Final Statement from Episcopal and Roman Catholic Bishops on Their Pilgrimage to Canterbury and Rome
Episcopal News Service. November 9, 1994 [94191]
Roman Catholic and Episcopal bishops from the United States issued the following statement at the conclusion of their ecumenical pilgrimage to London/Canterbury and Rome where they met with Anglican leaders -- including the archbishop of Canterbury -- and Roman Catholic leaders -- including the Pope. November 9, 1994
As American bishops we have been on a journey of struggle and hope to the ancient shrines of our common faith and to the living churches which are challenged to respond to Christ's call to full, visible unity.
While some pessimistic voices speak of a cooling of the dialogue, we have experienced at every step of our journey a fresh urgency to face the pain of our continuing division with honesty and determination. From the archbishop of Canterbury and the Pope, from the real experience of local groups and congregations, to theologians who have invested their lives in these dialogues, we have been encouraged to deepen, rather than diminish, our efforts. As bishops we are pledged to enable and encourage our people in the United States, and our colleagues throughout the world, to foster unity between our two churches.
Every step of the way we felt upheld by the prayers of our people back home in the United States. From the shrine of Edward the Confessor in Westminster Abbey in London and Thomas Becket in Canterbury to the tomb of St. Peter and the ancient Basilica of St. Mary Major in Rome, we prayed for the unity of our churches. And we celebrated the dramatic changes in our relationship as churches and the growing bonds of affection we already enjoy after 25 years of dialogue. We are convinced that the task of stripping away misunderstandings and prejudices must continue. As one bishop reminded us, we have already entered a whole new era in our relationship with each other.
We sought the advice and support of church leaders and local faith communities and we end our pilgrimage deeply encouraged by the realistic vision and perseverance of all those we met along the way.
A pilgrimage is an arduous journey and yet we experienced the overwhelming hospitality, as we gathered in common meals and worship which only increased our longing for full eucharistic communion in God's own time.
We were reminded that the journey itself is often just as important as the goal. While not discounting the pain of our separation, our pilgrimage was marked by a generosity of spirit, a deepening sense of respect and love. We look forward, in faith, to exploring the richness we bring to each other in dialogue and cooperation, especially at the local level.
As we struggle with difficulties along the way, we will draw strength from the Pope's words when he said that our ecumenical hope is "grounded in the very strength of the things which unite us in spite of our differences. Anglicans and Catholics already share a deep faith in mysteries of our Redeemer's life, death and resurrection. These mysteries, made present to us in Baptism, are the wellspring of our lives in the church." During our conversation in Canterbury, Archbishop George Carey urged us to face the "radicality of our baptism" as a source of strength in our search for unity.
With the leaders of our two churches, with scholars who have most graciously given their efforts to reconciliation, and with people living out the ecumenical imperatives of the Gospel in their lives and ministries, we talked openly and honestly about the realistic opportunities and obstacles we face. The ordination of women to the priesthood by Anglicans has emerged as a serious obstacle on our path to unity but we were encouraged to see this development in its deeper ecclesiological significance, exploring what it implies for the whole issue of authority for Christians.
The future belongs to God so we must press on, even when the path seems uncertain and our energy falters. We are certain that the Holy Spirit guides our way -- and we can point to encouraging signs of progress.
Both Archbishop Carey and the Pope affirmed the significance of the new dialogue on ethics, expressed in the document, Life in Christ. We are heartened by the positive response by the Vatican to the significant agreements on Eucharist and ministry.
We are bound together in our common humanity, our human sinfulness, and that makes our differences more understandable and our human fellowship and mutual respect even deeper. As pilgrims on Christ's road to unity, we anticipate more challenges as we are drawn deeper into his love and his will for unity among us. The more intimate we become with each other, as churches in this special relationship, the more we experience the pain of those things that we cannot yet share.
For our own journey, we will draw energy and spiritual strength from the Anglican liturgy we shared with the archbishop of Canterbury in his cathedral at Canterbury, to the prayer at the tomb of Peter and our conversation with the Holy Father, as well as the profound moments of personal grace with all of those who shared our pilgrimage. We are humbled by the generosity of all those who have gone before us on the pilgrimage toward the unity we seek. Pope John Paul II echoed what we also heard from Anglican leaders when he said to us:
It is already a wonderful gift of God's grace that we concur in acknowledging that ecumenical relations are an essential requirement of our obedience to the Lord. Jesus in fact prayed to the Father for his disciples, "that they may be one... so that the world may believe." We can all be encouraged at the progress already made along this road.
The goal of our pilgrimage is clear. The challenges and rewards of the journey are many. However, each step of the way, in joy and in trial, in disappointment and hope, is a shared journey deeper into mystery where the details of progress are by no means as clear as the mandate and the ultimate goal. We commit ourselves to this God-willed unity in faith, sacramental life, effective bonds of communion, and witness to the world. We support our churches in this commitment -- and we call all of our people to join us in this commitment.
- Bishop Alexander Brunett, Roman Catholic Diocese of Helena (Montana)
- Bishop Joseph Gossman, Roman Catholic Diocese of Raleigh (North Carolina)
- Bishop Frank Griswold III, Episcopal Diocese of Chicago
- Bishop Edward Lee, Jr., Episcopal Diocese of Western Michigan
- Bishop Robert Shahan, Episcopal Diocese of Arizona
- Bishop John J. Snyder, Roman Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine (Florida)
- Bishop Frank Terry, Episcopal Diocese of Spokane (Washington)
- Bishop Franklin Turner, Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania.