CHRISTIAN CHURCHES
France: the death of theologian Olivier ClémentOrthodox theologian Olivier Clément died in Paris on January 15 at 87 years old. The news was given by SOP, “Service Orthodoxe de Presse”, that describes him as “one of the major testimonies of Orthodoxy in the second-half of 20th century Western societies”. Olivier Clément, states the press statement, “displayed his sensitivity before the questions of modernity with powerful and poetic discourse, rooted within Church tradition but creative and innovative at the same time”. Olivier Clement, born in 1921, devoted most of his life to research aimed at promoting the encounter of Eastern and Western Christianity. He was a man of dialogue, and in these capacities he was the interlocutor of a number of contemporary spiritual personalities: from Patriarch Atenagora to Pope John Paul II, to frère Roger, the founder of the ecumenical community of Taizé, to whom he was tied by feelings of friendship and esteem. In 1988 John Paul II tasked him with writing the meditations that were read that same year on Good Friday, during the Via Crucis at the Coliseum. Olivier Clément leaves behind him a large amount of literature including some thirty volumes on theology, Church history and spirituality along with numerous articles. “With him – states a communiqué by the Community of Sant’Egidio of which the theologian was an interlocutor – passes away an important personality of Christianity that passionately conveyed the topical relevance of history, based on the living tradition of Church Fathers within the spiritual realm of Eastern Christianity”.The Holy See: “the quest for ecumenism” continues “Despite occasional tiredness and disappointments, the quest for ecumenism remains a strong point of reference for thought and action within the Catholic Church”, wrote Msgr. Brian Farrell, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, in an article published by ‘L’Osservatore Romano’ devoted to the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity celebrated worldwide January 18-25. The Pontifical Council – he wrote in the article – is currently working on the text of the document entitled in its original English version, “The Harvest Project: Ecumenical consensus and convergence on some fundamental aspects of the Christian faith in the documents of the first four bilateral international dialogues in which the Catholic Church has taken part since the Second Vatican Council”. The “Harvest Project” is still a work in progress. However it can be said that while re-examining the documents that came out of dialogues begun and followed through after the Second Vatican Council – with the World Lutheran Federation, with the World Methodist Council, with the Anglican Communion, and with the World Alliance of Reformed Churches – “the editors were happily surprised at the ‘quality’ of the results put together in these texts. It is the wish of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity that once this is finalized and published, the study can contribute to reinvigorate the dialogues themselves by identifying new ways to confront together the divergences which remain in the relationships among the disciples of Christ”.England: prayer for the unemployedThe “Church of England” posted on its website two new prayers in support of those who lost their jobs and for those who are still working but feel guilty because of the many people who are being fired. According to the “Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development”, not less than 600 thousand people will be fired in Great Britain this year. The “Prayer for the unemployed” helps those who lost or risk losing their jobs to express their anxiety. It includes the verse “Hear me as I cry out in confusion, help me to think clearly, and calm my soul”. The “Prayer for Those Remaining in the Workplace” is focused also on guilt feelings, along with the increased pressure of work caused by increasing unemployment. It says: “Lord Jesus, in the midst of this uncertainty, help me to keep going, to work to the best of my ability, taking each day at a time and taking time each day.” The Anglican Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, Rev. John Packer, President of the “Stewardship Committee” of the Church of England in charge of financial issues, said the prayers are designed to show the church is there for people at all times, especially when they are facing a crisis. “It’s a pastoral initiative”, claimed Bishop Packer. “It’s important not to abandon those who are unemployed, to support those who lost their jobs by providing new ways to pray to God and by being willing to listen”.
