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UTRECHTER UNION DER ALTKATHOLISCHEN
KIRCHEN |
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| International Roman Catholic – Old Catholic Dialogue Commission The International Roman Catholic – Old Catholic Dialogue Commission (IRAD) met for their 10th meeting from 19th to 21st October 2008 in Würzburg, Germany. The Commission continued to work on a consensus paper on the understanding of the Church. The following points of difference were addressed in the spirit of a differentiated consensus: the dogma of the immaculate conception of Mary (1854) and the heavenly assumption of Mary (1950), the practice of the ordination of women to the priesthood, which exists in the majority of the Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht and the jurisdictional tie of former Roman Catholic priests in Old Catholic Churches to Roman Catholic Canon Law. The IRAD was established in 2003 by the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity in order to further develop, on an international level, the work of previous talks, which had been conducted in individual countries. It is planned to continue with the consultations in the first half of 2009. Würzburg-Rom, November 2008 |
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| Msgr. Matthias Türk Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity |
Lic. Theol. Maja Weyermann |
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100
Years Willibrord Society On
Saturday, 8th November the 100th anniversary of the English Society of St.
Willibrord has been celebrated in London. The Society has been founded in
1980 with the aim of fostering closer relationships between the Church of
England and the Old Catholic Chuches of the Union of Utrecht. Its
activities were at first aimed at promoting full communion between the two
churches, which came about in the Bonn Agreement of 1931. Currently
there are active Willibrord Societies in England, the Netherlands,
Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the Czech Republic. They promote the
cooperation between the two Churches in various ways. The
International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference has been represented in
London by Bishop Joachim Vobbe from the Old Catholic Church in Germany. He
gave a lecture about the Lambeth Conference in summer 2008. |
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| London, 8th Nov. 2008 | |||||||||
| Press Communiqué The International Roman Catholic – Old Catholic Dialogue Commission (IRAD) met for their seventh meeting from 6th to 9th May 2007 in Bonn. During this time the Commission continued to work on a consensus paper on the understanding of the Church with a view to pushing forward the question of a possible church communion. Agreement in teaching and practice, as well as differences, was discussed. Further topics included consideration of the canon law implications of a possible church communion according to the norms of the Codex Iuris Canonici of 1983. Further attention was given to the importance of Mary and the Marian dogmas from an Old Catholic viewpoint, as well as to the results of certain previous 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 autumn 2007 in Würzburg. |
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| Msgr. Matthias Türk Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity |
Lic. Theol. Maja Weyermann |
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| Press Communiqué The International Roman Catholic/Old Catholic Dialogue Commission (IRAD) met for its sixth meeting from 24th to 27th September 2006 in Würzburg, Germany. The commission sought to develop further a consensus paper on its understanding of the Church bearing in mind the question of the possibility of working towards a church communion in the future. Further topics of discussion were the norms of the Codex Iuris Canonici of 1983 for the dialogue between Roman Catholics and Old Catholics, the Old Catholic view on the statements of the Council of Trent and the first Vatican Council, the significance of Mary and of the Marian dogmas from an Old Catholic point of view, and the results of certain earlier consensus papers between the Roman Catholic and Old Catholic Church. The IRAD was established in 2003 by the International Bishops' Conference (IBC) and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity with a view to developing further, on an international level, earlier dialogues which had taken place in individual countries. The members are on the Old Catholic side: Bishop Fritz-René Müller, Berne, as Co-President (gave his apologies for the sixth meeting), Prof. Dr. Urs von Arx, Berne, Prof. Dr. Günter Esser, Bonn, Prof. em. Dr. Jan Visser, Zeist/The Netherlands, Dr. Angela Berlis, Arnhem/The Netherlands, and The Revd Martin Eisenbraun, Salzburg; On the Roman Catholic side the following participated: Bishop em. Dr. Paul-Werner Scheele, Würzburg, as Co-President, Suffragan Bishop Johannes Gerardus Maria van Burgsteden, Haarlem/The Netherlands, Prelate 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 be continued in the Spring 2007. Würzburg-Rome, October 2006 |
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| Msgr. Matthias Türk Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity |
Lic. Theol. Maja Weyermann |
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| Guest of the General Synod of the Church of England Archbishop Vercammen is to participate as a guest of the Church of England in the General Synod, which comes together from 7th to 11th July in York. In his address to the Synod Dr. Vercammen shall speak about the relations between the Anglican and Old Catholic Churches. He will refer to the seventy-five years of existence of the Bonn Agreement, to the church communion which exists between the two churches, and the path which the two churches have shared in this time. He shall also talk about how the co-operation between the churches on Continental Europe has developed in the last years. On Sunday a lecture on the challenges and possibilities for Anglicans and Old Catholics in a secularised European culture and society is foreseen. |
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| Berne, 6th July 2006 |
