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BCEIA and SEIA Report COMMITTEE ON ECUMENICAL AND INTERRELIGIOUS AFFAIRS
Members: Bishop Richard Sklba, Chairman, Cardinal William H. Keeler, Archbishop Basil Schott, Bishop Stephen Blaire, Bishop Edward Braxton, Bishop Denis Madden, Bishop William Murphy, Bishop Francis Reiss, Bishop Placido Rodríguez
Consultants: Archbishop Oscar H. Lipscomb, Archbishop Daniel E. Pilarczyk, Bishop Frederick F. Campbell, Bishop Patrick R. Cooney, Bishop John Gaydos, Bishop Howard J. Hubbard, Bishop Edward Kmiec, Bishop Richard J. Sklba, Very Reverend Robert B. Flannery
Staff: Rev. James Massa, Rev. Ronald G. Roberson, CSP, Rev. Francis Tiso, Mr. Samuel Wagner, Mr. Neil Sloan
Christian Churches Together in the USA
The 2008 annual meeting of CCT took place in Baltimore and Washington, DC, from January 8 to 11. The USCCB had a 14-member delegation headed by Cardinal William Keeler that included Bishops Stephen E. Blaire, Tod D. Brown, Nicholas Samra and myself.
At the opening worship service, seven new participants were admitted to CCT: The American Bible Society, the Church of the Brethren, Elim Fellowship, Habitat for Humanity, the Mennonite Church USA, the Polish National Catholic Church, and The Vineyard USA. This brings to 43 the number of CCT participating churches and organizations. During the service Fr Leonid Kishkovsky, the Orthodox President of CCT (each of the five “families” of CCT has a president and the moderator is chosen from among the Presidents), was commissioned as the new CCT Moderator. Rev. Wesley Granberg-Michaelson had served in this role previously. Fr. Kishkovsky is Director of External Affairs and Interchurch Relations for the Orthodox Church in America. Dr. Dick Hamm was also commissioned as Executive Administrator, the only full-time CCT staff person.
Cardinal Keeler’s term as a member of the CCT Steering Committee and Catholic President concluded with this meeting. He announced during the Catholic caucus that he would not be available for another term; his major contribution to the founding and formation of CCT was warmly acknowledged during a plenary session. I am happy to announce that Archbishop Wilton Gregory, the Chairman-Elect of BCEIA, has agreed to serve on the Steering Committee and as the new Catholic President of the organization. The other Catholic members on the Steering Committee are Bishop Stephen E. Blaire, Rev. Ronald G. Roberson, CSP (SEIA staff), and Sr. Ana Maria Pineda, RSM, Professor of Religious Studies at Santa Clara University.
The participants spent the day of January 9 in Washington, DC, where they toured S.O.M.E. (“So Others Might Eat,” a local ministry to the hungry and poor), and heard about the anti-poverty work of several CCT participating organizations, including Bread for the World, Habitat for Humanity, Sojourners, and World Vision. Representatives of Catholic Relief Services were also present, and John Carr, Executive Director of the Department of Justice, Peace and Human Development, gave a presentation on the Catholic perspective on poverty issues. It was decided at this meeting to continue to raise up this issue with the political leadership of the country, but not to engage the presidential candidates because of the potential politicization of CCT’s engagement. A meeting of CCT leadership with the President-Elect after the election is under consideration.
A CCT committee on evangelism continues its work, but it is in a very preliminary stage. Fr. John Hurley, CSP, the former Director of the Secretariat for Evangelization, represents the USCCB on the committee.
Eastern Orthodox Relations
The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation has not met since my last report; its next meeting is scheduled for early June at Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary in Brookline, Massachusetts. There has been a major development, however, in our relations with the Eastern Orthodox Churches at the international level. Meeting last October in Ravenna, Italy, the commission finalized an agreed text entitled, “Ecclesiological and Canonical Consequences of the Sacramental Nature of the Church: Ecclesial Communion, Conciliarity and Authority.” This new document begins to address the role of the Bishop of Rome in the Church by emphasizing the mutual interdependence between primacy and conciliarity in the Church’s life at the diocesan, regional and universal levels. The text affirms that:
1. Primacy at all levels is a practice firmly grounded in the canonical tradition of the Church, and 2. While the fact of primacy at the universal level is accepted by both East and West, there are differences of understanding with regard to the manner in which it is to be exercised, and also with regard to its scriptural and theological foundations.
