After a six-year hiatus, the official Anglican-Roman Catholic
dialogue began a new phase in May, looking at unity within the church
and at the way Christian communities deal with moral questions.
The third phase of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International
Commission, known as ARCIC III, met May 17-27 at an ecumenical monastery
in northern Italy.
Pope Benedict XVI and Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams authorized
the new phase of the dialogue, which is focusing on “the church as
communion, local and universal, and how in communion the local and
universal church come to discern right ethical teaching.”
Since ARCIC II finished its work in 2005, the Anglican Communion has
been experiencing strong internal tensions over the ordination of women
as priests and bishops, the blessing of same-sex unions and the
ordination of openly homosexual clergy.
Differing positions on those
issues also has created a sense that Anglicans and Roman Catholics are
growing further apart, rather than approaching unity.
A statement issued at the end of the meeting said the commission
hopes to use the “receptive ecumenism” approach in its discussions, an
approach “which seeks to make ecumenical progress by learning from our
partner, rather than simply asking our partner to learn from us.
Receptive ecumenism is more about self-examination and inner conversion
that convincing the other,” the statement said.
The commission is expected to work for several years before issuing a document on the themes.
The commission, the statement said, “will analyze particular
(ethical) questions to elucidate how our two communions approach moral
decision making, and how areas of tension for Anglicans and Roman Catholics might be resolved by learning from the other.”
The statement did not say whether commission members had identified the specific ethical questions they would explore.