wfn.org | Pope: High level of agreement achieved

[FRANK_IMHOFF.parti@ecunet.org (FRANK IMHOFF)]

GENEVA/VATICAN CITY, 9 July 1998 (lwi) - Pope John Paul II has described
the Joint Declaration between Roman Catholics and Lutherans on the Doctrine
of Justification as progress and an important ecumenical outcome. The
document, to which the Vatican gave its official response June 25 achieves
a high level of agreement, he said on Sunday, June 28, in St. Peter's
Square, Vatican City.

"At the conclusion of a thorough process of evaluation involving the
Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation, we may now rejoice in an
important ecumenical acquisition. I refer to the Joint Declaration on the
Doctrine of the Justification of Faith between the Catholic Church and the
Lutheran World Federation. As an outcome of the dialogue which commenced
shortly after the Second Vatican Council, this Declaration affirms that the
Churches of the Lutheran World Federation and the Catholic Church have
achieved extensive agreement upon an issue, namely justification, which has
been so controversial over the centuries. Although the Declaration does not
resolve all questions relating to the teaching on the doctrine of
justification, it does express consensus on the fundamental truths of this
doctrine (cf. Response of the Catholic Church to the Joint Declaration
Between the Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation on the
Doctrine of Justification).

"It is my hope that this progress in the Lutheran-Catholic dialogue, gift
of the Spirit of the Wisdom of God at the close of the second millennium,
will encourage and strengthen the objective sought by both Lutherans and
Catholics: the attainment of full visible unity. I extend my gratitude to
all, both Catholics and Lutherans, who have contributed to this important
outcome, and ask the Lord to continue to support us in our journey towards
unity."

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Lutheran World Information
Editorial Assistant: Janet Bond-Nash
E-mail: jbn@lutheranworld.org
http://www.lutheranworld.org/