This is a modest first step, but it remains the first time since the Council of Florence that Catholics and Orthodox have been able to come to a consensus on any aspect of primacy at the universal level.
I will be attending the consecration by H.H. Shenouda III of a new Coptic Orthodox parish church and blessing of the iconostasis here in Milwaukee on February 5, 2008.
I should add that Fr. Paul McPartlan, a professor of theology at the Catholic University of America and a Catholic member of the international commission, now also serves as a member of the North American Theological Consultation, providing a vital link between the two dialogue groups. Oriental Orthodox Relations
This dialogue has not met since my last report. I would like to point out, however, that His Holiness Karekin II, the Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, spent a month in the United States last fall visiting many Armenian Orthodox communities in our country. In a number of instances the Armenians asked the local Catholic bishops and dioceses to organize ecumenical encounters with the Catholicos, including my own Archdiocese of Milwaukee. Overall the visit provided significant opportunities to demonstrate the close relationship that exists between our churches in this country.
Polish National Catholic Relations
Our dialogue with the PNCC has not met since the last meeting of the Administrative Committee; the next session is scheduled to take place in Scranton, Pennsylvania, May 19 and 20. I mentioned in my last report that Bishop Skylstad had written to Cardinal Kasper regarding two incremental steps forward (allowing PNCC faithful to serve as godparents at Catholic baptisms in addition to a Catholic godparent, and requiring the dispensation from canonical form for liceity only when a mixed marriage takes place in a PNCC ceremony). We later learned that these matters should be raised directly with Cardinal William Levada, Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith. We are now consulting with the Committees on Doctrine and Canonical Affairs regarding these steps.
Anglican Relations
As I mentioned in my last report, the Anglican-Roman Catholic dialogue in the United States is being reconstituted in a new format. A planning meeting regarding the next round of the dialogue took place in Washington, DC, on February 12, led by the two new co-chairmen: Bishop Ronald Herzog of Alexandria and Bishop Thomas Breidenthal of the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Ohio. We anticipate that the new commission will meet within a few months’ time, when it will focus on the theme set during the previous round: “A Study of Reception as Related to Moral Teaching about Sexuality.”
Tensions within the Anglican Communion at the international level over human sexuality and other issues continue to cause difficulties. The Episcopal diocese of San Joaquin (central California) has formally left the communion of the Episcopal Church and has been received into the Anglican Province of the Southern Cone, based in Buenos Aires. It is possible that one or two more US dioceses will make a similar move. All this has caused much anguish within the Episcopal Church, but Bishop Christopher Epting, the church’s Ecumenical Officer, reminds us that a sense of perspective is essential: so far only one out of 110 dioceses has aligned itself with another province, and less than 1% of the church’s 7,500 parishes have attempted to leave the Episcopal Church.
Lutheran Relations
The U.S. Lutheran-Roman Catholic Dialogue in Round XI met October 11-14 at Saint Paul’s College in Washington, D.C. for its fifth meeting to discuss "The Hope of Eternal Life." My co-chair in this Dialogue, Reverend Dr. Lowell G. Almen, ELCA secretary, and I are pleased that the current round is moving toward an agreed statement that will indicate convergences in Catholic and Lutheran understandings of eternal life, against the backdrop of the historic Joint Declaration on Justification (1999). The papers delivered and the discussions held during this current round have been of exceptional quality. Topics covered at the Washington gathering included Lutheran perspectives on prayers for the dead, the Catholic doctrine of merit, and biblical treatments of judgment, heaven, and hell. The upcoming meeting will be held on April 2-6 in Chicago.
Fr. Massa presented a lecture on “Eucharist in the Theology of Pope Benedict XVI” at the Concordia Theological Seminary Symposium in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The Symposium was sponsored by the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod. Father Massa will also be preaching at the annual Lutheran-Catholic Bishops' Retreat (Region XII), scheduled to meet October 28-29 in Collegeville, Minnesota.
Reformed Christians
The Fall 2007 meeting of the Catholic-Reformed Consultation, co-chaired by Bishop Patrick Cooney for the BCEIA and Rev. Richard Mouw of Fuller Theological Seminary was held at UCC headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio, October 1 to October 2, 2007. This dialogue places the Catholic Church in the United States in dialogue with four principal Reformed bodies: Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), United Church of Christ, Christian Reformed Church, and the Reformed Church in America.
