The further, tragic irony is that this same group, a unity movement, experienced its own divisions. In addition to the doctrinal and social reasons for the eventual divisions, it should be observed that later divisions reflected an ideological tension laid out in Thomas Campbell’s original vision. Unity and restoration, as an enduring pair of principles in the subsequent Restoration Movement, came into tension with one another. This conflict between the two values hinged on the inevitability of differing interpretations of Scripture.
In other words, if even the people who were willing to follow only the Bible could agree on its interpretation and application, then unity would indeed be the inevitable result. Such uniformity of interpretation and application, however, was not to be. This problem was evident during the Reformation and was a source of Roman Catholic polemic against Protestants. Taking the responsibility for biblical interpretation out of the hands of church leaders or the pope and putting it into the hands of all Christians simply made little popes out of everyone. The outcome of endless divisions, so the Roman Church argued with some justification, was predictable.
Source: Keith D. Stanglin - "The Restoration Movement, the Habit of Schism, and a Proposal for Unity", by Dr. Keith D. Stanglin, in Christian Studies, Volume 28, August 2016, http://austingrad.edu/Christian%20Studies/CS%2028/Proposal%20for%20Unity.pdf
A Catholic Honors the Strengths of Protestants
Kreeft regards Protestants warmly, believing that Catholics can learn from them.
“Until Catholics know the Bible better than Protestants do, and until they know Christ, both personally and theologically, better than Protestants do, there is no reason why God should end the Reformation and make all Protestants come back home,” he said. With this mentality, he has made it his mission to unite Christians of different denominations.
Source: Thomas Keenan - Catholic Author Peter Kreeft: To Save Your Soul, You Must Opt Out of the “Culture of Death” - See more at: http://aleteia.org/2014/10/22/catholic-author-peter-kreeft-to-save-your-soul-you-must-opt-out-of-the-culture-of-death/
With 1 Voice
Francis closed his blessing noting that all Christians this year [2017] celebrate Easter on the same date- a rare occurrence since different churches use different calendars.
“With one voice, in every part of the world, we proclaim the great message: ‘The Lord is truly risen, as he said!’ May Jesus, who vanquished the darkness of sin and death, grant peace to our days.”
Source: Pope Francis - Quoted by Inés San Martín in "‘The resurrection is not a fantasy,’ Pope Francis insists on Easter Sunday", Crux, 16 April 2017, https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/04/16/resurrection-not-fantasy-pope-francis-insists-easter-sunday/
Austria (slowly) repents
Austria long presented itself as the first victim of the Nazis, a narrative initially supported by the Allies even though large parts of Austrian society celebrated the Anschluss and many took on roles in the Nazi war effort and the Holocaust.
The so-called 'victim myth' only began to crumble in the 1980s when an international scandal unfolded around Kurt Waldheim, who played down his past as an army intelligence lieutenant attached to Germany military units and became United Nations Secretary-General and president of Austria.
The process is still going on. Until 2013, visitors to an Austrian exhibition in Auschwitz, the Nazis' most notorious death camp, could see a display reading "Austria - First Victim of National Socialism". Austria is still updating the exhibit.
Source: YNET News - "Austria's Nazi past encroaches on election campaign", 1 Dec 2016, http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4887151,00.html
A Cardinal Honors the Bruderhof
By the way, they brew the finest beer, make the best bratwurst, grow the most delicious produce, raise the finest turkeys, and bake the best pies, that this pro has ever savored...and they are a lot of fun!
Most of all, they show us that the Church of the Acts of the Apostles is still very much alive!
Source: Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan - "Radical Discipleship Lived in Our Midst", Catholic New York, 27 April 2017, http://www.cny.org/stories/radical-discipleship-lived-in-our-midst,15453
JPII
John Paul II then asked leaders and theologians of other churches to join him in seeking out a new way of exercising the papal ministry that would truly serve the cause of unity while remaining faithful to its essential mission.
