By Members of Our Lady's Warriors
Commentary Copyright 2000 by Our Lady's Warriors. All Rights Reserved.
Note: Watch words and phrases are underlined; commentary is presented following Renew 2000 text.
Begin with a few minutes of quiet prayer. Then, reflectively and slowly, pray the Nicene Creed together or, in turn, have each person take a verse.
We believe in one God,
the Father, the Almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all that is seen and unseen.We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,
the only Son of God,
eternally begotten of the Father,
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
one in Being with the Father.
Through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven:
[ all bow during the following three lines (do you?) ]
by the power of the Holy Spirit
he was born of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;
he suffered, died, and was buried.
On the third day he rose again
in fulfillment of the Scriptures;
he ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end.We believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son.
With the Father and the Son he is worshiped and glorified.
He has spoken through the Prophets.We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.
We look for the resurrection of the dead,
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
Share how you lived out your faith during the previous week, focusing particularly on the concrete ways in which you addressed either the issue of vocations or the media.
As we enter the new millennium, we have a unique opportunity to gather as Christians united in the bond of Jesus, to live the spirit of ecumenism. The more we, as Christians, become united, the better able we will be to proclaim before the world God's great love for all people in Jesus Christ.
Take a few minutes to read the following silently or aloud.
Have you ever thought what makes a Christian a Christian? Have you ever thought of what it is that Christians believe? During the early history of the Christian faith, its members gathered at Nicea and summarized the central core and agreed-upon beliefs of the Church. It is faith in Jesus and these basic beliefs that Christians still have in common.
The Creed of Nicea developed from the need of the early Church to express its faith in a concise and understandable manner to a world that was embracing the Gospel message of Jesus. While the Scriptures are our common root of faith, the early creeds offer us the summary of the faith that was handed on throughout the ages. The Creed acts like a family motto--it is simple, able to be memorized and lists our key and central beliefs.
As Christians, we share these beliefs. As Christians, however, we often have focused more on our differences than on what unites us. This work of unity occurs both at a local and personal level and at an official, ecclesial level. Real credal differences need to be examined and discussed. As we enter this significant moment in which we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we have a wonderful opportunity to bring an end to the scandal of division in Christianity and to bring the true message of Jesus-the message of unity-to the world.
At a recent celebration in India, people of different faiths were gathered. An outstanding Muslim leader was one of the primary speakers who addressed the multi-faith gathering. He explained that he and other Muslims had been working hard to bring unity within the Muslim community in India, and he rather optimistically shared with the group that he and his Muslim brothers and sisters were indeed "one." Then he made the statement: "When you Christians get it together, we'd like to sit down and talk with you."
It is the very nature of the "catholic" (universal) Church to attempt to bring together the variety of ways of believing into a single "whole." One of the hopes of Pope John XXIII in calling the Second Vatican Council was the eventual reunion of the Christian churches. The Decree on Ecumenism states that ecumenism or the ecumenical movement is "those activities and enterprises which, according to various needs of the Church and opportune occasions, are started and organized for the fostering of unity among Christians" (#4). In the past 35 years, the leadership of the Roman Catholic Church has officially embraced a policy of "ecumenism."
Pope Paul VI, in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (On Evangelization in the Modern World), writes: "As evangelizers, we must offer Christ's faithful not the image of people divided and separated by unedifying quarrels, but the image of people who are mature in faith and capable of finding a meeting point beyond the real tensions, thanks to a shared, sincere and disinterested search for truth" (#77). He officially apologized for the role that the Catholic Church had played in creating divisions among Christians.
More recently, Pope John Paul II wrote an encyclical letter on his commitment to ecumenism (Ut Unum Sint [That All May Be One]) in which he prayed fervently a prayer for ecumenical unity, on a personal level: "At the dawn of the new millennium, how can we not implore from the Lord, with renewed enthusiasm and a deeper awareness, the grace to prepare ourselves, together, to offer this sacrifice of unity?" (#102) The Pope also included a reminder for his brothers in the Episcopate, exhorting them "to be especially mindful of this commitment. The two Codes of Canon Law include among the responsibilities of the Bishop that of promoting the unity of all Christians by supporting all activities or initiatives undertaken for this purpose" (#101). These are the two prongs of the ecumenical movement, the personal (informal) and the ecclesial (formal).
