The Gift of Authority
(Authority in the Church III)
Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC II)
Preface by the Co-Chairmen
An earnest search for full visible unity between the Anglican Communion
and the Roman Catholic Church was initiated over thirty years ago by the historic meeting
in Rome of Archbishop Michael Ramsey and Pope Paul VI. The Commission set up to prepare
for the dialogue recognised, in its 1968 Malta Report, that one of the "urgent
and important tasks" would be to examine the question of authority. In a sense, this
question is at the heart of our sad divisions.
When The Final Report of ARCIC was published in 1981 half of it
was devoted to the dialogue about authority in the Church, with two agreed statements and
an elucidation. This was important groundwork, preparing the way for further convergence.
The official responses, by the
1988 Lambeth Conference of the Anglican Communion and by
the
Catholic Church in 1991, encouraged the Commission to carry forward the
"remarkable progress" that had been made. Accordingly ARCIC now offers this
further agreed statement, The Gift of Authority.
A scriptural image is the key to this statement. In chapter one of his
second letter to the Corinthians, Paul writes of God's "Yes" to humanity
and our answering "Amen" to God, both given in Jesus Christ (cf. 2 Cor 1.19-20).
God's gift of authority to his Church is at the service of God's "Yes"
to his people and their "Amen".
The reader is invited to follow the path that led the Commission to its
conclusions. They are the fruit of five years of dialogue, of patient listening, study,
and prayer together. The statement will, we hope, prompt further theological reflection;
its conclusions present a challenge to our two Churches, not least in regard to the
crucial issue of universal primacy. Authority is about how the Church teaches, acts and
reaches doctrinal decisions in faithfulness to the Gospel, so real agreement about
authority cannot be theoretical. If this statement is to contribute to the reconciliation
of the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church and is accepted, it will require a
response in life and in deed.
Much has happened over these years to deepen our awareness of each
other as brothers and sisters in Christ. Yet our journey towards full, visible unity is
proving longer than some expected and many hoped. We have encountered serious obstacles
which make progress difficult. At such a stage, the persevering, painstaking work of
dialogue is all the more vital. The present Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, and
Pope John Paul II stated very frankly the need for this work on authority when they met in
1996: "Without agreement in this area we shall not reach the full, visible unity to
which we are both committed".
We pray that God will enable the Commission's work to contribute
to the end we all desire, the healing of our divisions so that together we may say a
united "'Amen' to the glory of God" (2 Cor 1.20).
+Cormac Murphy-O'Connor
+Mark Santer
Palazzola
The Feast of St Gregory the Great
3 September 1998
I. Introduction
1. The dialogue between Anglicans and Roman Catholics has shown
significant signs of progress on the question of authority in the Church. This progress
can already be seen in the convergence in understanding of authority achieved by previous
ARCIC statements, notably:
- acknowledgement that the Spirit of the Risen Lord maintains the people of God in
obedience to the Father's will. By this action of the Holy Spirit, the authority of
the Lord is active in the Church (cf. The Final Report, Authority in the Church I, 3);
- a recognition that because of their baptism and their participation in the sensus
fidelium the laity play an integral part in decision making in the Church (cf. Authority
in the Church: Elucidation, 4);
- the complementarity of primacy and conciliarity as elements of episcope within
the Church (cf. Authority in the Church I, 22);
- the need for a universal primacy exercised by the Bishop of Rome as a sign and safeguard
of unity within a re-united Church (cf. Authority in the Church II, 9);
- the need for the universal primate to exercise his ministry in collegial association
with the other bishops (cf. Authority in the Church II, 19);
- an understanding of universal primacy and conciliarity which complements and does not
supplant the exercise of episcope in local churches (cf. Authority in the Church
I, 21-23; Authority in the Church II, 19).
2. This convergence has been officially noted by the authorities of the
Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church. The Lambeth Conference, meeting in 1988,
not only saw the ARCIC agreements on eucharistic doctrine and on ministry and ordination
as consonant in substance with the faith of Anglicans (Resolution 8:1) but affirmed
that the agreed statements on authority in the church provided a basis for further
dialogue (Resolution 8:3). Similarly, the Holy See, in its official response of
1991, recognising areas of agreement on questions of very great importance for the faith
of the Roman Catholic Church, such as the Eucharist and the Church's ministry, noted
the signs of convergence between our two communions on the question of authority in the
Church, indicating that this opened the way to further progress.
3. However, the authorities of our two communions have asked for
further exploration of areas where, although there has been convergence, they believe that
a necessary consensus has not yet been achieved. These areas include:
- the relationship between Scripture, Tradition and the exercise of teaching authority;
- collegiality, conciliarity, and the role of laity in decision making;
- the Petrine ministry of universal primacy in relation to Scripture and Tradition.
Even though progress has been made, some serious difficulties have
emerged on the way to unity. Issues concerning authority have been raised acutely for each
of our communions. For example, debates and decisions about the ordination of women have
led to questions about the sources and structures of authority and how they function for
Anglicans and Roman Catholics.
4. In both communions the exploration of how authority should be
exercised at different levels has been open to the perspectives of other churches on these
issues. For example,
The
Virginia Report of the Inter-Anglican Theological and
Doctrinal Commission (prepared for the Lambeth Conference of 1998) declares: "The
long history of ecumenical involvement, both locally and internationally, has shown us
that Anglican discernment and decision making must take account of the insights into truth
and the Spirit-led wisdom of our ecumenical partners. Moreover, any decisions we take must
be offered for the discernment of the universal Church" (The Virginia Report, 6.37).
Pope John Paul II also, in his Encyclical Letter
Ut Unum Sint, invited leaders and
theologians of other churches to engage with him in a fraternal dialogue on how the
particular ministry of unity of the Bishop of Rome might be exercised in a new situation
(cf. Ut Unum Sint, 95-96).
5. There is an extensive debate about the nature and exercise of
authority both in the churches and in wider society. Anglicans and Roman Catholics want to
witness, both to the churches and to the world, that authority rightly exercised is a gift
of God to bring reconciliation and peace to humankind. The exercise of authority can be
oppressive and destructive. It may, indeed, often be so in human societies and even in
churches when they uncritically adopt certain patterns of authority. The exercise of
authority in the ministry of Jesus shows a different way. It is in conformity with the
mind and example of Christ that the Church is called to exercise authority (cf. Lk
22.24-27; Jn 13.14-15; Phil 2.1-11). For the exercise of this authority the Church is
endowed by the Holy Spirit with a variety of gifts and ministries (cf. 1 Cor 12.4-11; Eph
4.11-12).
6. From the beginning of its work, ARCIC has considered questions of
Church teaching or practice in the context of our real but imperfect communion in Christ
and the visible unity to which we are called. The Commission has always sought to get
behind opposed and entrenched positions to discover and develop our common inheritance.
Building on the previous work of ARCIC, the Commission offers a further statement on how
the gift of authority, rightly exercised, enables the Church to continue in obedience to
the Holy Spirit, who keeps it faithful in the service of the Gospel for the salvation of
the world. We wish further to clarify how the exercise and acceptance of authority in the
Church is inseparable from the response of believers to the Gospel, how it is related to
the dynamic interaction of Scripture and Tradition, and how it is expressed and
experienced in the communion of the churches and the collegiality of their bishops. In the
light of these insights we have come to a deepened understanding of a universal primacy
which serves the unity of all the local churches.
