ECUMENISM
Anglicans: defence of the Osservatore Romano”Once again a decision by Benedict XVI is depicted in an exaggerated and prejudiced way, and especially one that is very far removed from the truth”: that’s the comment of the editor of the Vatican newspaper, the Osservatore Romano, Gian Maria Vian, on an article by Hans Küng, the Swiss theologian, published by the Guardian in the UK and La Repubblica in Italy with the significant title “The Vatican thirst for power divides Christianity and damages Catholicism”. The article is dedicated to the recent Apostolic Constitution that opens the door to full communion with the Catholic Church for those Anglicans that have long been asking for it. Benedict XVI – points out Vian in his article – “wished to meet [Küng] in friendship” in 2005, only five months after his election, despite the fact that Küng was no longer considered a Catholic theologian by the Holy See. Since then, on several occasions, Küng, “infallibly quoted by influential media, has returned to criticise Benedict XVI with harshness and without foundation”. As he does now, “with regard to the Holy See’s announcement, a truly historic one, on the forthcoming constitution of canonical structures that will allow many Anglicans to enter into communion with the Catholic Church”. It’s a gesture “aimed at re-establishing unity”, but that “is distorted and misrepresented as if it were a cunning machination of power politics to be interpreted in a political key, naturally of the far right”. Vian calls Küng’s article “a representation as black as it is unfounded of the Catholic Church and of Benedict XVI”, expressing “bitterness” about this “further gratuitous attack on the Church of Rome and her undeniable ecumenical commitment”.Orthodox: a dialogue of small stepsThe dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox is going ahead. That is the result of the eleventh meeting of the International Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, held in recent days in Cyprus on the crucial issue of the role of the Bishop of Rome. Cardinal Walter Kasper, President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity and co-chairman of the Commission, regards the dialogue undertaken with some hope. In an interview with Vatican Radio, he said: “In Cyprus we were given a really very warm reception, both by the Archbishop of Cyprus and by the Archbishop of Paphos, where St. Paul preached the Gospel; the relations between the Catholic and Orthodox members of the Commission were also very good, friendly and serene. We discussed a question that is very, very complex, and that has had an emotional charge for many centuries: the role of the Bishop of Rome in the universal communion of the Church of the first millennium. We took some small steps forward in the right direction. Yes, precisely because it’s a delicate question, the steps taken are small and slow. What’s important, however, is that – in spite of the contrary views expressed by some exponents, especially of the Church of Greece – all the Orthodox representatives were determined to continue the dialogue. So we’ll meet again in Vienna next year”.Germany: a woman at the head of the EvangelicalsThe Most Rev. Robert Zollitsch, President of the (Catholic) German Bishops’ Conference (DBK), has sent a message to congratulate the Protestant Bishop Margot Käßmann on her election as head of the Council of the German Evangelical Church (EKD) on 27 October, with 132 votes out of 141. “I am glad about the great confidence expressed by the Synod with this decision”, said Zollitsch, adding that “the Council can be certain that under her direction, the service of the Church will be performed in a faithful, caring, intelligent and competent way over the next six years”. “Let us continue together to develop our ecumenical ties”, continued Bishop Zollitsch, who mentions the “many challenges” that “await us as Christians in a pluralist society”. The President of the DBK invited Käßmann to continue, as in the past, to work for the future of ecumenism”, emphasizing that “it’s important to examine not only what has not yet been achieved, but especially the points in common we have already gained”. Mgr. Zollitsch said he was convinced of the continuation of the ecumenical process also under the newly elected EKD chairperson, because “our path as Christians is a path of ecumenism. It’s a path we travel together” and “that’s what the Christians in Germany expect of us”. It’s the first time in the history of Germany that a woman fills this post. Margot Käßmann, who is 51 years old, is the mother of four children; in 2007, after 26 years of marriage, she divorced from her husband, the Protestant pastor Eckhard Käßmann. “People – she admitted – may fail; for me it has been a very bitter experience”. In assuming her post, she declared she would work for greater social justice. She has repeatedly said that her priority commitment is that of trying to bring back Germans to the Bible. “For me – she said – it’s a tragedy that so many people in our country no longer know the Bible”. It is estimated that over 25 million German citizens are members of the Evangelical Church.
