Papal statements misunderstood, says Toronto archbishop

By Jim Coggins

THE ROMAN Catholic Archbishop of Toronto has expressed concern that his church is getting a lot of negative press because of recent pronouncements issued by the hierarchy in Rome.

Controversy erupted over two key issues: the perception that the church is specifically targeting Jews for conversion; and that the Vatican is making unwarranted claims to being the only 'true church.'

Archbishop Thomas Collins told CC.com he was concerned that, in letters to the editor and on talk shows, Catholic leaders "are being portrayed as narrow-minded, arrogant, and intolerant." He suggested this was an ironic result for statements that were intended to be conciliatory and clarifying.

The Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the central Roman Catholic body for doctrinal issues, released a document June 29 titled 'Responses to Some Questions regarding Certain Aspects of the Doctrine of Church.'

The document was intended to guide Catholic theologians in their teaching on the church. However, because it was posted on the internet, it was read by others -- and then discussed broadly in the media, Collins said, "mostly by people who haven't read it."

Collins stressed the statement did not change in any way Catholic doctrine on the church, but was merely intended to clarify the Lumen Gentium document issued by the Church during Vatican II in 1964. The statement also echoed a similar document, Dominus Iesus, that was issued by the Vatican in 2000 under the auspices of then-Cardinal John Ratzinger -- who went on to become the current Pope.

A key passage in the old document is Chapter I, section 8, which states that "the one Church of Christ . . . subsists in the Catholic Church." According to the new clarifying statement, this means only the Roman church contains "all the elements that Christ himself instituted."

Collins said the Catholic Church incorporates many elements: scripture, the sacraments, apostolic succession, and the role of the Pope. Collins considers all these elements "gifts that come from Jesus Christ Himself."

The clarifying statement went on to describe Eastern Orthodox churches as "separated churches" -- since they have all the elements, accept for the role of the Pope.

The statement further said other Christian denominations, such as Protestants and evangelicals, are "communities" -- but not churches, because they lack many elements, such as "apostolic succession" (the understanding that Roman Catholic bishops and priests can trace their ordinations back in unbroken succession to church leaders who were ordained by Christ's first apostles) and therefore the proper administration of all the sacraments.

Collins said this has led people to think the Roman Catholic Church is saying only Catholics are Christians. However, the clarification stated these other denominations contain "numerous elements of sanctification and of truth" and therefore have been used by the Spirit of Christ as "instruments of salvation."

"We absolutely believe that anyone who has been baptized is a Christian," Collins said, but he added that this does not mean Roman Catholics are willing to discard those elements of the church not shared by other Christians -- because then "we would be dropping something essential in Christ."

Collins said others are free to define the church their way, but "we are trying to clarify what we mean by church." Catholics can have discussions, pray, and work with other Christians, even if they disagree, he said -- as long as they are clear on where they disagree.

For instance, he said, evangelicals strongly disagree with Catholics on issues such as the definition of the church and the role of the Pope, but evangelicals are very clear about where they stand. This means Catholics can work together with evangelicals on other issues where they take a clear stand that agrees with the Catholic position, such as the right to life and marriage. In fact, he said, it might be easier to work with evangelicals than with some other Christian groups which are less clear about what they believe.

Bruce Clemenger, president of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada, said he essentially agreed with Collins' approach. The Vatican's clarifying statement "came as no surprise," he said, since it is simply "a re-articulation . . . of the Vatican's view of the uniqueness and place of the Roman Catholic Church" -- which "remains a significant point of disagreement" between Catholics and evangelicals.

Clemenger further maintained the clarifying statement "will have no impact on the relationship between the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada and the Catholic Church in Canada. We will continue to look for opportunities where we can cooperate with integrity, as we did on the Declaration on Marriage, and we will continue to welcome conversations to clarify areas of agreement and disagreement."