II. Authority in the Church
Jesus Christ: God's "Yes" to Us and our
"Amen" to God
7. God is the author of life. By his Word and Spirit, in perfect
freedom, God calls life into being. In spite of human sin, God in perfect faithfulness
remains the author of the hope of new life for all. In Jesus Christ's work of
redemption God renews his promise to his creation, for "God's purpose is to
bring all people into communion with himself within a transformed creation" (ARCIC, Church as Communion, 16). The Spirit of God continues to work in creation and redemption to
bring this purpose of reconciliation and unity to completion. The root of all true
authority is thus the activity of the triune God, who authors life in all its fullness.
8. The authority of Jesus Christ is that of the "faithful
witness", the "Amen" (cf. Rev 1.5; 3.14) in whom all the promises of God
find their "Yes". When Paul had to defend the authority of his teaching he did
so by pointing to the trustworthy authority of God: "As surely as God is faithful,
our word to you has not been Yes and No. For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we
preached among you
was not Yes and No; but in him it is always Yes. For all the
promises of God find their Yes in him. That is why we utter the Amen through him, to the
glory of God" (2 Cor 1.18-20). Paul speaks of the "Yes" of God to us and
the "Amen" of the Church to God. In Jesus Christ, Son of God and born of a
woman, the "Yes" of God to humanity and the "Amen" of humanity to God
become a concrete human reality. This theme of God's "Yes" and
humanity's "Amen" in Jesus Christ is the key to the exposition of authority
in this statement.
9. In the life and ministry of Jesus, who came to do his Father's
will (cf. Heb 10.5-10) even unto death (cf. Phil 2.8; Jn 10.18), God provided the perfect
human "Amen" to his purpose of reconciliation. In his life, Jesus expressed his
total dedication to the Father (cf. Jn 5.19). The way Jesus exercised authority in his
earthly ministry was perceived by his contemporaries as something new. It was recognised
in his powerful teaching and in his healing and liberating word (cf. Mt 7.28-29; Mk
1.22,27). Most of all, his authority was demonstrated by his self-giving service in
sacrificial love (cf. Mk 10.45). Jesus spoke and acted with authority because of his
perfect communion with the Father. His authority came from the Father (cf. Mt 11.27; Jn
14.10-12). It is to the Risen Lord that all authority is given in heaven and on earth (cf.
Mt 28.18). Jesus Christ now lives and reigns with the Father, in the unity of the Holy
Spirit; he is the Head of his Body, the Church, and Lord of all Creation (cf. Eph
1.18-23).
10. The life-giving obedience of Jesus Christ calls forth through the
Spirit our "Amen" to God the Father. In this "Amen" through Christ we
glorify God, who gives the Spirit in our hearts as a pledge of his faithfulness (cf. 2 Cor
1.20-22). We are called in Christ to witness to God's purpose (cf. Lk 24.46-49), a
witness that may for us too include obedience to the point of death. In Christ obedience
is not a burden (cf. 1 Jn 5.3). It springs from the liberation given by the Spirit of God.
The divine "Yes" and our "Amen" are clearly seen in baptism, when in
the company of the faithful we say "Amen" to God's work in Christ. By the
Spirit, our "Amen" as believers is incorporated in the "Amen" of
Christ, through whom, with whom, and in whom we worship the Father.
The Believer's "Amen" in the "Amen" of the
Local Church
11. The Gospel comes to people in a variety of ways: the witness and
life of a parent or other Christian, the reading of the Scriptures, participation in the
liturgy, or some other spiritual experience. Acceptance of the Gospel is also enacted in
many ways: in being baptised, in renewal of commitment, in a decision to remain faithful,
or in acts of self-giving to those in need. In these actions the person says,
"Indeed, Jesus Christ is my God: he is for me salvation, the
source of hope, the true face of the living God."
12. When a believer says "Amen" to Christ individually, a
further dimension is always involved: an "Amen" to the faith of the Christian
community. The person who receives baptism must come to know the full implication of
participating in divine life within the Body of Christ. The believer's
"Amen" to Christ becomes yet more complete as that person receives all that the
Church, in faithfulness to the Word of God, affirms to be the authentic content of divine
revelation. In that way, the "Amen" said to what Christ is for each believer
is incorporated within the "Amen" the Church says to what Christ is for his
Body. Growing into this faith may be for some an experience of questioning and
struggle. For all it is one in which the integrity of the believer's conscience has a
vital part to play. The believer's "Amen" to Christ is so fundamental that
individual Christians throughout their life are called to say "Amen" to all that
the whole company of Christians receives and teaches as the authentic meaning of the
Gospel and the way to follow Christ.
13. Believers follow Christ in communion with other Christians in their
local church (cf. Authority in the Church I, 8, where it is explained that
"the unity of local communities under one bishop constitutes what is commonly meant
in our two communions by a local church'"). In the local church they share
Christian life, together finding guidance for the formation of their conscience and
strength to face their difficulties. They are sustained by the means of grace which God
provides for his people: the Holy Scriptures, expounded in preaching, catechesis and
creeds; the sacraments; the service of the ordained ministry; the life of prayer and
common worship; the witness of holy persons. The believer is incorporated into an
"Amen" of faith, older, deeper, broader, richer than the individual's
"Amen" to the Gospel. So the relation between the faith of the individual and
the faith of the Church is more complex than may sometimes appear. Every baptised person
shares the rich experience of the Church which, even when it struggles with contemporary
questions, continues to proclaim what Christ is for his Body. Each believer, by the
grace of the Spirit, together with all believers of all times and all places, inherits
this faith of the Church in the communion of saints. Believers then live out a twofold
"Amen" within the continuity of worship, teaching and practice of their local
church. This local church is a eucharistic community. At the centre of its life is the
celebration of the Holy Eucharist in which all believers hear and receive God's
"Yes" in Christ to them. In the Great Thanksgiving, when the memorial of God's
gift in the saving work of Christ crucified and risen is celebrated, the community is at
one with all Christians of all the churches who, since the beginning and until the end,
pronounce humanity's "Amen" to God - the "Amen" which the Apocalypse
affirms is at the heart of the great liturgy of heaven (cf. Rev 5.14; 7.12).
Tradition and Apostolicity: The Local Church's "Amen"
in the Communion of the Churches
14. The "Yes" of God commands and invites the "Amen" of believers.
The revealed Word, to which the apostolic community originally bore witness, is received
and communicated through the life of the whole Christian community. Tradition (paradosis)
refers to this process. The Gospel of Christ crucified and risen is continually handed on
and received (cf. 1 Cor 15.3) in the Christian churches. This tradition, or handing on, of
the Gospel is the work of the Spirit, especially through the ministry of Word and
Sacrament and in the common life of the people of God. Tradition is a dynamic process,
communicating to each generation what was delivered once for all to the apostolic
community. Tradition is far more than the transmission of true propositions concerning
salvation. A minimalist understanding of Tradition that would limit it to a storehouse of
doctrine and ecclesial decisions is insufficient. The Church receives, and must hand on,
all those elements that are constitutive of ecclesial communion: baptism, confession of
the apostolic faith, celebration of the Eucharist, leadership by an apostolic ministry
(cf. Church as Communion, 15, 43). In the economy (oikonomia) of God's
love for humanity, the Word who became flesh and dwelt among us is at the centre of what
was transmitted from the beginning and what will be transmitted until the end.
