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UTRECHTER UNION DER ALTKATHOLISCHEN
KIRCHEN |
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Press Communiqué The International Roman Catholic – Old Catholic Dialogue Commission (IRAD) came together for their eighth meeting from 14th to 17th October 2007 in Würzburg (D). During this time the Commission continued to work on a consensus paper on the understanding of the Church. This time the discussion focussed on the question of personal, collegial and communal responsibility for the unity of the Church and maintaining it in truth, the primacy of the Pope and the communio-structure of the Church. Existing convergence as well as yet unresolved questions and differences were discussed in detail with a view to the possibility of a differentiated consensus. Furthermore, the commission examined the canonical basis of a possible staggered church communion. In future consultations it is planned to take a closer look at the existing consensus papers between the Roman Catholic and the Old Catholic Church. The IRAD was established in 2003 by the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity in order to take further, on an international level, the work of previous talks, which had been conducted in individual countries. On the Old Catholic side were: Bishop Fritz-René Müller, Berne, as Co-President, Prof. Dr. Urs von Arx, Berne, Prof. Dr. Günter Esser, Bonn, Prof. em. Dr. Jan Visser, Zeist/Netherlands, Prof. Dr. Angela Berlis, Haarlem/Netherlands, and the Revd Martin Eisenbraun, Salzburg; The Roman Catholic Church side comprised: Bishop em. Dr. Paul-Werner Scheele, Würzburg, as Co-President, Suffragan Bishop Johannes Gerardus Maria van Burgsteden Haarlem/Netherlands (not present), Prälat Hubert Bour, Rottenburg/Germany, Prof. Dr. Heinrich J. F. Reinhardt, Bochum, Prof. Dr. Hans Jörg Urban, Paderborn, and Msgr.. Dr. Matthias Türk, Rome. The consultation will continue in spring 2008 in Bern.
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| Msgr.
Matthias Türk Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity |
Lic.
Theol Maja
Weyermann |
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| Communiqué of the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference (IBC) in Wislikofen /CH from 4th to 8th February 2007 Once again ecumenical goals and relations to other churches was an important part of this year’s four day meeting of the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Union of utrecht (IBC). Owing to a variety of developments, the Union of Utrecht finds itself challenged to reflect on its ecumenical role and to develop this further. The Bishops’ Conference commissioned a theologian to formulate an overall vision, which would help to draw together fundamental points of reference into concrete guidelines. In the discussion of the draft the following questions emerged: - How can the ecumenical calling be seen in the light of the history of the Old Catholic Churches and in view of the present church situation? - How best to set priorities in the light of limited resources? - What do we regard as our most important ecumenical task? The Bishops’ Conference will address these questions in detail at its next meeting. Bishop LaPlante, together with an adviser, from the Old Catholic Church of British Columbia, which last year was offered probationary membership of the Union of Utrecht by the IBC, was present. The report on the activities, the piety and practices, and the ensuing discussion about the theological basis of this church raised considerable doubts as to whether a common way was really possible. After intensive internal talks the Bishops’ Conference came to the conclusion that their decision to offer probationary membership to the Old Catholic Church of British Columbia last year needed to be revised. They admitted to Bishop LaPlante that they had made a mistake in their estimation of a common Old Catholic identity and explained that the way to drawing his church into a wider fellowship could not be through the Union of Utrecht. Archbishop Vercammen will now lend his support to seeing whether the Old Catholic Church of British Columbia could now find a home within into the local Anglican Church. As a result of this experience the Bishops’ Conference also came to the conclusion that the existing guidelines for the inclusion of churches in the Union of Utrecht need to be reconsidered. Bishop Klusmeyer, the official representative of ECUSA to the Union of Utrecht, reported on the situation in the Episcopal Church in America, which still finds itself both internally and externally in a very testing situation. The church has increasing problems with African Anglican churches that are erecting parallel church structures in the USA and thereby disrespecting diocesan boundaries. The Bishops’ Conference hopes that a split within the Anglican Communion can be avoided. Such a split would also have negative repercussions for other churches, as it would undermine the credibility of the synodical-epicopal system. Out of a number of talks the idea has emerged to try and create a Communio of independent synodical-espiscopal constituted churches. To begin with the Bishops’ Conference has made some preliminary enquiries as to whether the Philippine Independent Church and the Southern Indian Mar Thoma Church would be open to pursuing this idea. If the responses are positive an initial consultation would be planned for autumn 2007. In the Commission on ‘Catholicity and Globalisation’ theologians from the Old Catholic Church, the Philippine Independent Church and ECUSA have been addressing the question as to the meaning of catholicity in a globalised world? During one week the commission worked on a statement, the text of which can be found under www.utrechter-union-org. The time frame for the commission’s work is set for three years. The international dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church is progressing well and work on a consensus paper is moving forward at a swift pace. By comparison, the Old Catholic – Orthodox conversations have begun to falter. It is hoped that the can offer a fresh impulse to re-start the conversations in the near future. It was felt that the dialogue with the Church of Sweden was as yet too superficial and the commission should be asked to address to the important theological questions of ecclesiology and the understanding of ordained ministry. This year’s in-depth topic was dedicated to spirituality. This largely focussed on an exchange of experiences in the light of developments of recent years and on the search for the important aspects of a possible Old Catholic spirituality. The next meeting of the Bishops’ Conference will take place in the Czech Republic from 24th |
