Article: "Joint Declaration of Benedict XVI and Rowan Williams"
by the Vatican
"Many Areas of
Witness and Service in Which We Can Stand Together"
COMMON DECLARATION of Pope Benedict XVI and the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan
Williams
Forty years ago, our predecessors, Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Michael Ramsey,
met together in this city sanctified by the ministry and the blood of the
Apostles Peter and Paul. They began a new journey of reconciliation based on
the Gospels and the ancient common traditions. Centuries of estrangement
between Anglicans and Catholics were replaced by a new desire for partnership
and co-operation, as the real but incomplete communion we share was
rediscovered and affirmed. Pope Paul VI and Archbishop Ramsey undertook at that
time to establish a dialogue in which matters which had been divisive in the
past might be addressed from a fresh perspective with truth and love.
Since that meeting, the Roman Catholic Church and the Anglican Communion have
entered into a process of fruitful dialogue, which has been marked by the
discovery of significant elements of shared faith and a desire to give
expression, through joint prayer, witness and service, to that which we hold in
common. Over thirty-five years, the Anglican-Roman Catholic International
Commission (ARCIC) has produced a number of important documents which seek to
articulate the faith we share. In the ten years since the most recent Common
Declaration was signed by the Pope and the Archbishop of Canterbury, the second
phase of ARCIC has completed its mandate, with the publication of the documents
"The Gift of Authority" (1999) and "Mary: Grace and Hope in
Christ" (2005). We are grateful to the theologians who have prayed and
worked together in the preparation of these texts, which await further study
and reflection.
True ecumenism goes beyond theological dialogue; it touches our spiritual lives
and our common witness. As our dialogue has developed, many Catholics and
Anglicans have found in each other a love for Christ which invites us into
practical co-operation and service. This fellowship in the service of Christ,
experienced by many of our communities around the world, adds a further impetus
to our relationship. The International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for
Unity and Mission (IARCCUM) has been engaged in an exploration of the
appropriate ways in which our shared mission to proclaim new life in Christ to
the world can be advanced and nurtured. Their report, which sets out both a
summary of the central conclusions of ARCIC and makes proposals for growing
together in mission and witness, has recently been completed and submitted for
review to the Anglican Communion Office and the Pontifical Council for
Promoting Christian Unity, and we express our gratitude for their work.
In this fraternal visit, we celebrate the good which has come from these four
decades of dialogue. We are grateful to God for the gifts of grace which have
accompanied them. At the same time, our long journey together makes it
necessary to acknowledge publicly the challenge represented by new developments
which, besides being divisive for Anglicans, present serious obstacles to our
ecumenical progress. It is a matter of urgency, therefore, that in renewing our
commitment to pursue the path towards full visible communion in the truth and
love of Christ, we also commit ourselves in our continuing dialogue to address
the important issues involved in the emerging ecclesiological and ethical
factors making that journey more difficult and arduous.
As Christian leaders facing the challenges of the new millennium, we affirm
again our public commitment to the revelation of divine life uniquely set forth
by God in the divinity and humanity of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that
it is through Christ and the means of salvation found in him that healing and
reconciliation are offered to us and to the world.
There are many areas of
witness and service in which we can stand together, and which indeed call for
closer co-operation between us: the pursuit of peace in the Holy Land and
in other parts of the world marred by conflict and the threat of terrorism; promoting respect for life from
conception until natural death; protecting the sanctity of marriage and
the well-being of children in the context of healthy family life; outreach to
the poor, oppressed and the most vulnerable, especially those who are
persecuted for their faith; addressing the negative effects of materialism; and
care for creation and for our environment. We also commit ourselves to
inter-religious dialogue through which we can jointly reach out to our
non-Christian brothers and sisters.
Mindful of our forty years of dialogue, and of the witness of the holy men and
women common to our traditions, including Mary the Theotókos,
Saints Peter and Paul, Benedict, Gregory the Great, and Augustine of
Canterbury, we pledge ourselves to more fervent prayer and a more dedicated endeavor to welcome and live by that truth into which the
Spirit of the Lord wishes to lead his disciples (cf. Jn
16:13). Confident of the apostolic hope "that he who has begun this good
work in you will bring it to completion" (cf. Phil 1:6), we believe that
if we can together be God's instruments in calling all Christians to a deeper
obedience to our Lord, we will also draw closer to each other, finding in his
will the fullness of unity and common life to which he invites us.
From the
[Original text: English]
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