Living Ecumenism: Communion in Mission | One Body

Sr. Donna Geernaert, SC

Monday, December 9, 2024

Participants in the IARCCUM gathering "New Steps on an Ancient Pilgrimage" (October 2, 2016). Photo courtesy of the Revd Neil Vigers/ACO. Used with permission.

Living Ecumenism: Communion in Mission

by Sr. Donna Geernaert, SC

The years following the closure of the Second Vatican Council in 1965 witnessed an explosion of bilateral ecumenical dialogues between various churches. Among these is the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM), which traces its origins to a consultation of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops in May 2000. It holds a unique place which may offer hope for renewed ecumenical progress.

Mississauga Consultation

Pope St. John Paul II and Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. George Carey signed a Common Declaration when Carey visited Rome in December, 1996. In response to that declaration, Carey and Cardinal Edward Cassidy, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU), invited pairs of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops from around the world to gather at a retreat house in Mississauga, ON. Chosen by their fellow bishops to represent their respective Anglican Province or Episcopal Conference, they met to evaluate the state of Anglican-Roman Catholic relations and to chart a course for the future.

Grounded in prayer, the consultation began with a time of retreat, a shared meditation on conversion, communion, and a renewal of baptismal promises. On alternate days, the Eucharist, Morning Prayer, and Evening Prayer were celebrated according to the tradition of each communion. Making use of a theological reflection model based on experience, the gathering was designed with a minimum of input from other presenters at the consultation. Among the goals identified by the planning committee, it was hoped that the bishops would have an experience of exercising their episcopal ministry together during the consultation and continuing after, which might encourage commitment to a more regular exercise of shared ministry locally. With this in mind, a questionnaire was forwarded to the countries of the participating bishops prior to the conference. Responses to the questionnaire provided a kind of “map” of the state of current relationships, examples of ongoing joint witness, and issues which should be addressed together.

The dialogue began with a review of the map of the quality of relationships in the participating countries, and a panel outlining specific issues in two areas: Papua New Guinea, and Northern Ireland. Participants were then invited to consider agreement in faith as outlined in the Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission’s (ARCIC) dialogue documents as well as the experience and challenge of reception at the local level. A paper by Rev. Jean-Marie Tillard, OP, provided input on the vision of unity emerging from the ARCIC dialogue, and a panel with participants from India, Nigeria, and New Zealand strongly asserted that the Church’s mission would be enhanced by its unity. It was noted that there is a need to be clearer about the shape of full visible unity in order to take appropriate interim steps which have their own integrity and contribute positively towards attainment of the goal of full visible unity.

The final two days of the consultation looked towards the naming of elements for a common commitment. A statement, Communion in Mission, was adopted on the last day of the meeting. In this statement, the bishops claimed their communion together is no longer to be viewed in minimal terms, and that it implies a joint commitment to common mission in the world. Believing that they had reached a very significant new place on their ecumenical journey, the bishops affirmed their specific responsibility to promote the ongoing work of unity. They drew up an Action Plan as a means of translating their commitment into visible and practical outcomes.

As a first step in their action plan, the bishops recommended the establishment of a Joint Unity Commission, later named IARCCUM, to oversee the preparation of a Joint Declaration of Agreement and plan for its signing and celebration. Among other tasks, this new commission would promote and monitor the formal response to and reception of the ARCIC agreed statements, examine ways of dealing pastorally with situations of inter-church marriages, and encourage co-operation locally on clergy formation, lay education and other pastoral matters. Some of these proposed items have been addressed, but not all. For example, IARCCUM has not taken up the issue of inter-church marriages. Other items in the action plan make reference to follow up by the pairs of bishops from the thirteen participating countries, a future agenda for ARCIC, and a review consultation of bishops to be held within five years.

International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission (IARCCUM)

Established in January 2001, IARCCUM was in its first phase comprised of bishops from a variety of countries, assisted by a few specialists. Officially launched through formal visits to Lambeth Palace and Rome in November 2001, IARCCUM received strong encouragement for its work from both the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Pope. Three sub-committees were to: 1) prepare a first draft of a common declaration which would formally express the degree of agreement in faith that already exists between Anglicans and Catholics, consolidate the results of more than thirty years of dialogue and commit the dialogue partners to a deeper sharing in common life and witness; 2) focus on practical recommendations for facilitating the ongoing reception of ecumenical texts, especially those of ARCIC; and 3) identify pastoral and practical strategies to help the two communions, particularly in local contexts, to do together whatever is possible in this current stage of real but imperfect communion

