wfn.org | [ENS] Christian unity workshop explores theme of belonging to Christ

["Matthew Davies" <mdavies@episcopalchurch.org>]

Thursday, April 7, 2005

Christian unity workshop explores theme of belonging to Christ

By Christopher Epting

ENS 040705-2

[ENS] -- "The broken arm (of the Church, the Body of Christ)) is
healing,
even though it is not yet time to remove the cast," said Bishop Richard
J.
Sklba, auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee,
as
he addressed some 350 participants at the 2005 National Workshop on
Christian Unity meeting in New Orleans, April 4-7. Sklba commended the
gathering of local ecumenical officers, staff persons, and other
interested
clergy and laity as those who have, over the years, carried the
ecumenical
vision forward.

Dedicating his keynote address to the memory of the late Pope John Paul
II,
Sklba began by soberly reminding his audience of the context in which
they
were meeting -- that of a bitterly divided church, nation, and world.
The
churches are facing conflict not only between themselves, but within
their
own ranks. The nation is divided over the results of the last
presidential
election and also over the continuing war in Iraq. And the world is
divided
around the effects of globalization, between the so-called developed
north
and the global south.    

In the face of such divisions, dialogue such as that developed and honed
by
"tired ecumenical warriors and eager newcomers to ecumenism" must become
a
permanent feature in every area of life. The bishop brought a word of
encouragement in stating that, if the ecumenical movement seems to some
to
be slowing, "it may be because the train is approaching the station, and
additional care must be taken to be sure we arrive at precisely the
right
place and at the right time."

Ecumenical dialogues must continue, but now is the time for reception
and
implementation. In other words, steps must be taken to help Christian
people
"receive" and understand the ecumenical agreements already reached. And
what
we can already do together, as fellow Christians, must find practical
methods of implementation on the local parish level. Sklba suggested
four
"next steps:"

1. Understanding - studying the ecumenical documents most pertinent to
your
denomination with fellow Christians in your own locality.
2. Cooperation - be sure that the covenants and commitments already made
together (such as promises to pray for each other) are being honored,
even
when there have been leadership changes since first those agreements
were
made.
3. Participation - pay attention to each other's local and national
assemblies and even consider inviting official delegations from one
another's churches to attend.
4. Openness - be open to receiving one another's gifts, since each
Christian
communion brings different gifts to the ecumenical table.
5. Sharing the pain - be conscious of one another's struggles as
churches
and seek to stand in solidarity as we each find our way forward.

The National Workshop on Christian Unity, made up primarily of Roman
Catholic, Episcopal, Lutheran, Methodist, and Presbyterian participants,
this year also included Baptists; Byzantine, Greek, and Ukrainian
Catholics;
Disciples and the United Church of Christ; Moravians, Greek and Russian
Orthodox, the Society of Friends and a number of others.

Morning seminars included everything from "Ecumenism 101" (an
introduction)
to "Rapture, the Middle East, and the 'Left Behind' series," to
"Progress
and Potholes on the Road to Unity: Updates and Obstacles." Workshops
such as
"The Decree on Ecumenism: 40 Years Later," "Episcopal and United
Methodist
Dialogues," and updates on interfaith dialogue and the Parliament of the
World Religions" were held in the afternoons.

Worship included an opening service at St. Louis King of France Roman
Catholic Cathedral with the Rev. Delores Carpenter, professor at Howard
University, as preacher; the Episcopal-Lutheran Eucharist at Christ
Church
Cathedral; and a Churches Uniting in Christ Liturgy at Immaculate
Conception
Church, a Jesuit parish not far from the French Quarter. Dr. Paul N.
Anderson, professor of Biblical and Quaker Studies at George Fox
University,
led participants in morning Bible studies. 

The Rt. Rev. Carol Gallagher, first Native American female bishop in the
Episcopal Church, delivered the NWCU Closing Address. Next year's
National
Workshop on Christian Unity is slated for May 8-11, 2006 in San Jose,
California. Information will be available through the Office of
Ecumenical
Relations at the Episcopal Church Center.

--Bishop Christopher Epting is deputy for Ecumenical and Interfaith
Relations.

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