The round has been adhering to an agreed-upon trajectory to complete work on the common document on Mutual Recognition of Baptism by the end of 2007. Final drafts of the full theological statement were made available on January 18, 2008. The dialogue has now completed the portion of its Prospectus referring to Baptism by producing a statement that treats the theological, historical, and liturgical dimensions of the sacrament. This project is the most substantive study of Baptism between Roman Catholics and Reformed Christians since the Second Vatican Council. The diligent attention to historic confessional statements, liturgical theology, and ecumenical developments is a response to the request of the PCPCU during the 2002 Plenary for more in-depth Baptismal studies and agreements. Solid agreements on Baptism should insure that ecumenical dialogue is grounded in authentic unity in Baptismal belief and practice. The theological chapters now reflect substantial agreement on convergences and divergences in our respective understandings of Baptism, grace, and salvation. A common statement of “tangible mutual recognition of Baptism” was completed by the participants at the recent meeting, based on a critical review of all previous drafts. A set of pastoral recommendations was also completed, using terminology to which all communions can subscribe.
The next step in this round is to begin the dialogue on Eucharist, in accordance with the Prospectus. The form and method for directing preliminary research work on this study of Eucharist are currently being developed in consultation with the staff members of the participating communions. The first plenary meeting on the Eucharist will be on May 4-7, 2008 at St. Paul’s College, Washington, DC. There will be three presentations on the current state of our respective Eucharistic liturgies; a single Catholic presentation surveying recent ecumenical documents on the Eucharist; a single Reformed presentation on confessional literature on the Eucharist; and a Catholic survey of the documents of the magisterium since Vatican II. A smaller working group will gather to edit the papers of the May meeting on October 19-22, 2008. The goal for the seventh round is to complete work by the Fall of 2010.
Evangelical Relations
The fifth annual meeting of the Evangelical-Catholic dialogue took place in October 2007 at St. Paul Seminary (University of St. Thomas). The topic of discussion was “Meaning of Tradition.” Fr. Arthur Kennedy, former SEIA Executive Director and field representative for the dialogue, presented a paper. I am pleased to announce that Bishop John Gaydos has accepted my invitation to be the Catholic co-chair of the dialogue. Mr. Bonn Clayton, of the Conservative Congregations Christian Conference, is the Evangelical co-chair.
Faith and Order Commission
The Faith and Order Commission of the NCCCUSA held its most recent meeting, which concludes the 2004-2007 quadrennium, on October 11- 13, 2007 at Christian Theological Seminary (Disciples of Christ) in Indianapolis. In the 2008-2011 quadrennium, the "Justice and Justification: Beyond the Dichotomies" study group will continue its work, and two new study groups will begin: one on the relationship of ecclesial unity and mission, and another on the international (World Council of Churches) Faith and Order Commission's document, "The Nature and Mission of the Church."
The next meeting will be held on April 3-5 at Morehouse College in Atlanta. Dr. Christopher Ruddy is Field Representative of the SEIA to Faith and Order
Jewish Relations
The fall 2007 meeting of the twice-yearly Consultation between delegates of the National Council of Synagogues and the USCCB was held on November 19, 2007 at St. Mary’s Seminary, Baltimore. Co-chaired by Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore and Rabbi Joel Meyers, Executive Vice President of the International Rabbinical Assembly, the session was devoted addressing the ways in which worship texts of one group treat religious beliefs of others.
Ruth Langer, Ph.D., of Boston College, gave a presentation on how liturgy tells a believing community who it is, often by offering a negative definition of who it is not. She gave examples from a Jewish Morning Prayer service, in particular the so-called malediction of the heretics and the Aleinu prayer which tended to disappear in the 20th century. She indicated that the increasing discomfort with the prayers and their interpretation led to Jewish self-censorship and the Catholic Church's own censorship of these texts in the mid-16th century.
Father Dennis McManus, Ph.D., consultant to the Bishops' Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs and Visiting Professor at Georgetown University, addressed the problem from the Catholic standpoint. He reviewed the July 7, 2007 Motu Proprio of Pope Benedict XVI that widened the use of the Latin Missal of 1962, and gave close attention to a reading of the Good Friday Prayer for the conversion of Jews found in that same Missal. Fr. McManus stated that the Motu Proprio was issued in part to meet the needs of Catholics attached to the rites of 1962, but also to bridge the gap between the Catholic Church and the followers of Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre, who led some Catholics into schism in 1988.