SMALL COMMUNITY SHARING
Take a few moments of silence to reflect on the following questions. Then share your reflections.
Read aloud 1 Corinthians 15:1-8.
Pause for a few minutes of quiet reflection on this original statement of faith and allow the Word of God to enter deeply into you.
Take a few minutes to read the following silently or aloud.
Oftentimes, when we meet Christians of other congregations, we approach them as people who differ from us rather than as brothers and sisters in Christ with whom we share the gift of Baptism and many common beliefs. In entering into an ecumenical dialogue, it is important that we first be well grounded in our own faith. In relating with others, we do not want to pretend or ignore the fact that there are very real differences. In first exploring those areas in which we experience commonality, however, we are better prepared to examine differences. We continue our experience of RENEW 2000 with the hope that we may share more openly in the ecumenical dialogue, the dialogue that seeks understanding and eventual unity of the Christian churches. Next Lent, Season IV will offer us ecumenism as its primary focus. As a faith community, we will try to make more real Jesus' prayer, "...that they may all be one" (Jn 17:21). In the 1993 Roman Catholic Directory for Ecumenism, we read: "Ecumenism calls for renewal of attitudes and for flexibility of methods in the search for unity" (#56). We also read in the same document that all the faithful are called to make a personal commitment toward promoting increasing communion with other Christians (#55). It is for this reason that it is crucial to know and practice what we believe. Being well informed in our own faith and in the faith of the other, including an understanding of that which divides us, best enables us to respect one another and realistically appreciate that which we have in common. As we journey into the new millennium, it is important that we allow our common Baptism and our common faith in Jesus to touch us in our relationship with other Christians. Pope John Paul II, in his Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente (As the Third Millennium Draws Near), writes:
Among the most fervent petitions which the Church makes to the Lord during this important time, as the eve of the new millennium approaches, is that unity among all Christians of the various confessions will increase until they reach full communion. I pray that the Jubilee will be a promising opportunity for fruitful cooperation in the many areas which unite us; these are unquestionably more numerous than those which divide ... In this way the Jubilee will bear witness even more forcefully before the world that the disciples of Christ are fully resolved to reach full unity as soon as possible in the certainty that "nothing is impossible with God" (#16).Pope John Paul II is clearly indicating that this Great Jubilee is not just a celebration; rather, it provides an opportunity to more effectively evangelize the entire world. There will be a powerful evangelization when we have unity among all Christians.
Take a few moments of silence to reflect on the following questions. Then share your reflections.
No sharing would be complete without a commitment to putting our faith into practice. As you reflected on God's Word and shared insights with others in your small community, you were open to the grace of God. What is the specific action God is inviting you to take to change your own life or to respond to someone else's need? Choose a specific, concrete action that flows from your sharing. The examples below are given only as ideas to generate a creative response.
If you wish to do so, share your commitment with others in your small community.
Beginning in Season IV and continuing into Season V it is suggested that small communities become ecumenical. Pray for openness and a willingness to share your faith with those of other Christian congregations if it is possible in your local setting.
Offer spontaneous prayers of gratitude for your faith. Everyone responds, "We thank you, God."
If you wish to do so, sing "We Walk by Faith" by Marty Haugen or another appropriate song.
Close with the Our Father.
Please read and reflect on the upcoming session, Unity in the Human Family in the New Millennium, before the next meeting so that you can come prepared to listen and share.
Excerpts from Renew 2000 text are presented in italics.
It is faith in Jesus and these basic beliefs [the Nicene Creed] that Christians still have in common.
This is patently false. Only Catholic Christians believe all of what is contained in the Nicene Creed. Even some dissenters in the Catholic Church do not believe in all the Truths stated by the Nicene Creed. Various other Christian faiths, including the multitude of Protestant sects (some 20,000 and counting) which splintered from the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church starting back in the days of Martin Luther, accept only parts of these Truths. It is misleading and downright erroneous to claim that all Christians share all the beliefs stated in the Nicene Creed. In fact, Protestantism was formally condemned as heresy at the Council of Trent. Since the Nicene Creed was established by a formal Ecumenical Council of the Church, it infallibly expresses the Truth which God requires us to believe if we are to call ourselves Catholic.
As we enter the new millennium, we have a unique opportunity to gather as Christians united in the bond of Jesus, to live the spirit of ecumenism.
