For those wondering which religion is the one true faith, the Vatican has once again offered its traditional response.A statement released by the Roman Catholic Church saying Protestant denominations are not true churches is drawing criticism from other faith groups, including Seventh-day Adventists, many who say the sentiments expressed are nothing new.
The document, approved by Pope Benedict XVI July 10, said Protestant communities "cannot, according to Catholic doctrine, be called 'Churches' in the proper sense," lacking apostolic succession, or the ability to trace leadership back to Christ's original disciples.
Adventist Church leaders said the statement merely clarified the Catholic Church's traditional position.
"There's nothing surprising here," said Kwabena Donkor, associate director of the Adventist Church's Biblical Research Institute.
"Following Vatican II, the modernization meetings of the Catholic Church in the 1960s, some people had the impression that there were some significant changes in the Catholic Church," Donkor said.
"But there hasn't been. "
"As Seventh-day Adventists, our understanding of the church is completely different," Donkor said. "We don't identify the church as being Christ with the pope as the head."
Other Protestant leaders expressed disappointment regarding the Catholic Church's use of semantics in defining their position.
The Associated Press reported Lutheran Bishop Wolfgang Huber, the top Protestant cleric in Benedict's homeland, Germany, saying the Catholic Church could have chosen phrases that would have better maintained bridges for ongoing inter-faith dialogue.
In a statement titled "Lost Chance," Huber said it would have been sufficient for the Catholic Church to refer to Protestant communities as "not churches in the sense required here" or "churches of another type" the AP reported.
"Such statements from the Vatican do not disappoint or affect Adventists," said John Graz, director of the Adventist Church's Public Affairs and Religious Liberty department.
Graz said the Adventist Church has always been reluctant to join in the ecumenical movement but believes in "unity of spirit, unity of the scriptures and unity in love. "
"Adventists favor good relations and religious freedom for all," Graz said.
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