Also discussed was the Fundamental Agreement between the State of Israel and the Vatican. Rabbi Gil Rosenthal indicated that a November 7, 2007 meeting in Rome showed progress toward development of a process by which land disputes between the Church and the government could be settled. According to one current proposal, the Church would be able to bring disputes to a court of arbitration rather than to officials of the Israeli ministries. The government would support Church institutions working in the fields of health, welfare, and education, and exempt Church agencies from federal and municipal taxes, Rabbi Rosenthal said.
Participants also reported on new educational initiatives in the Catholic parochial schools in Pittsburgh, Boston, and Baltimore.
At the meeting Rabbi Joel
Zaiman, co-chair of the Consultation, paid tribute to recently retired
Cardinal William Keeler and presented him with a Torah Yad (pointer) from
Jerusalem. Rabbi Meyers then offered reflections of Cardinal Keeler's years
of service to ecumenical and interreligious dialogue.
The USCCB’s Consultation with the Orthodox Union and the Rabbinical Council of America, our partnership with the Orthodox Jewish community, co-chaired by Bishop William Murphy and Rabbi Fabian Schonfeld, met on October 23rd. At this most recent meeting in New York City the Consultation reviewed and approved a statement on marriage and reflected on issues of anti-Semitic and anti-Christian persecution around the world.
Programs for Bishops
As part of our commitment to informing the Bishops on interreligious relations, particularly between Catholics and Muslims, the BCEIA invited Archbishop Pietro Sambi, the Apostolic Nuncio to the United States, and Dr. Sayyid M. Syeed, National Director of the Islamic Society of North America, to speak at a breakfast for the Bishops gathered for their general meeting in Baltimore on Sunday, November 11, 2007. The topic was: “How do we speak about the other? A Catholic-Muslim Conversation.” Approximately 65 bishops were present, indicating the degree to which the bishops viewed this event as crucial to their interests and mission.
Relations with Muslims
The West Coast Dialogue of Catholics and Muslims was reconstituted at the January 31 to February 2, 2005 meeting, at Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Bishop Carlos Sevilla serves as the Catholic co-chair of this dialogue. Traditions of Qur’ānic and Biblical interpretation are being explored in the current quadrennium of dialogue. The most recent meeting was held on May 21-23, 2007, at the Mary and Joseph Retreat Center in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. The topic was “The Joseph and Yusuf Narratives in Genesis and in the Qur’an”. By discussing the story of Joseph in the Bible and in the Quran, the dialogue group was able to explore the boundaries between Muslim and Catholic views of prophetic figures. Catholics emphasized the fallibility of prophets and their exemplary repentance; only Christ is perfect. Both sides recognized that the Joseph narratives teach perennial values and virtues such as forgiveness, patience, resistance to temptation, skillful use of intelligence to benefit others, and faithfulness to God and family. The next meeting will be held at the Mary and Joseph Retreat Center in Rancho Palos Verdes, California on May 27-28, 2008; our ongoing study of Qur’ānic and Biblical narratives will examine Ibrahim and Abraham.
The Midwest Dialogue met on September 12-13, 2006. Bishop Francis R. Reiss currently serves as co-chair of this dialogue, which was convened this year at the Islamic Center of America, Dearborn, Michigan on October 21-23 to continue a conversation on the challenges of living as faithful Muslims and Catholics in the US. The theme was “The Mission of Muslim-Catholic Dialogue in the USA Today”; speakers addressed issues related to the ethics of dialogue, including the challenge of apostasy and proselytism. Cardinal Adam Maida of Detroit and a group of archdiocesan pastors joined the group at a luncheon on the opening day. The following “Mission Statement” was adopted by the participants:
The next meeting is planned for Northwest Indiana on October 26-28. The topic will be “In the Public Square: Muslims and Catholics on Religious Freedom.”
The Mid Atlantic Muslim-Catholic Dialogue met at Douglaston, Long Island, on April 17-19, 2007. A complete draft of the document on marriage received detailed critique from the Catholic and Muslim participants, enabling the completion of the project under the title: Marriage: Catholic and Sunni Muslim Perspectives. It is due to be published by USCCB Publishing in March, 2008. In subsequent conversations with Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA) leadership, a new direction for this dialogue was established in terms of a “new round”, with an emphasis on religious education in our respective communities. Bishop Dennis Madden, Auxiliary Bishop of Baltimore, will continue to serve as Catholic co-chair of the dialogue. Plans are underway to move this dialogue to other parts of the mid-Atlantic region, with a view to including more professional scholars, as well as pastoral leadership in Washington, Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania. The next meeting is set for April 23-24, 2008 at St. Paul’s College, Washington, DC.