15. Tradition is a channel of the love of God, making it accessible in
the Church and in the world today. Through it, from one generation to another, and from
one place to another, humanity shares communion in the Holy Trinity. By the process of
tradition, the Church ministers the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the koinonia
of the Holy Spirit (cf. 2 Cor 13.14). Therefore Tradition is integral to the economy of
grace, love and communion. For those whose ears have not heard and eyes have not seen, the
moment of receiving the saving Gospel is an experience of enlightenment, forgiveness,
healing, liberation. Those who participate in the communion of the Gospel cannot refrain
from transmitting it to others, even if this means martyrdom. Tradition is both a treasure
to be received by the people of God and a gift to be shared with all humanity.
16. Apostolic Tradition is a gift of God which must be constantly
received anew. By means of it, the Holy Spirit forms, maintains and sustains the communion
of the local churches from one generation to the next. The handing on and reception of
apostolic Tradition is an act of communion whereby the Spirit unites the local churches of
our day with those that preceded them in the one apostolic faith. The process of tradition
entails the constant and perpetual reception and communication of the revealed Word of God
in many varied circumstances and continually changing times. The Church's
"Amen" to apostolic Tradition is a fruit of the Spirit who constantly guides the
disciples into all the truth; that is, into Christ who is the way, the truth and the life
(cf. Jn 16.13; 14.6).
17. Tradition expresses the apostolicity of the Church. What the
apostles received and proclaimed is now found in the Tradition of the Church where the
Word of God is preached and the sacraments of Christ celebrated in the power of the Holy
Spirit. The churches today are committed to receiving the one living apostolic Tradition,
to ordering their life according to it, and to transmitting it in such a way that the
Christ who comes in glory will find the people of God confessing and living the faith once
for all entrusted to the saints (cf. Jude 3).
18. Tradition makes the witness of the apostolic community present in
the Church today through its corporate memory. Through the proclamation of the Word
and the celebration of the sacraments the Holy Spirit opens the hearts of believers and
manifests the Risen Lord to them. The Spirit, active in the once for all events of the
ministry of Jesus, continues to teach the Church, bringing to remembrance what Christ did
and said, making present the fruits of his redemptive work and the foretaste of the
kingdom (cf. Jn 2.22; 14.26). The purpose of Tradition is fulfilled when, through the
Spirit, the Word is received and lived out in faith and hope. The witness of proclamation,
sacraments and life in communion is at one and the same time the content of Tradition and
its result. Thus memory bears fruit in the faithful life of believers within the communion
of their local church.
The Holy Scriptures: The "Yes" of God and the
"Amen" of God's People
19. Within Tradition the Scriptures occupy a unique and normative place
and belong to what has been given once for all. As the written witness to God's
"Yes" they require the Church constantly to measure its teaching, preaching and
action against them. "Since the Scriptures are the uniquely inspired witness to
divine revelation, the Church's expression of that revelation must be tested by its
consonance with Scripture" (Authority in the Church: Elucidation, 2).
Through the Scriptures God's revelation is made present and transmitted in the life
of the Church. The "Yes" of God is recognised in and through the
"Amen" of the Church which receives the authentic revelation of God. By
receiving certain texts as true witnesses to divine revelation, the Church identified its
Holy Scriptures. It regards this corpus alone as the inspired Word of God written and, as
such, uniquely authoritative.
20. The Scriptures bring together diverse streams of Jewish and
Christian traditions. These traditions reveal the way God's Word has been received,
interpreted and passed on in specific contexts according to the needs, the culture, and
the circumstances of the people of God. They contain God's revelation of his salvific
design, which was realised in Jesus Christ and experienced in the earliest Christian
communities. In these communities God's "Yes" was received in a new way.
Within the New Testament we can see how the Scriptures of the First Testament were both
received as revelation of the one true God and also reinterpreted and re-received as
revelation of his final Word in Christ.
21. All the writers of the New Testament were influenced by the
experience of their own local communities. What they transmitted, with their own skill and
theological insights, records those elements of the Gospel which the churches of their
time and in their various situations kept in their memory. Paul's teaching about the
Body of Christ, for instance, owes much to the problems and divisions of the local church
in Corinth. When Paul speaks about "our authority which the Lord gave for building
you up and not for destroying you" (2 Cor 10.8), he does so in the context of his
turbulent relationship with the church of Corinth. Even in the central affirmations of our
faith there is often a clear echo of the concrete and sometimes dramatic situation of a
local church or of a group of local churches, to which we are indebted for the faithful
transmission of apostolic Tradition. The emphasis in the Johannine literature on the
presence of the Lord in the flesh of a human body that could be seen and touched both
before and after the resurrection (cf. Jn 20.27; 1 Jn 4.2) is linked to the conflict in
the Johannine communities on this issue. It is through the struggle of particular
communities at particular times to discern God's Word for them that we have in
Scripture an authoritative record of the apostolic Tradition which is to be passed from
one generation to another and from one church to another, and to which the faithful say
"Amen".
22. The formation of the canon of the Scriptures was an integral part
of the process of tradition. The Church's recognition of these Scriptures as
canonical, after a long period of critical discernment, was at the same time an act of
obedience and of authority. It was an act of obedience in that the Church discerned
and received God's life-giving "Yes" through the Scriptures, accepting them
as the norm of faith. It was an act of authority in that the Church, under the
guidance of the Holy Spirit, received and handed on these texts, declaring that they were
inspired and that others were not to be included in the canon.
23. The meaning of the revealed Gospel of God is fully understood only
within the Church. God's revelation has been entrusted to a community. The Church
cannot properly be described as an aggregate of individual believers, nor can its faith be
considered the sum of the beliefs held by individuals. Believers are together the people
of faith because they are incorporated by baptism into a community which receives the
canonical Scriptures as the authentic Word of God; they receive faith within this
community. The faith of the community precedes the faith of the individual. So, though one
person's journey of faith may begin with individual reading of Scripture, it cannot
remain there. Individualistic interpretation of the Scriptures is not attuned to the
reading of the text within the life of the Church and is incompatible with the nature of
the authority of the revealed Word of God (cf. 2 Pet 1.20-21). Word of God and Church of
God cannot be put asunder.
Reception and Re-Reception: The Church's "Amen" to the
Word of God
24. Throughout the centuries, the Church receives and acknowledges as a
gracious gift from God all that it recognises as a true expression of the Tradition which
has been once for all delivered to the apostles. This reception is at one and the same
time an act of faithfulness and of freedom. The Church must continue faithful so that the
Christ who comes in glory will recognise in the Church the community he founded; it must
continue to be free to receive the apostolic Tradition in new ways according to the
situations by which it is confronted. The Church has the responsibility to hand on the
whole apostolic Tradition, even though there may be parts which it finds hard to integrate
in its life and worship. It may be that what was of great significance for an earlier
generation will again be important in the future, though its importance is not clear in
the present.
25. Within the Church the memory of the people of God may be affected
or even distorted by human finitude and sin. Even though promised the assistance of the
Holy Spirit, the churches from time to time lose sight of aspects of the apostolic
Tradition, failing to discern the full vision of the kingdom of God in the light of which
we seek to follow Christ. The churches suffer when some element of ecclesial communion has
been forgotten, neglected or abused. Fresh recourse to Tradition in a new situation is the
means by which God's revelation in Christ is recalled. This is assisted by the
insights of biblical scholars and theologians and the wisdom of holy persons. Thus, there
may be a rediscovery of elements that were neglected and a fresh remembrance of the
promises of God, leading to renewal of the Church's "Amen". There may also
be a sifting of what has been received because some of the formulations of the Tradition
are seen to be inadequate or even misleading in a new context. This whole process may be
termed re-reception.
