Date: 2009-10-26 22:50:16
It’s hard to interpret the signs of the times when the messages are mixed.
Last week we heard of the Vatican’s announcement that the Roman Catholic Church is prepared to welcome dissenting Anglicans, giving them a special status, and many in the ecumenical world puzzle over what this might mean. At the same time we have seen the closing dinner for the Brisbane College of Theology, which has been a unique example of ecumenical collaboration for 26 years.
This week sees the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Joint Declaration on Justification between the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran World Federation, later endorsed also by the World Methodist Council. We also have a chance (if in Brisbane) to hear about the dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and Pentecostal and Evangelical churches.
Is the glass half full or half empty?
Soon we will enter Advent, the time in which we wait for the time of revelation. And then it comes so unspectacularly. If the shepherds hadn’t had eyes to see, who would have known?
We wait in faith, knowing that the gift of unity is ours already. Yet we do not wait inactively, for the challenges we face together in this world call us all as people of the Body of Christ to respond, pointing the way to God’s reign of justice. Today’s newsletter brings you several articles in this vein: a call to all people of faith on climate change, a reminder of the global links to poverty everywhere, and a call to become involved in prison ministry as Christmas approaches.
As we continue to pray for unity between our churches, let us work together where we can to further God’s will in this world.
Glenine Hamlyn
Read a carefully worded response by Anglican and Catholic leaders in the UK to the Roman Catholic Church’s decision to welcome dissenting Anglicans.
“The Brisbane College of Theology was a brave, grace-filled initiative, and it has had a powerful and a lasting impact on all of us.” (Bishop Michael Putney)
“The spiritual roots of ecumenism are at the heart of the quest for Christian unity,” says the Joint Working Group on relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the WCC.
This Friday, 30 October, Brisbane: public lecture with Monsignor Juan Usma Gomez Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
Reducing CO2 levels to below 350 parts per million is a matter of justice, say the creators of a call to world leaders by people of faith. You can sign on.
18 November, Brisbane: This is your chance to see an internationally acclaimed documentary that will help you understand the links between global financial systems and poverty. Hosted by Jubilee Australia.
Basic items of personal care, food items – these things could help prisoners to experience something positive at Christmas this year.
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