Published by Father Joseph D. Wallace
Thu, June 19 2008

The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation met earlier this month to discuss how the two churches understand ecclesial authority and the sacramental nature of church.

They met at the Hellenic College/Holy Cross Greek Orthodox School of Theology in Brookline, Mass. Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk of Cincinnati and Metropolitan Maximos of Pittsburgh chaired the meeting.

The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation is sponsored by the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA), the Bishop’s Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. They have met since 1965 and have issued 22 agreed statements.They met in four sessions and covered a number of important issues. At the first theological session, Father Paul McPartian of The Catholic University of America analyzed the October 2007 document of the international Orthodox-Catholic theological dialogue, “Ecclesiological and Canonical Consequences of the Sacramental Nature of the Church: Ecclesial Communion, Conciliarity and Authority.” This document is also commonly called, “The Ravenna Document,” and it examines the canonical practices and structures that shape the community (koinonia) of the church at the local, regional and universal levels.

At the second session, Father Joseph Komonchak, from Catholic University, presented a select bibliography on synodality and made comments on a number of the sources. Jesuit Father Brian Daley of the University of Notre Dame, presented an overview and commentary of the Cyprus Agreed Statement, the 2006 document of the Anglican-Orthodox theological dialogue, titled “The Church of the Triune God.”

This was followed by a brief presentation by Father David Petras and Father McPartian on how the two churches might function if there were reestablishment of full communion. Metropolitan Maximos presented the paper, “Will the Ecclesiology of Cardinal Ratzinger Influence the
Pontificate of Pope Benedict XVI?” at the third session. A discussion of the Consultation’s efforts exploring primacy and synodality followed into a fourth session.

This consultation was preceded by an historic announcement in Moscow by Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, on May 30. He said, “We launched the dialogue with all Orthodox Churches and we won’t continue it without
the Russian Orthodox Church.”

Historically, the Russian Orthodox Church has not been a member of the great dialogue unfolding between the Roman Catholic Church and the Greek Orthodox Church. There have been tensions between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Greek Orthodox Church. Cardinal Kasper said that the conflict between the Moscow Patriarchate and the Constantinople Patriarchate was “an inter-Orthodox affair.” “We can’t interfere in these relations, but hope for the compromise,” the cardinal stressed.

In his message delivered to Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow and All Russia by Cardinal Kasper, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of the Patriarch as “increasingly committed to dialogue with other Christians and the members of other religions” and thanked the Russian Church’s primate for “signs of fraternity and friendship” toward the Catholic Church.

In response Patriarch Alexy said, “The Orthodox-Catholic dialogue is necessary. The two churches have similar positions on many modern problems, among them morals, social and family relations, human rights and bio-ethics.”

He added, “Our dialogue must lead to the Orthodox-Catholic interaction in the defense of traditional Christian values in the secular world.”

While the ice is melting between the Roman Catholic Church and Russian Orthodox Church, Cardinal Kasper suggested that it may be time for the pope and patriarch to meet in Moscow some time in the future. He explained, “We are of the opinion that a personal encounter between the Pope and Patriarch Alexy II would be very helpful for the further development of our relations.”

No such date for the visit has been confirmed, but Moscow seems warmer to the idea with Pope Benedict, than it did with Pope John Paul II. The words of Pope Benedict XVI to Patriarch Alexy, sum up well the kind of relations Catholics and all Orthodox should have toward one another, “May the Risen Savior grant you health, peace and inner joy, and may he bring us closer to each other, that we may undertake together our journey towards full communion in him!”

Large sections of the U.S. farm belt are under water after a week of torrential rains. The worst flooding to hit the Midwest in 15 years has claimed two dozen lives and forced more than 40,000 to evacuate their homes. This season’s corn and soybean crops are in danger, and Iowa’s agricultural losses alone are estimated to exceed $2 billion. Other states of the upper Midwest including Illinois and Indiana have also been affected.

International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) is mobilizing its network of first responder Orthodox clergy to travel to Iowa to conduct a needs assessment and provide trauma counseling. Help us speed relief to the U.S.’s devastated communities by making a donation today. Call IOCC’s donation hotline toll-free at 1-877-803-4622, make a gift on-line at www.iocc.org, or mail a check or money order payable to “IOCC” and write “US Emergency Response” in the memo line to: IOCC, P.O. Box 630225, Baltimore, Md. 21263-0225.

IOCC, founded in 1992 as the official humanitarian aid agency of the Standing Conference of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the Americas (SCOBA), has implemented over $275 million in relief and development programs in 33 countries around the world.

Editors Note: We should just stop inviting them since all they ever do is walk out! It is all about power with these clowns! God send us some bishops that care about the people and not about power.

Rhodes, Jun. 20, 2008 (CWNews.com) – The Russian Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow has escalated a dispute with the Patriarchate of Constantinople over the recognition of an independent Estonian Orthodox Church.

A Russian delegation has walked out of a meeting of Orthodox prelates, convened by Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople. The top Russian delegate, Archbishop Nikolai Balashov, said that the Moscow patriarchate could not accept the seating of a delegation from the Estonian Orthodox Church.

The meeting of Orthodox prelates, taking place at Rhodes, had been called by the Ecumenical Patriarch as a forum for mutual discussions and prayer. All of the world’s autonomous Orthodox churches had been asked to send representativees.