Catholicity: The "Amen" of the Whole Church
26. There are two dimensions to communion in the apostolic Tradition:
diachronic and synchronic. The process of tradition clearly entails the transmission of
the Gospel from one generation to another (diachronic). If the Church is to remain united
in the truth, it must also entail the communion of the churches in all places in that one
Gospel (synchronic). Both are necessary for the catholicity of the Church. Christ promises
that the Holy Spirit will keep the essential and saving truth in the memory of the Church,
empowering it for mission (cf. Jn 14.26; 15.26-27). This truth has to be transmitted and
received anew by the faithful in all ages and in all places throughout the world, in
response to the diversity and complexity of human experience. There is no part of
humanity, no race, no social condition, no generation, for whom this salvation,
communicated in the handing on of the Word of God, is not intended (cf. Church as
Communion, 34).
27. In the rich diversity of human life, encounter with the living
Tradition produces a variety of expressions of the Gospel. Where diverse expressions are
faithful to the Word revealed in Jesus Christ and transmitted by the apostolic community,
the churches in which they are found are truly in communion. Indeed, this diversity of
traditions is the practical manifestation of catholicity and confirms rather than
contradicts the vigour of Tradition. As God has created diversity among humans, so the
Church's fidelity and identity require not uniformity of expression and formulation
at all levels in all situations, but rather catholic diversity within the unity of
communion. This richness of traditions is a vital resource for a reconciled humanity.
"Human beings were created by God in his love with such diversity in order that they
might participate in that love by sharing with one another both what they have and what
they are, thus enriching each other in their mutual communion" (Church as
Communion, 35).
28. The people of God as a whole is the bearer of the living Tradition.
In changing situations producing fresh challenges to the Gospel, the discernment,
actualisation and communication of the Word of God is the responsibility of the whole
people of God. The Holy Spirit works through all members of the community, using the gifts
he gives to each for the good of all. Theologians in particular serve the communion of the
whole Church by exploring whether and how new insights should be integrated into the
ongoing stream of Tradition. In each community there is an exchange, a mutual
give-and-take, in which bishops, clergy and lay people receive from as well as give to
others within the whole body.
29. In every Christian who is seeking to be faithful to Christ and is
fully incorporated into the life of the Church, there is a sensus fidei. This sensus
fidei may be described as an active capacity for spiritual discernment, an intuition
that is formed by worshipping and living in communion as a faithful member of the Church.
When this capacity is exercised in concert by the body of the faithful we may speak of the
exercise of the sensus fidelium (cf. Authority in the Church: Elucidation,
3-4). The exercise of the sensus fidei by each member of the Church contributes to
the formation of the sensus fidelium through which the Church as a whole remains
faithful to Christ. By the sensus fidelium, the whole body contributes to, receives
from and treasures the ministry of those within the community who exercise episcope,
watching over the living memory of the Church (cf. Authority in the Church I, 5-6).
In diverse ways the "Amen" of the individual believer is thus incorporated
within the "Amen" of the whole Church.
30. Those who exercise episcope in the Body of Christ must not
be separated from the symphony' of the whole people of God in which they have
their part to play. They need to be alert to the sensus fidelium, in which they
share, if they are to be made aware when something is needed for the well-being and
mission of the community, or when some element of the Tradition needs to be received in a
fresh way. The charism and function of episcope are specifically connected to the ministry
of memory, which constantly renews the Church in hope. Through such ministry the Holy
Spirit keeps alive in the Church the memory of what God did and revealed, and the hope of
what God will do to bring all things into unity in Christ. In this way, not only from
generation to generation, but also from place to place, the one faith is communicated and
lived out. This is the ministry exercised by the bishop, and by ordained persons under the
bishop's care, as they proclaim the Word, minister the sacraments, and take their
part in administering discipline for the common good. The bishops, the clergy and the
other faithful must all recognise and receive what is mediated from God through each
other. Thus the sensus fidelium of the people of God and the ministry of memory
exist together in reciprocal relationship.
31. Anglicans and Roman Catholics can agree in principle on all of the
above, but need to make a deliberate effort to retrieve this shared understanding. When
Christian communities are in real but imperfect communion they are called to recognise in
each other elements of the apostolic Tradition which they may have rejected, forgotten or
not yet fully understood. Consequently, they have to receive or reappropriate these
elements, and reconsider the ways in which they have separately interpreted the
Scriptures. Their life in Christ is enriched when they give to, and receive from, each
other. They grow in understanding and experience of their catholicity as the sensus
fidelium and the ministry of memory interact in the communion of believers. In this
economy of giving and receiving within real but imperfect communion, they move closer to
an undivided sharing in Christ's one "Amen" to the glory of God.
III. The Exercise of Authority in the Church
Proclaiming the Gospel: the Exercise of Authority for Mission and
Unity
32. The authority which Jesus bestowed on his disciples was, above all,
the authority for mission, to preach and to heal (cf. Lk 9.1-2, 10.1). The Risen Christ
empowered them to spread the Gospel to the whole world (cf. Mt 28.18-20). In the early
Church, the preaching of the Word of God in the power of the Spirit was seen as the
defining characteristic of apostolic authority (cf. 1 Cor 1.17, 2.4-5). In the
proclamation of Christ crucified, the "Yes" of God to humanity is made a present
reality and all are invited to respond with their "Amen". Thus, the exercise of
ministerial authority within the Church, not least by those entrusted with the ministry of
episcope, has a radically missionary dimension. Authority is exercised within the
Church for the sake of those outside it, that the Gospel may be proclaimed "in power
and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction" (1 Thess 1.5). This authority
enables the whole Church to embody the Gospel and become the missionary and prophetic
servant of the Lord.
33. Jesus prayed to the Father that his followers might be one "so
that the world may know that you have sent me and have loved them even as you have loved
me" (Jn 17.23). When Christians do not agree about the Gospel itself, the preaching
of it in power is impaired. When they are not one in faith they cannot be one in life, and
so cannot demonstrate fully that they are faithful to the will of God, which is the
reconciliation through Christ of all things to the Father (cf. Col 1.20). As long as the
Church does not live as the community of reconciliation God calls it to be, it cannot
adequately preach this Gospel or credibly proclaim God's plan to gather his scattered
people into unity under Christ as Lord and Saviour (cf. Jn 11.52). Only when all believers
are united in the common celebration of the Eucharist (cf. Church as Communion, 24)
will the God whose purpose it is to bring all things into unity in Christ (cf. Eph 1.10)
be truly glorified by the people of God. The challenge and responsibility for those with
authority within the Church is so to exercise their ministry that they promote the unity
of the whole Church in faith and life in a way that enriches rather than diminishes the
legitimate diversity of local churches.
Synodality: The Exercise of Authority in Communion
34. In each local church all the faithful are called to walk together
in Christ. The term synodality (derived from syn-hodos meaning common
way') indicates the manner in which believers and churches are held together in
communion as they do this. It expresses their vocation as people of the Way (cf. Acts 9.2)
to live, work and journey together in Christ who is the Way (cf. Jn 14.6). They, like
their predecessors, follow Jesus on the way (cf. Mk 10.52) until he comes again.
