131. Christian unity

Christian unity

YOUCAT Catechism + Catechism of the Catholic Church Lesson 131

Ave Maria series

131  What must we to do for the unity of Christians?

In word and deed we must obey Christ, who expressly wills “that they all may be one” (John 17:23).  

[820-822]

Working on Christian Unity: 2009 Participants in Ecumenism in the Metropolitan Cathedral of Santiago, Chile, 2009. …..131

Christian unity is the business of all Christians, regardless of how young or old they are.  Unity was one of Jesus’ most important concerns.  He prayed to the Father, “that they may all be one…so that the world may believe that you sent me” (John 17:21).  Divisions are like wounds on the Body of Christ; they hurt and fester.  Divisions lead to enmities and weaken the faith and credibility of Christians.  Overcoming the scandal of separation requires the conversion of all concerned but also the knowledge of one’s own faith convictions, dialogues with others, and especially prayer in common, and collaboration among Christians in serving mankind.  Those in authority in the Church must not let the theological dialogue be interrupted.

Ecumenism (from Greek oikumene=the inhabited earth, the globe): efforts to unify divided Christians.

The Roman Catholic Church has, since the Second Vatican Council, reached out to Christian bodies, seeking reconciliation to the greatest degree possible.

[820-822]

THE CHURCH IS ONE

Toward unity

820 "Christ bestowed unity on his Church from the beginning. This unity, we believe, subsists in the Catholic Church as something she can never lose, and we hope that it will continue to increase until the end of time."(Unitatis redintegratio 4 § 3)²⁷⁷  Christ always gives his Church the gift of unity, but the Church must always pray and work to maintain, reinforce, and perfect the unity that Christ wills for her.  This is why Jesus himself prayed at the hour of his Passion, and does not cease praying to his Father, for the unity of his disciples: "That they may all be one. As you, Father, are in me and I am in you, may they also be one in us, . . . so that the world may know that you have sent me."(John 17:21; compare Hebrews 7:25)²⁷⁸ The desire to recover the unity of all Christians is a gift of Christ and a call of the Holy Spirit.(compare Unitatis redintegratio 1)²⁷⁹ –Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition

821 Certain things are required in order to respond adequately to this call:

- a permanent renewal of the Church in greater fidelity to her vocation; such renewal is the driving-force of the movement toward unity;(compare Unitatis redintegratio  6 )²⁸⁰

- conversion of heart as the faithful "try to live holier lives according to the Gospel";(Unitatis redintegratio 7 § 3)²⁸¹ for it is the unfaithfulness of the members to Christ's gift which causes divisions;

- prayer in common, because "change of heart and holiness of life, along with public and private prayer for the unity of Christians, should be regarded as the soul of the whole ecumenical movement, and merits the name 'spiritual ecumenism;"'(Unitatis redintegratio 8 § 1)²⁸²

- fraternal knowledge of each other;(compare Unitatis redintegratio 9)²⁸³

- ecumenical formation of the faithful and especially of priests;(compare Unitatis redintegratio 10)²⁸⁴

- dialogue among theologians and meetings among Christians of the different churches and communities;(compare Unitatis redintegratio 4; 9; 11)²⁸⁵

- collaboration among Christians in various areas of service to mankind.(compare Unitatis redintegratio 12)²⁸⁶  "Human service" is the idiomatic phrase.--CCC

822 Concern for achieving unity "involves the whole Church, faithful and clergy alike."(Unitatis redintegratio 5)²⁸⁷ But we must realize "that this holy objective - the reconciliation of all Christians in the unity of the one and only Church of Christ - transcends human powers and gifts." That is why we place all our hope "in the prayer of Christ for the Church, in the love of the Father for us, and in the power of the Holy Spirit."(Unitatis redintegratio 24 § 2)²⁸⁸ –CCC

ECUMENICAL  TE DEUM

130. Jimmy Carter is a non-Catholic Christian that I have always respected and admired.

Jimmy Carter is a non-Catholic Christian that I have always respected and admired.

YOUCAT Catechism + Catechism of the Catholic Church Lesson 130

Ave Maria series

130  Are non-Catholic Christians our sisters and brothers also?

All baptized persons belong to the Church of Jesus Christ.  That is why also those Christians who find themselves separated from the full communion of the Catholic Church are rightly called Christians and are therefore our sisters and brothers. [817-819]

President  Jimmy  Carter, a Baptist Christian of great character.....62.....130

Instances of separation from the one Church of Christ came about through falsifications of Christ’s teaching, human failings, and a lack of willingness to be reconciled—usually on the part of representatives on both sides.  Christians today are in no way guilty for the historical divisions of the Church.  The Holy Spirit also works for the salvation of mankind in the churches and ecclesial communities that are separated from the Catholic Church.  All of the gifts present there, for example, Sacred Scripture, sacraments, faith, hope, love, and other charisms, come originally from Christ.  Where the Spirit of Christ lives, there is an inner dynamic leading toward “reunion”, because what belongs together wants to grow together.

Churches and Ecclesial Communities:  Many Christian communities on earth call themselves churches.  According to the Catholic understanding, only those in which the sacraments of Jesus Christ have been preserved in their entirety have remained “Church”.  This is especially true of the Orthodox and Eastern Churches.  In the “ecclesial communities” that resulted from the Protestant Reformation, all the sacraments have not been preserved.

[817-819]

Wounds to unity

817 In fact, "in this one and only Church of God from its very beginnings there arose certain rifts, which the Apostle strongly censures as damnable. But in subsequent centuries much more serious dissensions appeared and large communities became separated from full communion with the Catholic Church - for which, often enough, men of both sides were to blame."(Unitatis redintegratio 3 § 1)²⁶⁹  The ruptures that wound the unity of Christ's Body - here we must distinguish heresy, apostasy, and schism(compare Codex Iuris Canonici, can. 751)²⁷⁰  - do not occur without human sin: –Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition

Where there are sins, there are also divisions, schisms, heresies, and disputes. Where there is virtue, however, there also are harmony and unity, from which arise the one heart and one soul of all believers.(Origen, Hom. in Ezech. 9,1:Patrologia Graeca 13,732)²⁷¹  --CCC

818 "However, one cannot charge with the sin of the separation those who at present are born into these communities [that resulted from such separation] and in them are brought up in the faith of Christ, and the Catholic Church accepts them with respect and affection as brothers . . . . All who have been justified by faith in Baptism are incorporated into Christ; they therefore have a right to be called Christians, and with good reason are accepted as brothers in the Lord by the children of the Catholic Church."(Unitatis redintegratio 3 § 1)²⁷² –CCC

819 "Furthermore, many elements of sanctification and of truth"(Lumen gentium 8 § 2)²⁷³  are found outside the visible confines of the Catholic Church: "the written Word of God; the life of grace; faith, hope, and charity, with the other interior gifts of the Holy Spirit, as well as visible elements."(Unitatis redintegratio 3 § 2; compare Lumen gentium 15)²⁷⁴    Christ's Spirit uses these Churches and ecclesial communities as means of salvation, whose power derives from the fullness of grace and truth that Christ has entrusted to the Catholic Church. All these blessings come from Christ and lead to him,(compare Unitatis redintegratio 3)²⁷⁵  and are in themselves calls to "Catholic unity."(compare Lumen gentium 8)²⁷⁶ –CCC

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