.
3. Vatican II, Decree on the Oriental Catholic Churches, “Orientalium Ecclesiarum”,
4. 21 Nov. 1964.
5. Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity, Directory for the Application of Vatican II Decisions in Ecumenical Matters, Part I, “Ad Totam Ecclesiam”, 14 May 1967.
6. Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity, Directory for the Application of Vatican II Decisions in Ecumenical Matters, Part II, “Spiritus Domini”, 16 April 1970.
7. Pope John Paul II, “Ut Unum Sint” 1996.
8. Commission for Ecumenism and Dialogue, CBCI, Jubilee Year 2000, “Guidelines for Ecumenism.”
9. Diocesan Guidelines for Ecumenism promulgated by various local ordinaries.