35. Within the communion of local churches the Spirit is at work to
shape each church through the grace of reconciliation and communion in Christ. It is only
through the activity of the Spirit that the local church can be faithful to the
"Amen" of Christ and can be sent into the world to draw all people to
participate in this "Amen". Through this presence of the Spirit the local church
is maintained in the Tradition. It receives and shares the fullness of the apostolic faith
and the means of grace. The Spirit confirms the local church in the truth in such a way
that its life embodies the saving truth revealed in Christ. From generation to generation
the authority of the living Word should be made present in the local church through all
aspects of its life in the world. The way in which authority is exercised in the
structures and corporate life of the Church must be conformed to the mind of Christ (cf.
Phil 2.5).
36. The Spirit of Christ endows each bishop with the pastoral authority
needed for the effective exercise of episcope within a local church. This authority
necessarily includes responsibility for making and implementing the decisions that are
required to fulfil the office of a bishop for the sake of koinonia. Its binding
nature is implicit in the bishop's task of teaching the faith through the
proclamation and explanation of the Word of God, of providing for the celebration of the
sacraments, and of maintaining the Church in holiness and truth. Decisions taken by the
bishop in performing this task have an authority which the faithful have a duty to receive
and accept (cf. Authority in the Church II, 17). By their sensus fidei the
faithful are able in conscience both to recognise God at work in the bishop's
exercise of authority, and also to respond to it as believers. This is what motivates
their obedience, an obedience of freedom and not slavery. The jurisdiction of bishops is
one consequence of the call they have received to lead their churches in an authentic
"Amen"; it is not arbitrary power given to one person over the freedom of
others. Within the working of the sensus fidelium there is a complementary
relationship between the bishop and the rest of the community. In the local church the
Eucharist is the fundamental expression of the walking together (synodality) of the people
of God. In prayerful dialogue, the president leads the people to make their
"Amen" to the eucharistic prayer. In unity of faith with their local bishop,
their "Amen" is a living memorial of the Lord's great "Amen" to
the will of the Father.
37. The mutual interdependence of all the churches is integral to the
reality of the Church as God wills it to be. No local church that participates in the
living Tradition can regard itself as self-sufficient. Forms of synodality, then, are
needed to manifest the communion of the local churches and to sustain each of them in
fidelity to the Gospel. The ministry of the bishop is crucial, for this ministry serves
communion within and among local churches. Their communion with each other is expressed
through the incorporation of each bishop into a college of bishops. Bishops are, both
personally and collegially, at the service of communion and are concerned for synodality
in all its expressions. These expressions have included a wide variety of organs,
instruments and institutions, notably synods or councils, local, provincial, worldwide,
ecumenical. The maintenance of communion requires that at every level there is a capacity
to take decisions appropriate to that level. When those decisions raise serious questions
for the wider communion of churches, synodality must find a wider expression.
38. In both our communions, the bishops meet together collegially, not
as individuals but as those who have authority within and for the synodal life of the
local churches. Consulting the faithful is an aspect of episcopal oversight. Each bishop
is both a voice for the local church and one through whom the local church learns from
other churches. When bishops take counsel together they seek both to discern and to
articulate the sensus fidelium as it is present in the local church and in the
wider communion of churches. Their role is magisterial: that is, in this communion of the
churches, they are to determine what is to be taught as faithful to the apostolic
Tradition. Roman Catholics and Anglicans share this understanding of synodality, but
express it in different ways.
39. In the Church of England at the time of the English Reformation the
tradition of synodality was expressed through the use both of synods (of bishops and
clergy) and of Parliament (including bishops and lay people) for the settlement of
liturgy, doctrine and church order. The authority of General Councils was also recognised.
In the Anglican Communion, new forms of synods came into being during the nineteenth
century and the role of the laity in decision making has increased since that time.
Although bishops, clergy, and lay persons consult with each other and legislate together,
the responsibility of the bishops remains distinct and crucial. In every part of the
Anglican Communion, the bishops bear a unique responsibility of oversight. For example, a
diocesan synod can be called only by the bishop, and its decisions can stand only with the
bishop's consent. At provincial or national levels, Houses of Bishops exercise a
distinctive and unique ministry in relation to matters of doctrine, worship and moral
life. Further, though Anglican synods largely use parliamentary procedures, their nature
is eucharistic. This is why the bishop as president of the Eucharist appropriately
presides at the diocesan synod, which assembles to bring God's redemptive work into
the present through the life and activity of the local church. Furthermore, each bishop
has not only the episcope of the local church but participates in the care of all
the churches. This is exercised within each province of the Anglican Communion with the
help of organs such as Houses of Bishops and the Provincial and General Synods. In the
Anglican Communion as a whole the Primates' Meeting, the Anglican Consultative
Council, the Lambeth Conference and the Archbishop of Canterbury serve as instruments of
synodality.
40. In the Roman Catholic Church the tradition of synodality has not
ceased. After the Reformation, synods of bishops and clergy continued to be held from time
to time in different dioceses and regions, and on the universal level three Councils have
been held. By the turn of the twentieth century specific meetings of bishops and Episcopal
Conferences emerged as means of consultation to enable local churches of a given region to
face together the demands of their mission and to deal with new pastoral situations. Since
the Second Vatican Council these have become a regular structure in nations and regions.
In a decision which received the support of the bishops at that Council, Pope Paul VI
instituted the Synod of Bishops to deal with issues concerning the Church's mission
throughout the world. The ancient custom of ad limina visits to the tombs of the
apostles Peter and Paul and to the Bishop of Rome has been renewed by their visiting not
singly but in regional groups. The more recent custom of visits by the Bishop of Rome to
local churches has attempted to foster a deeper sense of their belonging to the communion
of churches, and to help them be more aware of the situation of others. All these synodal
institutions provide the possibility of a growing awareness by both local bishops and the
Bishop of Rome of ways of working together in a stronger communion. Complementing this
collegial synodality, a growth in synodality at the local level is promoting the active
participation of lay persons in the life and mission of the local church.
Perseverance in the Truth: The Exercise of Authority in Teaching
41. In every age Christians have said "Amen" to Christ's
promise that the Spirit will guide his Church into all truth. The New Testament frequently
echoes this promise by referring to the boldness, assurance and certainty to which
Christians can lay claim (cf. Lk 1.4; 1 Thess 2.2; Eph 3.2; Heb 11.1). In their concern to
make the Gospel accessible to all who are open to receive it, those charged with the
ministry of memory and teaching have accepted new and hitherto unfamiliar expressions of
faith. Some of these formulations have initially generated doubt and disagreement about
their fidelity to the apostolic Tradition. In the process of testing such formulations,
the Church has moved cautiously, but with confidence in the promise of Christ that it will
persevere and be maintained in the truth (cf. Mt 16.18; Jn 16.13). This is what is meant
by the indefectibility of the Church (cf. Authority in the Church I, 18; Authority
in the Church II, 23).
42. In its continuing life, the Church seeks and receives the guidance
from the Holy Spirit that keeps its teaching faithful to apostolic Tradition. Within the
whole body, the college of bishops is to exercise the ministry of memory to this end. They
are to discern and give teaching which may be trusted because it expresses the truth of
God surely. In some situations, there will be an urgent need to test new formulations of
faith. In specific circumstances, those with this ministry of oversight (episcope),
assisted by the Holy Spirit, may together come to a judgement which, being faithful to
Scripture and consistent with apostolic Tradition, is preserved from error. By such a
judgement, which is a renewed expression of God's one "Yes" in Jesus
Christ, the Church is maintained in the truth so that it may continue to offer its
"Amen" to the glory of God. This is what is meant when it is affirmed that the
Church may teach infallibly (see Authority in the Church II, 24 - 28, 32).
