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The Dawn of the new Millennium and Church Unity

 The consciousness that the end of the millennium was near has been a pervasive dimension of Pope John Paul II's pontificate. In 1994, the Holy Father issued an apostolic letter, As the Third Millennium Draws Near (Tertio Millennio Adveniente). The letter addressed the special significance of the end of the second millennium of Christianity and the three-year period of immediate preparation for the jubilee of the year 2000.

Pope John Paul II stated that "preparing for the Year 2000 has become as it were a hermeneutical key of my Pontificate." (TMA n. 23) From the beginning of his ministry as Bishop of Rome, his first encyclical Redeemer of Man (Redemptoris Hominis, 1979) had referred to the Great Jubilee as "a season of new Advent, a season of expectation." (RH n. 1) That inaugural encyclical devoted a prominent section to "The Road to Christian Unity." (RH n. 6)

Sixteen years later, in calling attention to the preparation for the Great Jubilee, the Holy Father expresses the need for prayer on the eve of the new millennium "that unity among Christians will increase until they reach full communion." (TMA n. 16)

Part of that vision for the third millennium is the compelling insight, the firm hope, that the new millennium will be an age of Christian unity. The first millennium is described as the period of undivided unity. The second millennium recorded the two major ruptures that divided the Church of Christ -- the schism between the Churches of the East and the Church of the West (11th. century) and the split within the Western church, the Reformation (16th century). [Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism (DAPNE) n. 18. See also Decree on Ecumenism (Unitatis Redintegratio, 1965 n. 3. Ut Unum Sint discusses "Dialogue with the Churches of the East" (UUS nn. 50-63) and "Dialogue with other Churches and Ecclesial Communities in the West" (UUS n. 64-70). ]

But the hope for the 2000s will focus on the overcoming and healing of those tragic divisions in the movement of the churches towards full communion. The Holy Father observes: "I pray that the Jubilee will be a promising opportunity for fruitful cooperation in many areas which unite us; these are unquestionably more numerous than those which divide us." (TMA n.16). Again, he writes:

The approaching end of the second millennium demands of everyone an examination of conscience and the promotion of fitting ecumenical initiatives, so that we can celebrate the Great Jubilee, if not completely united, a least much closer to overcoming the divisions of the second millennium. (TMA n. 34)

Prayer for Christian unity, then, is an integral component in the summons for spiritual renewal needed for anticipating the new millennium, "a new dawn of Christianity," an age laden with promise for the "springtime of Christian life." (TMA n. 17)

The apostolic letter explains the theological rationale on the centrality of prayer for invoking the grace of unity:

We are all however aware that the attainment of this goal cannot be the fruit of human efforts alone, vital though they are. Unity, after all, is a gift of the Holy Spirit. (TMA n. 34 )

The ecumenical dimension of the Catholic Church's life and mission (TMA n. 34) was forcefully and dramatically spelled out in Pope John Paul I I's encyclical That All May Be One (Ut Unum Sint) dated May 1995. Two years earlier, the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity had published the Directory for the Application of Principles and Norms on Ecumenism (DAPNE ) on March 25, 1993.

According to the Holy Father, the Second Vatican Council initiated the Advent of the journey leading to the threshold of the third millennium. The opening paragraph declares:

Ut Unum Sint! The call for Christian unity made by the Second Vatican Council with such impassioned commit­ment is finding an ever greater echo in the hearts of believers, especially as the Year 2000 approaches, a year when Christians will celebrate as a sacred Jubilee, the commemoration of the incarnation of the Son of God, who became man in order to save humanity. (UUS n. 1)

The Pope adds that the Second Vatican Council irrevocably committed the Catholic Church to the practice of ecumenism. (UUS n. 3)

 In particular, the Council's Decree on Ecumenism (Unitatis Redintegratio, 1965), rooted in the renewed ecclesiology of the Constitution on the Church (Lumen Gentium), was a foundational document for the genesis of that irrevocable decision to join the ecumenical journey towards the goal of restoring full visible communion:

At the Second Vatican Council, the Catholic Church committed herself irrevocably to following the path of the ecumenical venture, thus heeding the Spirit of the Lord, who teaches people to interpret carefully the 'signs of the time.' (UUS  n. 3.  See also DAPNE nn. 9-10.)

The Council clearly moved the Catholic Church into the mainstream of the efforts to promote Christian unity by calling Catholics to a new ecumenical openness. Accordingly Ut Unum Sint  notes that the longing for unity on the part of divided Christians is evidenced in the ecumenical movement itself which has become universal response to the grace of the Holy Spirit “for the restoration of unity among all Christians." (UUS n. 7)

In speaking of the ecumenical movement, Pope John Paul II presents a historical and doctrinal overview of conciliar teaching under the heading --- 'The way of ecumenism: the way of the Church." (UUS nn. 7-14)

Undoubtedly, Ut Unum Sint invigorates the Decree on Ecumenism ---the Magna Charta of the Catholic Church's commitment to ecumenism --- with renewed spirit, direction, and urgency. Pope John Paul II personally testifies that commitment to ecumenism continues to be one of his pastoral priorities as the Bishop of Rome:

When I say that for me, as Bishop of Rome, the ecumenical task is 'one of the pastoral priorities of my Pontificate, I think of the grave obstacle which the lack of unity represents for the proclamation of the Gospel. (UUS n. 99)

Moreover, quoting the Decree on Ecumenism, the Holy Father confirms the promotion of Christian unity as a responsibility incumbent on the whole Church which pertains to "faithful and clergy alike." (UUS n. 20) It is an obligation that extends to all the baptized "according to the ability of each, whether exercised in daily Christian living or in theological and historical studies." (UUS n. 20. See UR n.5.)