A second meeting took place in Malta in 2002. Draft texts were carefully reviewed, and practical proposals were made with regard to the local reception of ARCIC texts. Following a third meeting which took place in Northern Ireland in 2003, the churches of the Anglican Communion entered into a period of dispute occasioned by the authorisation of a rite of blessing for same-sex couples and the episcopal ordination of a priest living in a same-sex union. The Vatican expressed concern over these developments which it saw as not of a merely disciplinary nature but of vital importance to the preaching of the Gospel. The work of IARCCUM was put on hold to allow for a period of discernment. In this context, an IARCCUM sub-commission was set up to reflect on what the ARCIC agreements offer to this discernment process. Its Report, entitled Ecclesiological Reflections on the Current Situation in the Anglican Communion in the Light of ARCIC, identified some ecclesiological implications of the moral decisions taken. The Anglican Communion addressed these difficulties through its publication of The Windsor Report in October 2004, and a Primates’ communiqué in February 2005. IARCCUM was able to resume its work, holding a fourth meeting in November 2005, and publishing its agreed statement, Growing Together in Unity and Mission (GTUM), in 2007.

Growing Together In Christian Unity

In issuing their agreed statement, the authors of GTUM were well aware that they had “not answered the full challenge extended by the bishops at Mississauga”, but had “sought to undertake what is appropriate in the present context” (#8). The commission members were tasked by the Action Plan from Mississauga to initiate a process leading towards an authoritative joint declaration, similar to the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification that was formally signed by the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church in 1999. However, the commission members found themselves only able to develop an agreed statement, GTUM, which they nevertheless saw as a significant step towards such a declaration. In what will necessarily be a longer process that is still ongoing, the text was submitted to the sponsoring bodies for study and reflection. Responses to it will assist the Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion to discern whether it provides a sound basis for a formal agreement which could be affirmed, officially signed, and celebrated in the future.

As stated in GTUM, the document is a call for action, based upon “an honest appraisal of what has been achieved in our dialogue” (Preface). Affirming the concept of unity by stages and acknowledging the need to grow gradually into the full communion which Christ desires, the authors of this statement nevertheless believe: “it is the time to bridge the gap between the elements of faith we hold in common and the tangible expression of that shared belief in our ecclesial lives” (#10).

The text is structured in two main parts: I) The Achievements of Anglican-Roman Catholic Theological Dialogue, and II) Towards Unity and Common Mission.

The first part of the text includes a large section on “The Faith We Hold in Common” with topics presented under nine headings: “Belief in God as Trinity,” “Church as Communion in Mission,”, “The Living Word of God,” “Baptism,” “Eucharist,” “Ministry,” “Authority in the Church,” “Discipleship and Holiness,” and “The Blessed Virgin Mary.” In all but two of these, the text uses boxed paragraphs to clearly indicate topics that require further exploration. Frequently used in other bilateral and multilateral dialogues, this formatting invites reflection on unresolved issues within the framework of already recognized agreements. Identified in this way, areas of divergence are not minimized but placed within a broader context which may allow for new interpretations. Through the past forty years of ecumenical dialogue, Anglicans and Catholics have, IARCCUM affirms, “grown closer together and have come to see that what they hold in common is far greater than those things in which they differ” (#2).

While acknowledging that the time may not be right to initiate “a formal new stage in our relations”, the second part of GTUM “proposes some specific steps to deepen our fellowship in life and mission which we believe are responsibly open for us and would be appropriate for us to take in the present context” (#10). The text states: “Genuine faith is more than assent: it is expressed in action,” and that “the extent of common faith described in this statement compels us to live and witness together more fully here and now” (#96). Because “the context and dynamics of relationships between Anglicans and Roman Catholics differ widely across the world” (#99), appropriate action must be determined locally. Drawing on the work of earlier dialogue documents, the text makes numerous practical recommendations under four headings: “Visible expressions of our shared faith”, “Joint study of our faith”, “Co-operation in ministry”, and “Shared witness in the world” (#100-125).

Prepared by an episcopal commission, GTUM is addressed primarily to bishops. It encourages bishops around the world to exercise their episcopal role and responsibility to guide, promote, and energise the ongoing search for Christian unity, especially in their own dioceses. Much of what is contained in this section is already within the framework of what other officially approved texts agree can be implemented. For example, see the PCPCU’s 1993 Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism, and their 1997 The Ecumenical Dimension in the Formation of Those Engaged in Pastoral Work.

Further, in 2006 Pope Benedict XVI and Archbishop Rowan Williams signed a Common Declaration, which calls for closer co-operation in a wide range of areas of witness and service, including pursuit of peace in the Holy Land, promotion of respect for life from conception until natural death, outreach to the poor, care for the environment, commitment to inter-religious dialogue, and addressing the negative effects of materialism. In brief, joint action in mission is not only an expression of the degree of faith already shared but also an invitation to deepen the communion yet to be shared. While rejoicing in what has been accomplished, the bishops of IARCCUM call on all bishops to encourage their clergy and people “to engage in a searching exploration of new possibilities for co-operation in mission” (#126).