Such infallible teaching is at the service of the Church's indefectibility.
43. The exercise of teaching authority in the Church, especially in
situations of challenge, requires the participation, in their distinctive ways, of the
whole body of believers, not only those charged with the ministry of memory. In this
participation the sensus fidelium is at work. Since it is the faithfulness of the
whole people of God which is at stake, reception of teaching is integral to the process.
Doctrinal definitions are received as authoritative in virtue of the divine truth they
proclaim as well as because of the specific office of the person or persons who proclaim
them within the sensus fidei of the whole people of God. When the people of God
respond by faith and say "Amen" to authoritative teaching it is because they
recognise that this teaching expresses the apostolic faith and operates within the
authority and truth of Christ, the Head of the Church. The truth and authority of its Head
is the source of infallible teaching in the Body of Christ. God's "Yes"
revealed in Christ is the standard by which such authoritative teaching is judged. Such
teaching is to be welcomed by the people of God as a gift of the Holy Spirit to maintain
the Church in the truth of Christ, our "Amen" to God.
44. The duty of maintaining the Church in the truth is one of the
essential functions of the episcopal college. It has the power to exercise this ministry
because it is bound in succession to the apostles, who were the body authorised and sent
by Christ to preach the Gospel to all the nations. The authenticity of the teaching of
individual bishops is evident when this teaching is in solidarity with that of the whole
episcopal college. The exercise of this teaching authority requires that what it teaches
be faithful to Holy Scripture and consistent with apostolic Tradition. This is expressed
by the teaching of the Second Vatican Council, "This teaching office is not above the
Word of God, but serves it" (Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation,
Dei
Verbum, 10).
Primacy: The Exercise of Authority in Collegiality and Conciliarity
45. In the course of history the synodality of the Church has been
served through conciliar, collegial and primatial authority. Forms of primacy exist in
both the Anglican Communion and in the churches in communion with the Bishop of Rome.
Among the latter, the offices of Metropolitan Archbishop or Patriarch of an Eastern
Catholic Church are primatial in nature. Each Anglican Province has its Primate and the
Primates' Meeting serves the whole Communion. The Archbishop of Canterbury exercises
a primatial ministry in the whole Anglican Communion.
46. ARCIC has already recognised that the "pattern of
complementary primatial and conciliar aspects of episcope serving the koinonia
of the churches needs to be realised at the universal level" (Authority in the
Church I, 23). The exigencies of church life call for a specific exercise of episcope
at the service of the whole Church. In the pattern found in the New Testament one of the
twelve is chosen by Jesus Christ to strengthen the others so that they will remain
faithful to their mission and in harmony with each other (see the discussion of the
Petrine texts in Authority in the Church II, 2-5). Augustine of Hippo
expressed well the relationship among Peter, the other apostles and the whole Church, when
he said:
After all, it is not just one man that received these keys, but the Church in its
unity. So this is the reason for Peter's acknowledged preeminence, that he stood for
the Church's universality and unity, when he was told, To you I am entrusting,
what has in fact been entrusted to all. I mean to show you that it is the Church which has
received the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Listen to what the Lord says in another place
to all his apostles: Receive the Holy Spirit; and straight away, whose sins you
forgive, they will be forgiven them; whose sins you retain, they will be retained (Jn
20.22-23). This refers to the keys, about which is said, whatever you bind on earth
shall be bound in heaven (Mt 16.19). But that was said to Peter ... Peter at that time
stood for the universal Church.
(Sermon 295, On the Feast of the Martyrdom of the Apostles Peter and Paul)
ARCIC has also previously explored the transmission of the primatial
ministry exercised by the Bishop of Rome (see Authority in the Church II, 6-9).
Historically, the Bishop of Rome has exercised such a ministry either for the benefit of
the whole Church, as when Leo contributed to the Council of Chalcedon, or for the benefit
of a local church, as when Gregory the Great supported Augustine of Canterbury's mission
and ordering of the English church. This gift has been welcomed and the ministry of these
Bishops of Rome continues to be celebrated liturgically by Anglicans as well as Roman
Catholics.
47. Within his wider ministry, the Bishop of Rome offers a specific
ministry concerning the discernment of truth, as an expression of universal primacy. This
particular service has been the source of difficulties and misunderstandings among the
churches. Every solemn definition pronounced from the chair of Peter in the church of
Peter and Paul may, however, express only the faith of the Church. Any such definition is
pronounced within the college of those who exercise episcope and not outside
that college. Such authoritative teaching is a particular exercise of the calling and
responsibility of the body of bishops to teach and affirm the faith. When the faith is
articulated in this way, the Bishop of Rome proclaims the faith of the local churches. It
is thus the wholly reliable teaching of the whole Church that is operative in the
judgement of the universal primate. In solemnly formulating such teaching, the universal
primate must discern and declare, with the assured assistance and guidance of the Holy
Spirit, in fidelity to Scripture and Tradition, the authentic faith of the whole Church,
that is, the faith proclaimed from the beginning. It is this faith, the faith of all the
baptised in communion, and this only, that each bishop utters with the body of bishops in
council. It is this faith which the Bishop of Rome in certain circumstances has a duty to
discern and make explicit. This form of authoritative teaching has no stronger guarantee
from the Spirit than have the solemn definitions of ecumenical councils. The reception of
the primacy of the Bishop of Rome entails the recognition of this specific ministry of the
universal primate. We believe that this is a gift to be received by all the churches.
48. The ministers God gives the Church to sustain her life are marked
by fragility:
Therefore, since it is by God's mercy that we are engaged in this ministry, we do
not lose heart
But we have this treasure in clay jars, so that it may be made clear
that this extraordinary power belongs to God and does not come from us (2 Cor 4.1: 4.7).
It is clear that only by the grace of God does the exercise of authority in the
communion of the Church bear the marks of Christ's own authority. This authority is
exercised by fragile Christians for the sake of other fragile Christians. This is no less
true of the ministry of Peter:
"Simon, Simon, listen! Satan has demanded to sift all of you like wheat, but I
have prayed for you that your own faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned
back, strengthen your brothers" (Lk 22.31-32; cf. Jn 21.15-19).
Pope John Paul II makes this clear in Ut Unum Sint:
I carry out this duty with the profound conviction that I am obeying the Lord, and with
a clear sense of my own human frailty. Indeed, if Christ himself gave Peter this special
mission in the Church and exhorted him to strengthen his brethren, he also made clear to
him his human weakness and his special need of conversion. (Ut Unum Sint, 4)
Human weakness and sin do not only affect individual ministers: they
can distort the human structuring of authority (cf. Mt 23). Therefore, loyal criticism and
reforms are sometimes needed, following the example of Paul (cf. Gal 2.11-14). The
consciousness of human frailty in the exercise of authority ensures that Christian
ministers remain open to criticism and renewal and above all to exercising authority
according to the example and mind of Christ.
Discipline: the Exercise of Authority and the Freedom of Conscience
49. The exercise of authority in the Church is to be recognised and
accepted as an instrument of the Spirit of God for the healing of humanity. The exercise
of authority must always respect conscience, because the divine work of salvation affirms
human freedom. In freely accepting the way of salvation offered through baptism, the
Christian disciple also freely takes on the discipline of being a member of the Body of
Christ. Because the Church of God is recognised as the community where the divine means of
salvation are at work, the demands of discipleship for the well-being of the entire
Christian community cannot be refused. There is also a discipline required in the exercise
of authority. Those called to such a ministry must themselves submit to the discipline of
Christ, observe the requirements of collegiality and the common good, and duly respect the
consciences of those they are called to serve.