The promotion of Christian unity is "a duty of Christian conscience enlightened by faith and guided by love." (UUS n. 9)

After reaffirming the conciliar teaching on ecumenism, Pope John Paul II declares that that the ecumenical task is not optional or a mere "appendix" to the Church's mission. Rather, it is integral to the nature of the Church, "an organic part of her life and work" that must "pervade all that she is and does ..." (UUS n. 20)

In this regard, the Holy Father recalls the observation concerning full unity and the Church's relationship to other Christians articulated by Pope John XXlII --- "What unites us is much greater than what divides us." (UUS n. 22)

 The Decree on Ecumenism had formulated the meaning of "spiritual ecumenism" as the "soul" of the ecumenical movement. Spiritual ecumenism is an umbrella concept which includes conversion to the Gospel, fidelity to holiness, and prayer:

This change of heart and holiness of life, along with public and private prayer for the unity of Christians, should be regarded as the soul of the whole ecumenical movement, and can rightly be called 'spiritual ecumenism.' (UR n. 8 See UUS n. 21, DAPNE n. 63 and the Catechism of the Catholic Church n. 821.)

Ut Unum Sint identifies the primacy of prayer in the practice of spiritual ecumenism. (UUS nn. 21-27)

In the context of the primacy of prayer, Pope John Paul II contributes an in-depth exegesis on the indispensable role of prayer for Christian unity. Prayer interpenetrates the process of conversion to the Gospel and the desire for Christian unity.

The Holy Father emphasizes that the journey to the conversion of hearts which is guided by love is "directed to God and at the same time, to all our brothers and sisters, including those not in full communion with us." (UUS n. 21)

Since the desire for unity stems from love, love forms “the great undercurrent which gives life and adds vigor to the movement towards unity." The unity of the inner life of love within the Godhead --- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit --- is the wellspring, that perfect source of communion, from which Christians who are not in full communion with one another may draw "the strength to build communion between individuals and Communities, or to re­establish it between Christians still divided. (UUS n. 21)

In this vein, the Decree on Ecumenism called attention to the unconditioned need for interior conversion with the following admonition:

The faithful should remember that they promote union among Christians better, that indeed they live it better, when they try to live holier lives according to the Gospel. For the closer the union with the Father, the Word, and the Spirit, the more deeply and easily will they be able to grow in mutual brotherly love. (UR n. 7)

Pope John Paul II further develops this need for renewal and conversion in the lived practice of the ecumenical journey toward unity. (UUS nn. 15-17)

Thus, if love inspires the desire for unity, common prayer becomes love's "most complete expression." (UUS n. 21) The Decree on Ecumenism substantiates the reality of prayer as "a genuine expression of the ties which even now bind Catholics to their separated brethren" (UUS n. 21) The Decree had also highlighted the common prayer of Christians who are not in perfect ecclesial communion "as the soul of the whole ecumenical movement." (UR n. 8)

Accordingly, besides being an essential means for petitioning the grace of unity, common prayer becomes a lived expression of the unity already binding Christians together in a real, albeit imperfect communion. For this reason, Ut Unum Sint bestows a "pride of place" to common prayer, that is, '`the prayerful union of those who gather together around Christ himself." (UUS n. 22) Common prayer discloses the genuineness of their brotherhood and sisterhood in Christ.

Common Prayer for unity itself paves a way to spiritual reconciliation, for it heightens an awareness, the divisions notwithstanding, "of how little divides them in comparison to what unites them." (UUS n. 22. See DAPNE n. 10)

 The 1993 ecumenical directory sums up several situations where prayer in common is especially appropriate:

Prayer in common is recommended for Catholics and other Christians so that together they may put before God the needs and problems they share --- e.g., peace, social concerns, mutual charity among people, the dignity of the family, the effects of poverty, hunger and violence, etc. The same may be said of occasions when, according to circumstances, a nation, region or community wishes to make a common act of thanksgiving or petition to God, as on a national holiday, at a time of public disaster or mourning, on a day set aside for remembrance of those who have died for their country, etc. This kind of prayer is also recommended when Christians hold meetings for study or common action. (DAPNE n. 109)

The directory then explains that "(s)hared prayer should, however, be particularly concerned with the restoration of Christian unity." (DAPNE n. 110)

 In addition, common prayer enables those who regularly gather before Christ in prayer “to gain the courage to face all the painful human reality of their divisions, and they will find themselves together once more in that community of the Church which Christ constantly builds up in the Holy Spirit, in spite of weaknesses and human limitations." (UUS n. 22)

