With the publication of the document “Mary: grace and hope in Christ”, dialogue between the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church has reached a “significant milestone”. So said the Rev. Gregory Cameron, director of Ecumenical Affairs of the Anglican Communion in a report presented last month (but only made known in recent days) to the Anglican primates on the state of relations with Rome. The document on Mary was drafted by ARCIC (the commission that brings together representatives of the two churches) and is an important agreement on the theological and devotional understanding of Mary in the Christian faith. It will be published in the first half of next year and accompanied by two comments by the Anglican and Catholic sides. The publication of the document concludes the second phase of the work of ARCIC, which will now continue its deliberations by examining other issues on the agenda of dialogue between the two churches. The archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, and Pope John Paul II are expected to pronounce on the choice of these issues.