The Church's "Amen" to God's "Yes" in the Gospel
50. We have come to a shared understanding of authority by seeing it,
in faith, as a manifestation of God's "Yes" to his creation, calling forth
the "Amen" of his creatures. God is the source of authority, and the proper
exercise of authority is always ordered towards the common good and the good of the
person. In a broken world, and to a divided Church, God's "Yes" in Jesus
Christ brings the reality of reconciliation, the call to discipleship, and a foretaste of
humanity's final goal when through the Spirit all in Christ utter their "Amen"
to the glory of God. The "Yes" of God, embodied in Christ, is received in the
proclamation and Tradition of the Gospel, in the sacramental life of the Church and in the
ways that episcope is exercised. When the churches, through their exercise of
authority, display the healing and reconciling power of the Gospel, then the wider world
is offered a vision of what God intends for all creation. The aim of the exercise of
authority and of its reception is to enable the Church to say "Amen" to
God's "Yes" in the Gospel.
IV. Agreement in the Exercise of Authority: Steps towards Visible
Unity
51. We submit to our respective authorities this agreed statement on
authority in the Church. We believe that if this statement about the nature of authority
and the manner of its exercise is accepted and acted upon, this issue will no longer be a
cause for continued breach of communion between our two churches. Accordingly, we set out
below some of the features of this agreement, recent significant developments in each of
our communions, and some issues which they still have to face. As we move towards full
ecclesial communion, we suggest ways in which our existing communion, albeit imperfect,
may be made more visible through the exercise of a renewed collegiality among the bishops
and a renewed exercise and reception of universal primacy.
Advances in Agreement
52. The Commission is of the view that we have deepened and extended
our agreement on:
- how the authority of Christ is present and active in the Church when the proclamation of
God's "Yes" calls forth the "Amen" of all believers (paragraphs 7-18);
- the dynamic interdependence of Scripture and apostolic Tradition and the normative place
of Scripture within Tradition (paragraphs 19-23);
- the necessity of constant reception of Scripture and Tradition, and of re-reception in
particular circumstances (paragraphs 24-26);
- how the exercise of authority is at the service of personal faith within the life of the
Church (paragraphs 23, 29, 49);
- the role of the whole people of God, within which, as teachers of the faith, the bishops
have a distinctive voice in forming and expressing the mind of the Church (paragraphs
29-30);
- synodality and its implications for the communion of the whole people of God and of all
the local churches as together they seek to follow Christ who is the Way (paragraphs
34-40);
- the essential cooperation of the ministry of episcope and the sensus fidei
of the whole Church in the reception of the Word of God (paragraphs 29, 36, 43);
- the possibility, in certain circumstances, of the Church teaching infallibly at
the service of the Church's indefectibility (paragraphs 41-44);
- a universal primacy, exercised collegially in the context of synodality, as integral to episcope
at the service of universal communion; such a primacy having always been associated
with the Bishop and See of Rome (paragraphs 46-48);
- how the ministry of the Bishop of Rome assists the ministry of the whole episcopal body
in the context of synodality, promoting the communion of the local churches in their life
in Christ and the proclamation of the Gospel (paragraphs 46-48);
- how the Bishop of Rome offers a specific ministry concerning the discernment of truth
(paragraph 47).
Significant Developments in Both Communions
53. The Lambeth Conference of 1988 recognised a need to reflect on how
the Anglican Communion makes authoritative decisions. At the international level, Anglican
instruments of synodality have considerable authority to influence and support provinces,
yet none of these instruments has power to overrule a provincial decision, even if it
threatens the unity of the Communion. Accordingly, the Lambeth Conference of 1998, in the
light of The Virginia Report of the Inter-Anglican Theological and
Doctrinal Commission, resolved to strengthen these instruments in various ways,
particularly the role of the Archbishop of Canterbury and of the Primates'
Meeting. The Conference also requested the Primates' Meeting to initiate a study
in each province "on whether effective communion, at all levels, does not
require appropriate instruments, with due safeguards, not only for legislation,
but also for oversight... as well as on the issue of
a universal ministry in the service of Christian unity" (Resolution III, 8(h)).
Alongside the autonomy of provinces, Anglicans are coming to see that interdependence
among local churches and among provinces is also necessary for fostering communion.
54. The Roman Catholic Church, especially since the Second Vatican
Council, has been gradually developing synodal structures for sustaining koinonia
more effectively. The developing role of national and regional Episcopal Conferences and
the regular holding of General Assemblies of the Synod of Bishops demonstrate this
evolution. There has also been renewal in the exercise of synodality at the local level,
although this varies from place to place. Canonical legislation now requires lay men and
women, persons in the religious life, deacons and priests to play a part in parochial and
diocesan pastoral councils, diocesan synods and a variety of other bodies, whenever these
are convened.
55. In the Anglican Communion there is a reaching towards universal
structures which promote koinonia, and in the Roman Catholic Church a
strengthening of local and intermediate structures. In our view these developments reflect
a shared and growing awareness that authority in the Church needs to be properly exercised
at all levels. Even so there are still issues to be faced by Anglicans and Roman Catholics
on important aspects of the exercise of authority in the service of koinonia. The
Commission poses some questions frankly but in the conviction that we need the support of
one another in responding to them. We believe that in the dynamic and fluid situation in
which they are posed, seeking to answer them must go together with developing further
steps towards a shared exercise of authority.
Issues facing Anglicans
56. We have seen that instruments for oversight and decision making are
necessary at all levels to support communion. With this in view the Anglican Communion is
exploring the development of structures of authority among its provinces. Is the Communion
also open to the acceptance of instruments of oversight which would allow decisions to be
reached that, in certain circumstances, would bind the whole Church? When major new
questions arise which, in fidelity to Scripture and Tradition, require a united response,
will these structures assist Anglicans to participate in the sensus fidelium
with all Christians? To what extent does unilateral action by provinces or dioceses in
matters concerning the whole Church, even after consultation has taken place, weaken koinonia?
Anglicans have shown themselves to be willing to tolerate anomalies for the sake of
maintaining communion. Yet this has led to the impairment of communion manifesting itself
at the Eucharist, in the exercise of episcope and in the interchangeability of
ministry. What consequences flow from this? Above all, how will Anglicans address the
question of universal primacy as it is emerging from their life together and from
ecumenical dialogue?
Issues facing Roman Catholics
57. The Second Vatican Council has reminded Roman Catholics of how the
gifts of God are present in all the people of God. It has also taught the collegiality of
the episcopate in its communion with the Bishop of Rome, head of the college. However, is
there at all levels effective participation of clergy as well as lay people in emerging
synodal bodies? Has the teaching of the Second Vatican Council regarding the collegiality
of bishops been implemented sufficiently? Do the actions of bishops reflect sufficient
awareness of the extent of the authority they receive through ordination for governing the
local church? Has enough provision been made to ensure consultation between the Bishop of
Rome and the local churches prior to the making of important decisions affecting either a
local church or the whole Church? How is the variety of theological opinion taken into
account when such decisions are made? In supporting the Bishop of Rome in his work of
promoting communion among the churches, do the structures and procedures of the Roman
Curia adequately respect the exercise of episcope at other levels? Above all, how
will the Roman Catholic Church address the question of universal primacy as it emerges
from "the patient and fraternal dialogue" about the exercise of the office of
the Bishop of Rome to which John Paul II has invited "church leaders and their
theologians"?