Real credal differences need to be examined and discussed.
As we enter this significant moment in which we celebrate the birth of Jesus, we have a wonderful opportunity to bring an end to the scandal of division in Christianity and to bring the true message of Jesus-the message of unity-to the world.
It is the very nature of the "catholic" (universal) Church to attempt to bring together the variety of ways of believing into a single "whole."
We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.
The Decree on Ecumenism states that ecumenism or the ecumenical movement is "those activities and enterprises which, according to various needs of the Church and opportune occasions, are started and organized for the fostering of unity among Christians" (#4)
In first exploring those areas in which we experience commonality, however, we are better prepared to examine differences.
Am I open to the call from Pope John Paul II to greater unity among all Christians? In what areas do I need to become more open?
Given the Nicene Creed expresses God's Truth infallibly and accurately, RENEW 2000 proposes the notion of a false ecumenism, that of pluralism. We are not to "examine and discuss" only to come to a compromise, but rather to bring the peoples of the earth into the same - Catholic - belief of God's Truths. What RENEW 2000 doesn't say is as important as what it does say - that being the real - Catholic - definition of ecumenism. This is covered later.
The scandal of division began with heretics in the early Church, which then really accelerated due to Martin Luther (founder of the Lutherans and hence all of Protestantism) and has continued unabated today, with some tens of thousands of Christian denominations in existence, all claiming to have the Truth but all contradicting and conflicting with one another. Hundred of millions of Protestant Christians do not believe in the "One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church." There are not a "variety of ways of believing" the Truth (which is pluralism), but only one Truth - the Catholic Truth. True unity will only be achieved when all peoples accept the Truth as proclaimed by Jesus Christ's only established Church on earth, the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church. And that is the goal of proper Catholic ecumenical work - to bring all into the Catholic Faith, which possesses the fullness of Truth - the "whole Truth." Vatican II (Unitatis Redintegratio) defines Ecumenism thusly: "The restoration of unity among all Christians is one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council. Christ the Lord founded one Church and one Church only."
#2. In order to establish this His holy Church everywhere in the world till the end of time, Christ entrusted to the College of the Twelve the task of teaching, ruling and sanctifying. (Cf. Mt. 28, 18-20, collato Jn. 20 21-23.) Among their number He selected Peter, and after his confession of faith determined that on him He would build His Church. Also to Peter He promised the keys of the kingdom of heaven (Cf. Mt. 16, 18, collato Mt. 18, 18.), and after His profession of love, entrusted all His sheep to him to be confirmed in faith (Cf. Lc. 22, 32.) and shepherded in perfect unity. Christ Jesus Himself was forever to remain the chief cornerstone (Cf. Eph. 2, 20.) and shepherd of our souls. (Cf. 1 Petr. 2)#1. "However, many Christian communions present themselves to men as the true inheritors of Jesus Christ; all indeed profess to be followers of the Lord but differ in mind and go their different ways, as if Christ Himself were divided. Such division openly contradicts the will of Christ, scandalizes the world, and damages the holy cause of preaching the Gospel to every creature."
Jesus Christ, then, willed that the apostles and their successors - the bishops with Peter's successor at their head - should preach the Gospel faithfully, administer the sacraments, and rule the Church in love. It is thus, under the action of the Holy Spirit, that Christ wills His people to increase, and He perfects His people's fellowship in unity: in their confessing the one faith, celebrating divine worship in common, and keeping the fraternal harmony of the family of God.
The Church, then, is God's only flock; it is like a standard lifted high for the nations to see it: (Cf. Is. 11, 10-12.) for it serves all mankind through the Gospel of peace (Cf. Eph. 2, 17-18, collato Mc. 16, 15.) as it makes its pilgrim way in hope toward the goal of the fatherland above. (Cf. 1 Petr. 1, 3-9.)
#3. "For it is only through Christ's Catholic Church, which is 'the all-embracing means of salvation,' that they can benefit fully from the means of salvation. We believe that Our Lord entrusted all the blessings of the New Covenant to the apostolic college alone, of which Peter is the head, in order to establish the one Body of Christ on earth to which all should be fully incorporated who belong in any way to the people of God."