Maja Weyermann |
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| Archbishop Vercammen visits the the Convention of the Episcopal Church in the USA
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Berne, 3rd July 2006 |
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| Delegation of the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference (IBC) visit the Archbishop of Canterbury Archbishop Dr. Joris Vercammen (President of the IBC) and Bishop Fritz-René Müller (Secretary of the IBC) spent from 13th to 14th October on a visit to Dr. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury. They had requested a talk, on behalf of the Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference, to address above all two important issues of relevance to the relations between both churches. The first part of their talks covered the co-operation between Anglicans and Old Catholics in Europe. In particular the question of overlapping jurisdictions of the two churches, which are in full communion with one another, on continental Europe was discussed. In some places two or more bishops, who are in full communion with one another, are responsible for the same area. This poses for both churches an ecclesiological problem which is to be addressed through further reflection together. The Archbishop of Canterbury has agreed to encourage the Anglican Bishops responsible for the European Diocese to draw in their fellow Old Catholic bishops in their considerations about the future shape of the ‘Diocese in Europe’. To this end it is proposed that a working party of bishops of both denominations soon be established. The second area of the discussions covered the possibility of co-operation between non-Roman Catholic bishops who have close relations to the See of Canterbury but are not part of the Anglican Church. On this point the two church leaders came to agreement that at the next Lambeth Conference, probably in 2008, they would organise a meeting of these bishops; Anglican bishops of extra provincial dioceses could also be drawn into this meeting. At such a meeting it is proposed to explore whether moves to deepen relations between each other would be generally welcome. The talks took place in a friendly and constructive atmosphere and have prepared the way for the common future of both churches. |
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| Amersfoort and Bern, October 2005 |
Maja Weyermann |
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| The Old Catholic Churches intensify contact with the Iglesia Filippina Independiente (IFI) The hundreth anniversary of the Philippine Independent Church gave the opportunity to strengthen contacts between the two churches. These renewed links have now been intensified through a visit of the Archbishop of Utrecht Dr. Joris Vercammen to the General Synod of the Philippinian Church. In his sermon during the opening service and in his lecture to the House of Bishops he emphasised the things that both churches have in common and the importance of learning from one another. He also highlighted the significance of the intercommunion agreement made between the two churches forty years ago and underlined the readiness but also the necessity of giving more weight to this church communion in the future and to finding a way to intensifying cooperation. Archbishop Vercammen emphasised that a first step had been made through the lecture series of Dr. Harald Rein. At the same time Dr. Rein was giving a second set of lectures in the Philippinian Church. Such theological exchange should be followed up in a variety of ways. There are now plans that every year Old Catholic lecturers could hold guest lectures in their area of expertise in the various theological colleges of the Philippinian Church. Similarly theologians from the IFI will be invited to Europe, in order to deepen their understanding of Old Catholic theology. A further idea relates to the establishing of a commission in which theologians of the Old Catholic, Philippinian Independent and Anglican Churches could address questions of ecclsiology and models of unity as well as the problem of overlapping jurisdictions. The practical implementation of these plans still need to be worked out. Archbishop Vercammen also congratulated the new Supreme Bishop Archbishop of the Philippine Independent Church, the Most Revd Godofredo David on his election and expressed his joy at the openness of the talks which had been possible during his visit to the Philippines. He wished the Most Revd David much strength for his new ministry, the exercise of which will undoubtedly not be easy in the context of the difficult social and economic situation of the Philippines. |
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| Mai 2005 |
Maja Weyermann |
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| Best wishes for Pope Benedict XVI
Dr. Joris Vercammen, Archbishop of Utrecht and President of the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference congratulated, on behalf of the Old Catholic bishops, Pope Benedict XVI on his election. He wrote that the Petrine ministry will now be fulfilled by a very valued priest and theologian and expressed his hope that the pope can exercise his new office in such a way that he can offer all Christians inspiration and a sense of direction. |
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| Berne, 27th April 2005 |
Maja Weyermann |
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| The Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht on the death of Pope John Paul II.
The President of the International Old Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Dr. Joris Vercammen, Archbishop of Utrecht, offered his condolences on the death of Pope John Paul II in a letter to Cardinal Ratzinger. Writing on behalf of the whole Union of Utrecht, the Archbishop stated that many years may be needed to evaluate the important and significant role John Paul II has played both within Christianity and the world community. |
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| Utrecht and Berne, 3rd April 2005 |
Maja Weyermann |
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