Buddhist Relations
The fifth meeting of our Zen/Ch’an – Catholic Dialogue group in Northern California, the first in a planned second quadrennium, took place on January 24-27, 2007, at the City of Ten Thousand Buddhas, Ukiah, California. The topic was: “Taking Refuge in the Buddha/Abiding in Christ.” Papers on the ritual and spiritual aspects of becoming a Buddhist or a Catholic were presented by four participant scholars. The topics of conversion and of spiritual development for both laity and monastics were among the various items discussed in depth. Another issue that received considerable examination was the way the Buddhist side understands belief in God. I wish to thank Bishop John C. Wester, newly appointed to the Diocese of Salt Lake City, who has recently agreed to continue as co-chair of this dialogue.
The next meeting of this dialogue will take place on January 30- February 2, 2008 at Mercy Center, Burlingame, California. The topic, “Abiding and Refuge: Then What?” includes an examination of the nature of spiritual maturation in both lay and monastic/clerical formation.
Hindu Relations
The annual Vaishnava (Hindu) – Christian dialogue met on April 13-14, 2007, in Potomac, MD to discuss our respective texts and commentaries on theodicy (why evil exists in the world). The Vaishnava tradition is a form of Hindu devotional piety, expressed in a number of sectarian movements and in a rich theological heritage going back to the famous 10th century A.D. theologian, Ramanuja. One of the features of these traditions is their insistent monotheism, based on the worship of the transcendent, personal deity Vishnu.
The gathering this spring followed previous practice and analyzed a Christian text and a Vaishnava text from both Christian and Vaishnava perspectives. Prof. Gerald Carney of Boston College explored Christian theodicy from the Book of Job to liberation theology; Prof. Ravi Gupta of Centre College, Kentucky, explored the notion of perfection and imperfection in God and creation from the Vaishnava perspective. Both sides took note of the expressions of divine love which resolve the tensions, both philosophical and psychological, in any discussion of theodicy. The dialogue will meet again in Potomac on April 18-19, 2008 to explore motivations from within our traditions for undertaking interreligious dialogue. Speakers will be Rev. Clark Lobenstine of the Inter Faith Conference of Metropolitan Washington, DC and Prof. Graham Schweig of Christopher Newport University.
Sikh Relations
A dialogue with the Sikh community in the US provides the USCCB with access to one of the most active and successful South Asian immigrant religious communities. Representatives of the World Sikh Council - America Region (WSC-AR) and BCEIA staff and invited scholars met at the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, Long Island, NY, on October 5-7, 2006 in a retreat format that included a visit to the Sikh Gurdhwara in Oyster Bay, NY. The most recent meeting took place on September 28-30, 2007 at St. Paul’s College, Washington, DC, focusing on our respective teachings on holiness in relation to the nature of the human person. An invited group of Catholic and Sikh young adults participated in the gathering along with the adult members. Throughout the weekend, Catholics and Sikhs shared narratives on the search for holiness. A tour of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception sparked conversation about the unique characteristics of religious faith in the Americas, where immigrants of many religions and cultures have found a home. Both communities found the dialogue beneficial in building trust among the two faiths. Their next retreat is slated for early 2009 on the theme of “The Nature of God: Convergence and Divergence in Our Spiritual Paths.”
Institute for Interreligious Leadership
The dates for the next Institute for Interreligious Leadership were selected by a vote of the Faiths in the World Committee of CADEIO: July 10 (morning) to July 17 (lunch). The location is set for the University of St. Mary of the Lake (Mundelein, Illinois). Fr. Thomas Baima and Fr. Francis Tiso will again be the organizers. The shorter length should make it possible for more diocesan officers to take the workshop. We also hope that other diocesan leadership will be interested in attending, particularly those persons charged with curriculum development, immigration, ethnic ministries, and clergy continuing education. Expert panelists will be invited to address such sensitive topics as Abrahamic trialogues and the situation in the Middle East.
Other News
The SEIA staff has fully engaged the restructuring plan for the Conference adopted at our November 2006 Plenary meeting. While the reduction of full time directors has been reduced to three, the Secretariat now draws on a part time Consultant for Jewish and, to a lesser degree, Muslim and Reformed relations. Father Dennis McManus took up this role on July 1, 2007.
Most Reverend Richard J. Sklba Auxiliary Bishop of Milwaukee Chairman of the BCEIA March 2008
Note: A proposed plan to create a working “advisory group” on interreligious affairs under the guidance of Bishop William Murphy is currently under consideration.
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