Ut Unum Sint envisions "ecumenical prayer" to be "at the service of the Christian mission and credibility." Through common prayer for unity, brothers and sisters in Christ, still separated from full communion, encounter Christ in a way that instills hope, "entrusting to him the future of their unity and their communion." (U US n. 26)

In the "Exhortation," the concluding section of Ut Unum Sint, Pope John Paul II summons the Church to ask the Holy Spirit "for the grace to strengthen her own unity and to make it grow towards full communion with other Christians." (UUS n. 102)

The means to obtain the grace for Christian unity are threefold. Prayer holds the first place in seeking the grace for unity. Giving thanks is an essential aspect of that prayer. Finally, hope in the Holy Spirit is integral to that process because the Spirit "can banish from us the painful memories of our separation" as well as being able to gift us with "clear­ sightedness, strength, and courage to take whatever steps are necessary, that our commitment may be ever more authentic." (UUS n. 102)

 With clarity and conviction Pope John Paul II asserts that the Council's commitment to the rebuilding of Christian unity reflects that “the Holy Spirit is active in this endeavor and that he is leading the Church to the full realization of the Father's plan, in conformity with the will of Christ." (UUS n. 100)

Ecumenical initiatives are a call to realize the will of Christ for unity:

This will was expressed with heartfelt urgency in the prayer, which, according to the Fourth Gospel, he uttered at the moment when he entered upon the saving mystery of his Passover. Just as he did then, today Christ calls everyone to renew their commit-ment to work for full and visible communion. (UUS n. 100)

 Christ's prayer for unity continues into the present--- "That all may be one" (John 17: 21). The new millennium must be recognized as "our age of grace for ecumenism." (UUS n. 100)

 In At the Beginning of the New Millennium (Novo Millennio Ineunte, 2001), Pope John Paul II reviewed the ecumenical dimension of Jubilee 2000. He specifically singles out the ecumenical meeting which inaugurated the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity during the Jubilee 2000. The final opening of the Holy Door in the Eternal City was scheduled at St. Paul's Outside the Walls. Twenty-two Christian Churches and Ecclesial communities were represented at that service. That celebration became the occasion of major ecumenical proportions insofar as “for the first time in history a Holy Door was opened jointly by the Successor of Peter, the Anglican Primate and a Metropolitan of the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople." (NMI n. 12) The Bull of Indiction of the Great Jubilee, The Mystery of the Incarnation (Incamationis Mysterium, The First Sunday of Advent 1998), had anticipated the opening of the Holy Door at St. Paul's Basilica as an event imbued with deep ecumenical significance, i.e. "as a way of emphasizing the distinctive ecumenical character of this Jubilee," (IM n. 6)

In retrospect, the Pope's analysis of the ecumenism is consistent with the hope that suffuses this apostolic letter. With a realism tempered by the encouraging ecumenical progress at the dawning of the new millennium, he writes:

The ecumenical journey is still difficult, and perhaps will be long, but we are encouraged by the hope that comes from being led by the presence of the Risen One and the inexhaustible power of his Spirit, always capable of new surprises. (NMI n. 12)

In his Witness to Hope, an astute theological biography of Pope John Paul II, George Weigel assesses that the Holy Father's sense of urgency about ecumenism (coupled with his creative reshaping of the contours of the movement towards Church unity) constitutes a major achievement of the Pope's ministry as Bishop of Rome.

Weigel also judges that Pope John Paul II's understanding of the ecumenical imperative as an organic part of the mission of the Catholic Church should be linked to another notable constant in his papal ministry of unity --- the full implementation of the Second Vatican Council.

That interrelationship is apparent in the opening of the concluding section ---'Exhortation" --- of Ut Unum Sint:

... the best preparation for the new millennium can only be expressed in a renewed commitment to apply, as faithfully as possible, the teachings of Vatican II to the life of the individual and of the whole Church." (TMA n. 17)... Given the importance which the Council attributed to the work of rebuilding Christian unity, and in this our age of grace for ecumenism, I thought it necessary to reaffirm the fundamental convictions which the Council impressed upon the consciousness of the Catholic Church, recalling them in the light of the progress subsequently made toward the full communion of all the baptized. (UUS n. 100 Emphasis added.)

 Note: The ecumenical directives for the Catholic Church single out the “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity" as a traditional time for common prayer for Christian unity. The "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity" is customarily observed from January 18 through January 25 ---eight days of intensified prayer culminating in the Feast of the Conversion of St. Paul. The “Week of Prayer for Christian Unity" has been celebrated internationally since the 1960s. (UUS n. 24; DAPNE n. 110)

The period between Ascension and Pentecost is also recommended as a fitting time for common prayer for the restoration of Church unity.

 A People Made One, the 1999 pastoral letter on ecumenism issued by the Catholic bishops of Kentucky, speaks of the "Week of Prayer for Christian Unity" as "a privileged expression of our common prayer" because of its worldwide observance. (APMO p. 14)

Feast of the Epiphany... January 6, 2003 

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Last modified: April, 2008