Pope John Paul II, in the true meaning of the Council of Vatican II, further explains in his Encyclical Ut Unum Sint (That They May be One):
#18. Taking up an idea expressed by Pope John XXIII at the opening of the Council,[31] the Decree on Ecumenism [Unitatis Redintegratio] mentions the way of formulating doctrine as one of the elements of a continuing reform.[32] Here it is not a question of altering the deposit of faith, changing the meaning of dogmas, eliminating essential words from them, accommodating truth to the preferences of a particular age, or suppressing certain articles of the Creed under the false pretext that they are no longer understood today. The unity willed by God can be attained only by the adherence of all to the content of revealed faith in its entirety. In matters of faith, compromise is in contradiction with God who is Truth. In the Body of Christ, "the way, and the truth, and the life" (Jn 14:6), who could consider legitimate a reconciliation brought about at the expense of the truth? The Council's Declaration on Religious Freedom Dignitatis Humanae attributes to human dignity the quest for truth, "especially in what concerns God and his Church",[33] and adherence to truth's demands. A "being together" which betrayed the truth would thus be opposed both to the nature of God who offers his communion and to the need for truth found in the depths of every human heart.
#97. The Catholic Church, both in her praxis and in her solemn documents, holds that the communion of the particular Churches with the Church of Rome, and of their Bishops with the Bishop of Rome, is-in God's plan-an essential requisite of full and visible communion. Indeed full communion, of which the Eucharist is the highest sacramental manifestation, needs to be visibly expressed in a ministry in which all the Bishops recognize that they are united in Christ and all the faithful find confirmation for their faith. The first part of the Acts of the Apostles presents Peter as the one who speaks in the name of the apostolic group and who serves the unity of the community all the while respecting the authority of James, the head of the Church in Jerusalem. This function of Peter must continue in the Church so that under her sole Head, who is Jesus Christ, she may be visibly present in the world as the communion of all his disciples.
While the Scriptures are our common root of faith, the early creeds offer us the summary of the faith that was handed on throughout the ages.
Am I open to the ways in which we, as Christians, sharing one Baptism, can come together around the Scriptures and to all that we have in common?
The Catholic Church teaches that Scripture and Tradition contain our Faith. In fact, the Bible - Scripture - wasn't formally assembled as we know it until the year 397 at the Council of Carthage which was subsequently approved by the Pope. One must realize that the Catholic Church existed (obviously) for almost 400 years before the Canon of Scripture (the books in the Bible) was complete. The Protestant Christians do not accept Catholic Sacred Tradition nor the Catholic Bible. Protestant Bibles have deleted seven of the seventy-three books and modified the text in many others.
RENEW 2000 hints at the erroneous Protestant method of looking at Faith - as sourced from the Bible. And any Catholic who compares his beliefs with a Protestant Christian will certainly know that the Protestants dissent from hundreds of Catholic teachings, such as the priesthood and the True Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, to name a few, all based on their interpretation of their version of a Bible. Vatican II Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, refers to Tradition many times, some of which are listed below. In summary, the Church contains the root of our Faith and is obligated to teach and preserve it from error, while the Scriptures are only a part, important certainly, of that Faith. For a full treatment of this topic, please obtain the book "Where We Got the Bible - Our Debt to the Catholic Church," by Henry G. Graham, published and available from Catholic Answers.
#14. "This holy Council first of all turns its attention to the Catholic faithful. Basing itself on scripture and tradition, it teaches that the Church, a pilgrim now on earth, is necessary for salvation: the one Christ is mediator and the way of salvation; he is present to us in his body which is the Church. ..."
#20. "That divine mission, which was committed by Christ to the apostles, is destined to last until the end of the world (cf. Mt. 28:20), since the Gospel, which they were charged to hand on, is, for the Church, the principle of all its life for all time. For that very reason the apostles were careful to appoint successors in this hierarchically constituted society."
"In fact, not only had they various helpers in their ministry,[4] but, in order that the mission entrusted to them might be continued after their death, they consigned, by will and testament, as it were, to their immediate collaborators the duty of completing and consolidating the work they had begun,[5] urging them to tend to the whole flock, in which the Holy Spirit had appointed them to shepherd the Church of God (cf. Acts 20:28). They accordingly designated such men and then made the ruling that likewise on their death other proven men should take over their ministry.[6] Amongst those various offices which have been exercised in the Church from the earliest times the chief place, according to the witness of tradition, is held by the function of those who, through their appointment to the dignity and responsibility of bishop, and in virtue consequently of the unbroken succession, going back to the beginning,[7] are regarded as transmitters of the apostolic line.[8] Thus, according to the testimony of St. Irenaeus, the apostolic tradition is manifested[9] and preserved[10] in the whole world by those who were made bishops by the apostles and by their successors down to our own time."
