Presentation of the Document

THE BISHOP OF ROME

PRIMACY AND SYNODALITY IN THE ECUMENICAL DIALOGUES
AND IN THE RESPONSES TO THE ENCYCLICAL UT UNUM SINT

Intervention of His Grace Archbishop Ian Ernest
Personal Represenative of the Archbishop of Canterbury to the Holy See

Holy See Press Office, 13 June 2024

I too would like to thank Cardinal Koch and the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity for publishing this document, which opens up new perspectives for ecumenical relations on the much debated question of the relationship between primacy and synodality. In his speech to Anglican Primates, meeting in Rome last month, the Holy Father mentioned the role of the Bishop of Rome and used the words of Pope Gregory the Great, describing the him as the servant of the Servants of God: “servus servorum Dei”. This in the words of St John Paul II “is the best safeguard against the risk of separating primacy from ministry”.  These words are sources of hope as they give an indication of the prevailing ecumenical spirit. But, because, of the length and diversity of ecumenical dialogues, it is of the utmost importance to count on a thematic synthesis that sets out the main ideas, concerns, intuitions and emphases of the question. Identifying the contributions of Eastern and Oriental Orthodox Churches, Mainline Western Churches and Free Churches, is a major achievement. I commend the attitude of the Catholic Church to listen seriously to the reflections produced by ecumenical dialogues and thus to contribute to the reception of these dialogues.

As the personal representative of the Archbishop of Canterbury, I am delighted that one of the most comprehensive and detailed responses to St John Paul II's invitation in Ut unum sint was given by the House of Bishops of the Church of England in 1997. The Lambeth Conference and the Primates meeting are also channels by which the Anglican world is introduced to the issues at stake in the ongoing dialogues. This enables us as a world-wide Communion to prayerfully understand the ecumenical dialogues and new perspectives which touch on very important doctrinal aspects. We might call this synodality at work.

I am also pleased to see the extent to which the dialogue with the Anglican Communion through the International Commission for Theological Dialogue with the Catholic Church, ARCIC, has contributed to this reflection. As the document recalls, as early as 1976, the Joint Commission, in its document Authority in the Church I, stressed the need for the primatial and synodal dimensions also at the universal level, stating that: “if God's will for the unity in love and truth of the whole Christian community is to be fulfilled, this general pattern of the complementary primatial and conciliar aspects of episkope serving the koinonia of the churches needs to be realised at the universal level” (ARCIC 1976, 23). And as early as 1981, the same Commission stressed the need for primacy at the universal level: “According to Christian doctrine the unity in truth of the Christian community demands visible expression. We agree that such visible expression is the will of God and that the maintenance of visible unity at the universal level includes the episcope of a universal primate” (ARCIC 1981 Eluc., 8). These intuitions, which were soon taken up by many other dialogues, especially oriental ones, were initially formulated by ARCIC.

ARCIC's latest document, ‘Walking together on the way. Learning to be the Church Local, Regional and Universal”, has also brought new elements to the reflection on synodality by applying the methodology of “receptive ecumenism”. In this respect, I was delighted to participate in the Listening to the West conferences organised by the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity in collaboration with the Oecumenicum Institute of the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas, as part of the Catholic Church's synodal process.

Among the proposals expressed in the dialogues, I would like to stress the importance of a "reformulation" or an official commentary on the teaching of Vatican I, which remains a major stumbling block between our Churches, especially because it is difficult to understand nowadays and open to misinterpretation. It is therefore still necessary to present the teaching of Vatican I in the light of an ecclesiology of communion, clarifying the terminology used. Despite these very challenges, the receptive and generous attitude developed by Anglicans over the years “”invites the whole of Christendom to journey together in a richer and more united understanding of the Christian traditions and the mission of the Church.”

This is why, I would like to welcome the proposal for synodality ad extra. In this regard, the spiritual retreat for the leaders of South Sudan organised by Pope Francis and Archbishop Justin Welby in 2019, the ecumenical pilgrimage for peace in South Sudan organised by Pope Francis, Archbishop Justin Welby and the Reverend Iain Greenshields in 2023, and the ecumenical prayer vigil 'Together. Gathering of the People of God" in St Peter's Square in 2023, on the eve of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, are examples of this "walking together" or synodal ecumenism to which Pope Francis invites us.

In conclusion, I too would like to express the hope that this document will be shared with the various Christian Churches, so that we can continue our reflection, “together of course”, as Pope John Paul II wished.