Anglican-Roman Catholic Statement on Ministry Issued
Diocesan Press Service. December 13, 1973 [73264]
LONDON, England -- Permission for the publication of a Statement on Anglican- Roman Catholic agreement on the doctrine of Ministry has been given by Anglican Archbishop Michael Ramsey of Canterbury and Pope Paul VI.
The document, "Ministry and Ordination: A Statement on the Doctrine of the Ministry Agreed by the Anglican - Roman Catholic International Commission," was completed at the Commission's fifth full meeting held at St. Augustine's College, Canterbury, August 28 - September 6.
The Anglican - Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) was appointed by the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury, and held its first full meeting in 1970. In 1971 the Commission issued its history-making "Agreed Statement on Eucharistic Doctrine," which has been widely studied and welcomed in the Churches.
The ARCIC indicated in the document that the purpose of their work "has been to seek a deeper understanding of Ministry which is consonant with biblical teaching and with the traditions of our common inheritance, and to express in this document the consensus we have reached."
Defining its task as searching for a possible "way of advancing together beyond the doctrinal disagreements of the past" towards "the unity we seek," the ARCIC considers that its Statement on the doctrine of the Ministry "offers a positive contribution to the reconciliation of our churches and of their ministries. "
The Statement contains a full but not exhaustive picture of the ministry in the Churches and seeks to identify the specific role of the ordained ministry. Its three sections on " Ministry in the Life of the Church," "The Ordained Ministry," and "Vocation and Ordination," give a biblically and historically grounded description of "our basic agreement in the doctrinal areas that have been the source of controversy between us, in the wider context of our common convictions about the ministry. "
The Statement covers a variety of subjects, including mission and ministry in the New Testament and the early Church; the ministry of oversight; the ministry of word and sacrament; the priesthood of Christ, of the faithful, and of the ministers; ordination as a sacramental act, and the apostolic succession of bishops and their churches.
The ARCIC's Statement concludes with the affirmation that the "issues raised by the judgment of the Roman Catholic Church on Anglican Orders " have been "put in a new context. " It adds that "agreement on the nature of Ministry is prior to the consideration of the mutual recognition of ministries. " It points out that the Commission is now turning its attention to "problems of authority " and "the question of primacy. "
Attached to the Statement is a note on the Status of the Document, which emphasizes that " it is at present no more than a joint statement of the Commission . . . it is not a declaration by the Roman Catholic Church or by the Anglican Communion. It does not authorize any change in existing ecclesiastical discipline." It stresses, however, that the Statement is being published in order that it may be studied and discussed widely, and it invites comments and criticisms to be sent to its Secretaries.
Bishop Arthur A. Vogel of the Episcopal Diocese of West Missouri, and a member of the ARCIC, hailed the Statement as " one of the happiest consequences of the ecumenical movement. "
" I say that, " he continued, "because the Statement, while important for Anglican-Roman Catholic relations in a narrow sense, is also important for a basic understanding of the Christian Church and Ministry in a wider sense. Firmly rooted in the New Testament and early life of the Church, the Statement stresses the importance of the ministry of the whole Church to the world and the presence of the Spirit in all baptized persons." "The Statement," Bishop Vogel said, "discusses Ministry in the two-fold context of service and community, " both of which "are once again discovered to be of the utmost importance. "
Bishop Vogel said that he believes the Statement "is a significant consensus on the nature of ministry and, if agreed upon, would supply the setting necessary for a mutual recognition of Anglican and Roman Catholic orders to be achieved."
In the United States copies of the Statement are available at The Seabury Bookstore, 815 Second Avenue, New York, N.Y. 10017, and Morehouse-Barlow, Inc., 15 East 41st Street, New York, N.Y. 10017.