CC.com attempted to contact the Canadian Council of Churches, of which the Canadian Roman Catholic Church is a member, but no one was available to comment on the issue. However, the World Council of Churches issued an implicitly critical statement, which said:

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Pope Benedict

"Each church is the Church catholic and not simply a part of it. Each church is the Church catholic, but not the whole of it. Each church fulfils its catholicity when it is in communion with the other churches . . . the WCC affirms the importance of genuine ecumenical dialogue, and of common Christian witness on the problems facing the world today."

About a week after the Vatican released the first controversial document, the Pope issued a 'motu proprio' or official statement permitting Catholic churches to use an older version of the Tridentine missal, which prescribes formal prayers and readings for Roman Catholic worship, which is centred around the 'eucharist' or 'Lord's supper.'

The Tridentine missal, established in 1572 but revised seven times since then, was usually presented in Latin. Rather than revise this missal again, Vatican II produced a significantly altered version in 1970, normally presented in the local language.

The change angered traditionalists, and some 600,000 of them left the Roman Catholic Church, many of them joining a group called the Society of Saint Pius X.

In a July 7 statement explaining the decision to allow more use of the older mass, Pope Benedict XVI referred to the hope that the change would help the traditionalists to "recover full unity" with the Roman Catholic Church.

Benedict said he was trying to avoid the mistakes of the past when "not enough was done by the Church's leaders to maintain or regain reconciliation and unity," thus allowing disagreements to harden into permanent divisions. Collins said the Pope was apparently thinking of divisions such as the Protestant Reformation, when Lutherans, Anglicans and others broke with Rome.

Ironically, the Pope's gesture has frustrated some other Catholics, who fear a return to traditionalism.

It has also angered some Jewish groups, since a Good Friday prayer in the old missal calls for the conversion of Jews. Rabbi Reuven Bulka, co-president of the Canadian Jewish Congress, told Reuters it was a massive step backwards.

The 1962 version of the old missal does not include an offensive reference to "perfidious Jews," which was in earlier versions of the Tridentine missal. The term is a translation of the Latin term "perfideles", meaning "half-faithful", which distinguishes Jews from "faithful" Christians and "unfaithful" non-believers.

However, the 1962 version does include a prayer for conversion: "Let us pray also for the Jews that the Lord our God may take the veil from their hearts and that they also may acknowledge our Lord Jesus Christ . . . Hear the prayers which we offer for the blindness of that people so that they may acknowledge the light of your truth, which is Christ, and be delivered from their darkness."

The 1970 missal is more conciliatory, but still calls for conversion: "Let us pray for the Jewish people, the first to hear the word of God, that they may continue to grow in the love of his name and in faithfulness to his covenant . . . Listen to your church as we pray that the people you first made your own may arrive at the fullness of redemption."

Columnist Michael Coren observed in the National Post that there is nothing wrong with seeking to convert people: "Any serious Catholic believes that happiness and eternal life are to be found within the Catholic Church. To refuse to pray that other people will find their way into such a place would be positively selfish and cruel."

Archbishop Collins said it is understandable for Jews to feel offended, given the terrible history of persecution and forced conversion of Jews. He said the older terminology was not good but he contended that the command of Jesus to seek to baptize "all nations" was still valid. "We want all people to come to the Lord," he said.

Collins further said the whole question is really a non-issue, since the old missal is unlikely to be used on Good Friday. On that day, priests would be expected to offer an ordinary service, not an alternative one. Pope Benedict's decree, said Collins, also calls for some prayers and readings from the old missal to be replaced by prayers and readings from the new missal -- and the Good Friday prayer would surely be one of them.

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Restoration
Ignorance of, or indifference to, religious motivations in much human behaviour, is something that can hurt you. It leaves one blind, uncomprehending, and powerless in an immense field of potential good and evil. It may even leave one blind towards one's own motivations, which are often not as plain as first appears. And it is from the same insensitivity, even insensibility, that we might overlook the importance of the Pope's Motu Proprio last week, removing some obstacles to the celebration of the old Catholic Mass.
David Warren, Ottawa Citizen, July 15

July 19/2007