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| Amersfoort
and Berne, 2nd March 2007 |
Maja Weyermann |
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| Catholicity and Globalisation |
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IN THE STEPS OF ST WILLIBRORD : AN ANGLICAN-OLD CATHOLIC EPISCOPAL PILGRIMAGE TO MARK THE 75th ANNIVERSARY OF THE BONN AGREEMENT To mark the 75th anniversary of the Bonn Agreement, which brought into being full communion between the churches of the Anglican Communion and the Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht, bishops in Europe of both churches have been on three days of pilgrimage. Following in the steps of St Willibrord (658-739), who came from England and was the bishop in mission who founded the see of Utrecht, we have walked together to St Willibrord’s burial place at Echternach in Luxembourg. There at the altar over St Willbrord’s
shrine, we celebrated the Eucharist together with clergy and laity from Old Catholic parishes and the Anglican Community in
Luxembourg. |
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| Echternach,
Luxembourg, September 9th, 2006 |
Maja Weyermann |
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| Communiqué of the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference (IBC) in Münchenwiler/CH from 26th to 31st March 2006 At this year’s meeting, the Old Catholic Bishops of the Union of Utrecht focussed on their ecumenical links and ongoing conversations with other churches. The International Roman Catholic – Old Catholic Dialogue Commission is presently working on a common text on ‘The Church’. Good progress has been made in the discussion on the meaning of the sacraments, in particular the sacrament of ordination, and on the petrine ministry of the Bishop of Rome, much to satisfaction of the Bishops’ Conference. The Orthodox – Old Catholic discussion group dealt at their last meeting with the ordination of women to the priesthood. As was to be expected the discussion proved to be difficult but will be continued at their next meeting. The new members of the International Anglican – Old Catholic Co-ordinating Council came together for the first time. Their goal: to find ways in which the unity of both churches can be fostered through a closer co-operation between Old Catholic and Anglican parishes. Throughout last year the Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference sent observers to meetings of various Anglican commissions and institutions. The IBC took note of their reports and discussed the significance of the issues which were raised for the Old Catholic Churches. To this end Bishop J. Gledhill (Representative of the Archbishop of Canterbury) and Bishop M. Klusmeyer (Representative of ECUSA) also reported on topical issues and developments in their own churches. The results of the Anglican – Old Catholic Theologians’ Conference held in Leeds (UK) on the theme of the ecclesiology of both churches revealed differences in understanding. These could well lead to practical problems in co-operation as and when the possibilities of common structures are pursued. Related issues were discussed further but no significant results have yet emerged. The exchange will be taken up in the preparations of the Ecumenical Directory, which the Bishops’ Conference would like to complete next year. For a number of years the Bishops’ Conference has been in contact with the ‘Old Catholic Church of British Columbia’, based in Vancouver (Canada), which has applied to join the Union of Utrecht. During this time there have been extensive consultations, as required by the statutes of the IBC. On the one hand the Bishops’ Conference is of the opinion that a positive development is possible, on the other hand recognises that a number of questions remain, especially in relation to the question of theology and the validity of orders. As a result it was decided to offer the Old Catholic Church of British Columbia a conditional status within the IBC for a period of six years to enable both sides to get to know each other better. At this year’s General Assembly of the World Council of Churches, Archbishop Vercammen was elected onto the Central Committee. He reported extensively on the work of the General Assembly and offered the IBC a number of proposals on how the theological work of the Old Catholic Churches could be fed into projects of the WCC. The bishops largely agreed to these proposals, whilst recognising that the extent to which such co-operation could be undertaken would depend on the availability of personnel. Once again the bishops devoted considerable time to the subject of Christian marriage. The three, very different, papers only highlighted how complex and difficult it is to address this topic. The need for further work on the topic was recognised and commissioned. The Swiss Church raised with the IBC the matter of whether deacons, who are involved in the pastoral care of the sick and those in hospital, could administer the sacrament of anointing. From the ensuing discussion it was clear that the question was not an issue in the other churches. The possibility of deacons anointing in this context of this pastoral care was not, as such, ruled out. The next meeting of the IBC will take place in Switzerland in February 2007. |
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| Maja Weyermann |
Amersfoort und Bern, 28th June 2005 |
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