Vatican Statement Drawing Strong Reactions
Episcopal News Service. September 14, 2000 [2000-129]
(ENS) A Vatican statement that reaffirms its doctrine that non-Roman Catholic churches "suffer from defects" and that major world religions are "gravely deficient" is drawing angry reactions around the world.
The 36-page declaration, Dominus Iesus, Latin for "Lord Jesus," warns against "religious relativism," arguing that only in the Roman Catholic Church does Christ's church subsist in all her fullness, even though there are elements of truth in other religious bodies. "This truth of faith does not lessen the sincere respect that the Church has for the religions of the world," it says, "but it rules out, in a radical way, that mentality of indifferentism [that] leads to the belief that one religion is as good as another."
Many expressed deep concern that the document, released September 5 by Cardinal Ratzinger of the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith, could threaten ecumenical relationships. Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey said that he found the statement unacceptable, saying that it appears to question efforts to build closer ties among many branches of Christianity. "The idea that Anglican and other churches are not 'proper churches' seems to question the considerable ecumenical gains we have made," he said in a statement.
"The Church of England, and the worldwide Anglican Communion, does not for one moment accept that its orders of ministry and Eucharist are deficient in any way. It believes itself to be a part of the one holy, catholic and apostolic church of Christ," Carey said.
Bishop Frederick Borsch of Los Angeles said that, in one sense, "the statement was nothing new. The Roman Catholic Church has always claimed to be the only church that represents the fullness of the Christian faith." He said that the tone of the statement "seems reflective of a more recent un-ecumenical attitude in the Vatican hierarchy" that does not match good relations on the local level.
Some critics pointed to what they consider a contradiction between the statement and recent efforts to find common ground with non-Catholic churches. Last fall, for example, the Lutheran World Federation (LWF) and the Vatican signed a historic Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification that swept away centuries of conflict between the two churches.
"Lutheran churches, together with other churches of the Reformation, are not ready to accept the categories now emphasized" by the statement, "nor the definitions and criteria underlying them," said the Rev. Ishmael Noko, LWF general secretary. "The impact of these statements is more painful because they reflect a different spirit than that which we encounter in many other Lutheran-Roman Catholic relationships."
The World Council of Churches issued a statement that warned it would be a "tragedy" if the statement obscured 35 years of ecumenical dialogue. The World Alliance of Reformed Churches said that the declaration goes against the spirit of Vatican II "and the progress made in relationships and dialogues since then." General Secretary Setri Nyomi said in a letter that the declaration "raises questions concerning how we can continue in dialogue with integrity-trusting and respecting one another."
In a press conference, Ratzinger said that the statement was necessary to counter a growing belief that other religions can complement the teachings of Christianity. In a climate of tolerance, he said, many people see ecumenical dialogue as an end in itself "Dialogue -- or rather the ideology of dialogue -- becomes a substitute for missionary activity and for the urgency of an appeal to conversion." Any suggestion that all religious beliefs are on the same plane gives rise to what he called a "false idea of tolerance" that rejects the possibility of any objective truth.
The document also said that the term "sister churches," a phrase Pope Paul VI used in describing the Church of England, could be used only in describing "those ecclesial communities that have preserved a valid episcopate and Eucharist," such as the Orthodox but not the Anglicans. In 1896, a papal bull declared Anglican orders to be "absolutely null and void" on the grounds that they were defective in form, rite and intention. Dissident Swiss theologian Hans Kung said that the statement was reactionary. "It's a mixture of medieval backwardness and Vatican megalomania," he said. And he added that it was hypocritical to "continually talk about dialogue while not talking about this colossal pretense of absolutism."
Roman Catholic Archbishop Cormac Murphy-O'Connor of the United Kingdom said that the document was written mainly for bishops and theologians and "certainly no slight is intended by its comments regarding other Christian communities. As Christians we share a common baptism and the Catholic Church believes that this brings us all into a real, if imperfect, communion."
Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles said he was discouraged by interpretations of the document in the press and said that it is best understood in the context of dialogue. "Nowhere in the declaration is there criticism of the fruits of bilateral agreements or of new initiatives taken in inter-religious dialogue," he said. "Nor is there any indication that such dialogues or initiatives are to be halted." He added that Vatican II "clearly affirmed the importance of religious freedom and called for deep and mutual respect among people of different religious traditions."
Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore, a leader in dialogues with the Orthodox and the Jews and a participant in the press conference, said the document is "in full accord with what Vatican II has said." He did not expect it to have a negative effect on ecumenical and interfaith dialogue.
But the House of Bishops of the Church of Ireland expressed disappointment and said that the statement "appears to represent a retreat from much of the ecumenical progress that has been experienced by many communities throughout Ireland."
Comments from the Jewish community said that the statement did not represent friendly and generous gestures by Pope John Paul II, especially in his recent visit to Israel.