A Second Phase of IARCCUM

Following the publication of GTUM, IARCCUM entered a second phase with a clear focus on giving flesh to the breadth of faith already held in common. Consistent with the pairs of bishops who participated in the initial Mississauga consultation, IARCCUM has developed a network of paired Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops from countries and regions where the two communions exist in significant numbers. With David Hamid, Anglican Suffragan Bishop in Europe (succeeded in February 2024 by Robert Innes, Anglican Bishop in Europe) and Donald Bolen, Catholic Archbishop of Regina, SK, serving as International Co-Chairs, the IARCCUM network seeks to build links of friendship between themselves and with their colleagues, identify opportunities for shared mission and pastoral cooperation, foster local reception of ARCIC Agreed Statements, and encourage regular occasions for prayer together. A steering committee meets regularly by video conference to build relationships and share updates and information about local activities.

Specific to the IARCCUM method is its focus on the experiences of local relationships between Anglicans and Roman Catholics, whose contexts and dynamics, as GTUM recognizes, differ widely across the world (#99). Further, in light of GTUM’s careful reading of the ARCIC agreed statements, IARCCUM sees its role as that of giving practical expression to the degree of shared faith already achieved rather than that of seeking to resolve doctrinal divisions.

The IARCCUM network continues to expand, as is evident in pilgrimages between Canterbury and Rome undertaken in 2016 and 2024. In October 2016, 36 bishops from around the world gathered to reflect on the ecumenical context in their own areas and to learn from each other’s experiences. The highlight of the gathering was a joint commissioning of the bishop-pairs by Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby at the Basilica of San Gregorio al Celio, the site where St. Augustine of Canterbury was commissioned by St. Gregory the Great to evangelize the English. During the prayer service, the bishops were given a Lampedusa cross made from the wreckage of boats carrying refugees seeking asylum in Europe, a symbolic summons to stand together against the globalization of indifference. The meeting concluded with an appeal calling on all Anglicans and Catholics to work together: “to extend the mercy and peace of God to a world in need.”

In January 2024, a second pilgrimage gathered 50 bishops from 27 countries (including Canadian Bishops Bruce Myers and Martin Laliberté), who also issued a concluding statement affirming IARCCUM’s call to common witness and commitment to unity in today’s troubled world. At the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin again commissioned the pairs of bishops to promote growth in communion between the two churches and reception of the agreements reached in ecumenical dialogues. This commissioning of the IARCCUM bishop-pairs is of great significance. Where the bishops were initially called together by the Pope and Archbishop of Canterbury to assess the state of Anglican-Roman Catholic relations and propose a way forward, they are now commissioned and sent forth together in mission to live and proclaim the Gospel in today’s world

Reflecting on the IARCCUM Method

To summarize, three aspects of the IARCCUM method seem well suited to the promotion of ecumenism in today’s world: participation by pairs of bishops, focus on local experience, and commitment to common action based on agreements achieved in theological dialogue. The fact that the bishop-pairs are appointed by, or otherwise accountable to, their colleagues highlights their responsibility to one another and to their respective episcopal conferences or Anglican provinces. The importance of building relationships cannot be overstated. As the paired bishops become friends, recognition of shared faith and similar pastoral concerns grows, and it becomes increasingly clear that what they hold in common is far greater than the issues on which they are divided.

The focus on diocesan experience, reminiscent of the mapping of Anglican and Roman Catholic relations that introduced the Mississauga Consultation, facilitates effective action to address local concerns as can be seen in areas like South Sudan and Papua New Guinea. IARCCUM is a particular application of the Lund Principle that churches are to act together except where deep conviction requires them to act separately. In this instance, the discernment around appropriate and possible acts of common witness and mission are built directly upon the work of ARCIC and over five decades of dialogue and the convergence and consensus achieved, upon local bishops working together to foster such common action. In addition, as the bishops gather in pilgrimage, there are opportunities to identify new areas of agreement and possibilities for common action based on their study of current issues and local concerns.

Established as an episcopal commission, IARCCUM seems to have an advantage when it comes to the implementation of its recommendations, because each of its bishop members exercises a ministry of oversight in their respective dioceses. Yet, dialogue with churches in the Reformed tradition also identifies a ministry of oversight which may be exercised in various ways. Thus, the IARCCUM method could well be extended to any church which has an identifiable oversight structure. As dialogue commissions have moved closer to resolving issues which arose at the time of the Reformation, new topics are being raised by use of the Trinitarian formula in Baptism, questions about who may or may not be ordained, and the impact of changing views of anthropology and sexuality on ethical and moral decision-making. As new areas of disagreement emerge, it becomes increasingly important for leadership in all churches to respond to the challenge of maintaining Christian unity through dialogue and common witness. The IARCCUM method, with its focus on joint action based on agreements already achieved, may well offer a way forward.

Sr. Dr. Donna Geernaert, SC, served for 18 years in promoting ecumenical and interfaith relations for the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. She has been a staff member, consultant, and member of numerous multilateral and bilateral theological dialogues in Canada as well as internationally.