Last year the Russian Orthodox Church walked out of a meeting of a joint Catholic-Orthodox theological committee in Ravenna, Italy, for the same reason: the seating of an Estonian delegation. The Moscow patriarchate does not accept the independent Estonian hierarchy, and has angrily protested the decision by the Patriarch of Constantinople in 1996 to grant canonical recognition to the independent Estonian Church.

In explaining his delegation’s protest, Archpriest Balashov said that relations among the world’s Orthodox primates should be guided by the principle that participation is limited to those Orthodox bodies recognized by all other Orthodox churches. The world’s other Orthodox churches have been content to leave the Patriarch of Constantinople with the traditional authority to grant recognition to independent Orthodox churches.

Warsaw (ENI). The Romanian Orthodox Church has condemned the formation of a trade union among its clergy, and has said that priests should follow church procedures in making demands and airing grievances.

“Certainly, some Orthodox priests have trouble making ends meet, especially those with families,” said Constantin Stoica, a spokesperson for the Bucharest patriarchate, which governs the church, “but we have ways of solving their problems inside our church.”

In May, 20 priests from Iasi, Neamt and Bacau applied to the Iasi court to register their
Mother of God Protection union in northeastern Romania, while 35 other priests in Oltenia said
they were considering strike action after registering a separate Good Shepherd union at Craiova on 22 May.

The Good Shepherd’s vice-president, the Rev. Nicolae State, told Romania’s Gandul daily
newspaper on 28 May that the union would fight low clergy pay, and demand the right for priests to make parish decisions without diocesan approval.

“There is an abyss between the church hierarchy and the priests who serve in churches,” State
said. “We are put under pressure, and have already lost some of our members.”In a statement, the Bucharest patriarchate dismissed the moves. “The initiatives to set up clergy trade unions are taken by priests tempted by the spirit of rebellion and division, and moving away from church discipline and communion,” the patriarchate said.

“A priest is not a lay employee of a commercial firm but invested by his hierarch with the
responsibility of a holy mission designed to save and serve the community of the faithful,” the
statement added. “He cannot go on strike and not baptise children, wed spouses, hear confessions, bury the dead or administer Holy Communion because his wage is too small.”

The patriarchate added that its priests were required to take their problems to church bodies, and not trade unions.

Under a 1999 law that currently faces amendment in the national parliament, the Romanian state pays part of the clergy’s income. Local parish contributions make up the rest.

The church’s spokesperson told Ecumenical News International that leaders of the Orthodox church hoped to obtain pay rises in current negotiations with the state, and especially for priests from poorer parishes in Transylvania and northern Moldavia.

“But there are also networks of solidarity within the church which enable financial burdens to be shared,” Stoica added.According to a 2001 census, 87 per cent of Romania’s 23 million inhabitants belong to the Romanian Orthodox Church.

By Vito Nicastro Special to The Pilot
Posted: 6/20/2008

BRIGHTON — On June 29 Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley and the Catholics of the Archdiocese of Boston will share the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul with a delegation from the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Boston and all New England. The local celebration in Boston is an important way to bring to life the examples of the hierarchs and to begin to realize the hope for Christian unity.

In Rome on June 29 Pope Benedict XVI will preside at the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, the patron saints of Rome. Since the improvement of relations between Orthodox and Catholics starting at the Second Vatican Council, it has become a tradition for the Ecumenical Patriarch of
Constantinople to send a delegation to Rome to share the feast of Rome’s patron saints. St.
Andrew is the Patron for the Greek Orthodox Mother Church of Constantinople; therefore on
Nov. 29, at the Feast of St. Andrew, Pope Benedict XVI will send a delegation to the Greek Orthodox in Constantinople.

Since the joint pilgrimage of Boston Catholics and Orthodox in 1996 to Rome and Constantinople, with the follow-up pilgrimage in 2007 — both of which were dedicated to restoring full Communion — it is a tradition in the Archdiocese of Boston to invite the Eastern Orthodox to the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul. This year Methodios, Metropolitan of the Greek Orthodox Diocese of Boston and All New England, will lead the delegation to festal vespers on June 29. And Nov.
29, at the Feast of St. Andrew, Cardinal O’Malley will reciprocate by leading a group of Catholics
to the Orthodox’ celebration of the feast of St. Andrew.

The pope has dedicated himself to the effort to build Christian unity, which was one of the
principle concerns for which the Second Vatican Council was convened. Jesus asked for all of his
followers “that they may be one … that the world might believe” (John 17:21ff). Orthodox and
Catholics were one Church for most of the first millennium after Jesus and both groups have
committed to praying and working in order to be unified again.

Vespers on June 29 will start at 7 p.m. at St. John Chrysostom Parish, 4750 Washington St, West Roxbury. All are welcome.

Munich-In a recent interview with the German ecumenical journal Cyril and Methodius, the
Patriarch of the Orthodox Church in Constantinople Bartholomew I invited Eastern
Catholic Churches to return to Orthodoxy without breaking unity with Rome. He noted that “the Constantinople Mother-Church keeps the door open for all its sons and daughters.” According to the Orthodox hierarch, the form of coexistence of the Byzantine Church and the Roman Church in the 1st century of Christianity should be used as a model of unity.

At the same time, the patriarch made positive remarks about the idea of “dual unity” proposed
by the head of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, Archbishop Lubomyr (Husar). Patriarch
Bartholomew I noted in particular that this model would help to overcome the schism between the Churches.