Renewed Collegiality: Making Visible our Existing Communion
58. Anglicans and Roman Catholics are already facing these issues but
their resolution may well take some time. However, there is no turning back in our journey
towards full ecclesial communion. In the light of our agreement the Commission believes
our two communions should make more visible the koinonia we already have.
Theological dialogue must continue at all levels in the churches, but is not of itself
sufficient. For the sake of koinonia and a united Christian witness to the world,
Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops should find ways of cooperating and developing
relationships of mutual accountability in their exercise of oversight. At this new stage
we have not only to do together whatever we can, but also to be together all
that our existing koinonia allows.
59. Such cooperation in the exercise of episcope would involve
bishops meeting regularly together at regional and local levels and the participation of
bishops from one communion in the international meetings of bishops of the other. Serious
consideration could also be given to the association of Anglican bishops with Roman
Catholic bishops in their ad limina visits to Rome. Wherever possible, bishops
should take the opportunity of teaching and acting together in matters of faith and
morals. They should also witness together in the public sphere on issues affecting the
common good. Specific practical aspects of sharing episcope will emerge from local
initiatives.
Universal Primacy: A Gift to be Shared
60. The Commission's work has resulted in sufficient agreement on
universal primacy as a gift to be shared, for us to propose that such a primacy could be
offered and received even before our churches are in full communion. Both Roman Catholics
and Anglicans look to this ministry being exercised in collegiality and synodality
a ministry of servus servorum Dei (Gregory the Great, cited in Ut Unum Sint, 88).
We envisage a primacy that will even now help to uphold the legitimate diversity of
traditions, strengthening and safeguarding them in fidelity to the Gospel. It will
encourage the churches in their mission. This sort of primacy will already assist the
Church on earth to be the authentic catholic koinonia in which unity does not
curtail diversity, and diversity does not endanger but enhances unity. It will be an
effective sign for all Christians as to how this gift of God builds up that unity for
which Christ prayed.
61. Such a universal primate will exercise leadership in the world and
also in both communions, addressing them in a prophetic way. He will promote the common
good in ways that are not constrained by sectional interests, and offer a continuing and
distinctive teaching ministry, particularly in addressing difficult theological and moral
issues. A universal primacy of this style will welcome and protect theological enquiry and
other forms of the search for truth, so that their results may enrich and strengthen both
human wisdom and the Church's faith. Such a universal primacy might gather the churches in
various ways for consultation and discussion.
62. An experience of universal primacy of this kind would confirm two
particular conclusions we have reached:
- that Anglicans be open to and desire a recovery and re-reception under certain clear
conditions of the exercise of universal primacy by the Bishop of Rome;
- that Roman Catholics be open to and desire a re-reception of the exercise of primacy by
the Bishop of Rome and the offering of such a ministry to the whole Church of God.
63. When the real yet imperfect communion between us is made more
visible, the web of unity which is woven from communion with God and reconciliation with
each other is extended and strengthened. Thus the "Amen" which Anglicans and
Roman Catholics say to the one Lord comes closer to being an "Amen" said
together by the one holy people witnessing to God's salvation and reconciling love in a
broken world.
Members of the Commission
Anglican Memebrs
The Rt Revd Mark Santer, Bishop of Birmingham, UK (Co-Chairman)
The Rt Revd John Baycroft, Bishop of Ottawa, Canada
Dr E. Rozanne Elder, Professor of History, University of Western Michigan, USA
The Revd Professor Jaci Maraschin, Professor of Theology, Ecumenical Institute, São
Paulo, Brazil
The Revd Canon Richard Marsh, Archbishop of Canterbury's Secretary for Ecumenical
Affairs, London, UK (from 1996)
The Revd Dr John Muddiman, Fellow and Tutor in Theology, Mansfield College, Oxford, UK
The Rt Revd Michael Nazir-Ali, Bishop of Rochester, UK
The Revd Dr Nicholas Sagovsky, Research Fellow, University of Newcastle, UK
The Revd Dr Charles Sherlock, Senior Lecturer, Trinity College Theological School,
Parkville, Australia
Secretary
The Revd Dr Donald Anderson, Director of Ecumenical Relations & Studies
(until
1996)
The Revd Canon David Hamid, Director of Ecumenical Affairs and Relations, Anglican
Communion Office, London, UK (from 1996)
The Revd Canon Stephen Platten, Archbishop of Canterbury's Secretary for
Ecumenical Affairs (until 1994)
Roman Catholic Members
The Rt Revd Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, UK (Co-Chairman)
Sister Sara Butler MSBT, Assistant Professor of Systematic Theology, University of
St Mary of the Lake, Mundelein, Illinois, USA
The Revd Peter Cross, Professor of Systematic Theology, Catholic Theological College,
Clayton, Australia
The Revd Dr Adelbert Denaux, Professor, Faculty of Theology, Catholic University,
Leuven, Belgium
The Rt Revd Pierre Duprey, Titular Bishop of Thibaris, Secretary, Pontifical Council
for Promoting Christian Unity, Vatican City
The Most Revd Patrick A. Kelly, Archbishop of Liverpool, UK (from 1996)
The Revd Jean M. R. Tillard OP, Professor, Dominican Faculty of Theology, Ottawa,
Canada
The Revd Liam Walsh OP, Professor of Dogmatic Theology, University of Fribourg,
Switzerland
The Rt Revd Monsignor William Steele, Episcopal Vicar for Mission and Unity, Diocese of
Leeds, UK (1994-1995)
Secretary
The Revd Timothy Galligan, Staff Member, Pontifical Council for Christian Unity,
Vatican City
World Council of Churches Observer
Professor Dr Michael Root, Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio, USA
(from
1995)
The Revd Dr Günther Gassmann, Director, Faith and Order Commission, WCC, Geneva,
Switzerland (until 1994)
The Gift of Authority - Authority in the Church III
An Agreed Statement by the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission
(ARCIC)
The Gift of Authority is the third agreed statement from the
Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission to address the question of authority in
the Church, its nature, exercise and implications. The two previous agreed statements, and
an elucidation, were published together in The Final Report in 1981. The Gift of
Authority builds upon that work, addressing issues referred to the Commission in the
responses of the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church to The Final Report.
In this new statement, ARCIC has also taken account of recent
developments in the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church, notably the 1998 Lambeth
Conference resolutions concerned with authority,
The
Virginia Report (which the
Conference commended to Anglican provinces for further study), and the 1995 Encyclical
Letter on Ecumenism
Ut Unum Sint.
The Commission offers The Gift of Authority to the Churches for
study, reflection and response, believing it to present both challenge and hope in what
has been one of the most difficult aspects of our mutual dialogue.
The present Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, and Pope John
Paul II stated frankly the need for further work on authority when they met in 1996:
"Without agreement in this area we shall not reach the full, visible unity to which
we are both committed."
Audience: Anglican and Roman Catholic clergy and laity; all those
interested in the ecumenical movement, particularly Anglican-Roman Catholic relations.
Published
jointly by
Anglican Book Centre
ISBN 1551262460
and
Catholic Truth Society
ISBN 1860820581
and
Church Publishing Incorporated
ISBN 089869325X
Price: $7.95 Cdn, £3.99 UK, $6.95 US (tentative prices!)
Binding: soft cover, 48 pages, 5½ x 8½
Publication Date: April 1999