#25. "... Furthermore, when the Roman Pontiff, or the body of bishops together with him, define a doctrine, they make the definition in conformity with revelation itself, to which all are bound to adhere and to which they are obliged to submit; and this revelation is transmitted integrally either in written form or in oral tradition through the legitimate succession of bishops and above all through the watchful concern of the Roman Pontiff himself- and through the light of the Spirit of truth it is scrupulously preserved in the Church and unerringly explained. ..."
#55. "The sacred writings of the Old and New Testaments, as well as venerable tradition, show the role of the Mother of the Savior in the plan of salvation in an ever clearer light and call our attention to it The books of the Old Testament describe the history of salvation, by which the coming of Christ into the world was slowly prepared. ..."
Then he [Muslim leader] made the statement: "When you Christians get it together, we'd like to sit down and talk with you."
Pope Paul VI, in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (On Evangelization in the Modern World), writes: "As evangelizers, we must offer Christ's faithful not the image of people divided and separated by unedifying quarrels, but the image of people who are mature in faith and capable of finding a meeting point beyond the real tensions, thanks to a shared, sincere and disinterested search for truth" (#77).
This Muslim leader's comment and Pope Paul VI's comment illustrate perfectly what was stated in Vatican II Unitatis Redintegratio:
#1. "However, many Christian communions present themselves to men as the true inheritors of Jesus Christ; all indeed profess to be followers of the Lord but differ in mind and go their different ways, as if Christ Himself were divided. Such division openly contradicts the will of Christ, scandalizes the world, and damages the holy cause of preaching the Gospel to every creature."
Not only do the thousands of conflicting Protestant denominations damage the true Christian cause to evangelize the whole world, but so also do the dissenters in the Catholic Church. As Jesus stated quite clearly, a divided house cannot stand, but His will since He will remain with the Catholic Church until the end of time.
Mark 3:24-25 "If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand."
Matthew 16:18 "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the powers of death [hell] shall not prevail against it."
He [Pope Paul VI] officially apologized for the role that the Catholic Church had played in creating divisions among Christians.
The Pope Paul VI Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Nuntiandi (On Evangelization in the Modern World) is available on-line here. Perhaps you can find the referenced apology?
Oftentimes, when we meet Christians of other congregations, we approach them as people who differ from us rather than as brothers and sisters in Christ with whom we share the gift of Baptism and many common beliefs.
Share a musical evening with Christians of other traditions.
If possible, openly share with a member of another Christian congregation about your common Baptism and beliefs.
Learn how your parish will be inviting Christians of other congregations to share in small communities.
RENEW 2000 places other Christian Protestant denominations at the same level as Catholics in these short statements, implying that Catholics are just one of many Christian traditions. As covered in many topics of RENEW 2000 analysis, the Catholic Church is the one true Church founded personally by Jesus Christ, while other Christian traditions contain only part of the Truth.
Share a musical evening with Christians of other traditions.
The Catholic Church has specific requirements for Sacred music described in "Instruction On Music In The Liturgy" (Musicam Sacram), by the Sacred Congregation of Rites, dated March 5, 1967. Protestant music will not always abide by the Catholic requirements.
In addition, the words of Protestant songs will reflect their beliefs, which may be in conflict with Catholic Truths or omit various Catholic Truth's, such as the true presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. Why not stick to Catholic songs which express the Truth? As the Church has always taught, as explained in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, that prayer and belief must be unified:
#1124 "The Church's faith precedes the faith of the believer who is invited to adhere to it. When the Church celebrates the sacraments, she confesses the faith received from the apostles - whence the ancient saying: lex orandi, lex credendi (or: legem credendi lex statuat supplicandi, according to Prosper of Aquitaine [5th cent.]).[Ep. 8.] The law of prayer is the law of faith: the Church believes as she prays. Liturgy is a constitutive element of the holy and living Tradition. [Cf. Dei Verbum #8]"
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