Source: Pope John Paul II - Ut Unum Sint, 96
Our Share in the Aggregate Of Sin
Colin Dunlop, former Dean of Lincoln, articulates the nature of corporate identity and confession in Anglican worship with these words:
We make our confession as members of the Church, "members one of another." We confess not only our own private sins, but . . . our share in that whole aggregate of sin which all but crushed our Master in the Garden of Gethsemane.
Source: Colin Dunlop - As quoted by Dr. Gary S. Greig, The Biblical Foundations of Identificational Repentance as One Prayer Pattern Useful to Advance God's Kingdom and Evangelism, April 2001
What If?
As recounted in From Conflict to Communion, jointly produced by the Lutheran World Federation and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, the Reformation was an academic dispute that careened into a division of the church.
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It's hard to read this without thinking what might have been. . . . if everyone had stopped, quieted, breathed, listened, talked, disputed, clarified, taken a decade off to sort through the issues. What then?
Source: Peter Leithart - "Careening Toward Division", First Things, 10 Jan 2017, https://www.firstthings.com/blogs/leithart/2017/01/careening-toward-division
The "Knowledge Deficit"
A church book discussion about lynchings piqued Wesley Edwards' curiosity in area hate crimes, leading to Austin Callaway. A longtime African-American friend, Bobbie Hart, confessed ignorance to the lynching, prompting them to form the group "Troup Together." Through archival research and interviews, they pieced together parts of Calloway's story.
The "knowledge deficit" is what worries Edwards. If Callaway's lynching remained a mystery all these years, what else don't they know about?
"If white people have one version of history and African-Americans have a different one, then we don't know what we don't know," he said. "We've got to bridge that gap."
Source: Wesley Edwards - Quoted in "'Justice failed Austin Callaway': Town attempts to atone for 1940 lynching", Emanuella Grinberg, CNN, 28 Jan 2017, http://www.cnn.com/2017/01/26/us/lagrange-georgia-callaway-1940-lynching/index.html
St. Patrick
Patrick’s apostolic authority was fueled by Trinitarian devotion. His Breastplate: I bind unto myself today the strong name of the Trinity.
Source: George Miley - Maturing Toward Wholeness in the Inner Life, Chapter 1, "Restore the Ancient Anointings", http://www.quellen.org
A Businessman Repents to a Colleague
I simply said, “I really failed you during the reorganization. I should have come and talked to you right away. My absence and silence must have hurt you deeply. I have no excuse or explanation. I failed you as a manager and I failed you as a friend. I was wrong, and I’m so very sorry. Can you please forgive me?”
His eyes softened as he said, “That’s all I needed to hear. I know you didn’t mean to let me down, but it helps to hear you admit you did. Jesus has forgiven me far worse things, so yes, I gladly forgive you. This is behind us; let’s move on.”
And that was the end of it. No explanation. No excuses. Grace flowed. We were back on course. Ministering together better than ever.
Simple, sincere confessions, without excuses … a great way to take hold of the promise:
“He who conceals his sins does not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them finds mercy” (Prov. 28:13).
Source: Ken Sande - "No Excuses", RW360 blog post, 11 Feb 2019
https://rw360.org/2019/02/11/no-excuses-2/
A Catholic Priest Preaches Methodist
Father Symonds was to be the first Catholic priest to give a sermon at Ballymena’s Methodist church for the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Jan. 18-25.
“I love working here,” he said. “I’ve made great friendships, both within my own congregation and within the Protestant communities. Members of the Presbyterian Church have been particularly supportive of my ministry. I am convinced that I am doing what God has wanted me to do.”
Source: Fr. Paul Symonds - As quoted by the Catholic Review in "English priest receives awards for work in Northern Ireland", 5 Jan 2008, http://www.catholicreview.org/article/faith/vocations/english-priest-receives-award-for-work-in-northern-ireland
Cantalamessa on Bergoglio
Long before he became pope, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio was practising this “ecumenical ecumenism” in Buenos Aires, giving his support to huge joint Catholic-evangelical meetings in Luna Park stadium.
Two of them were attended by Cantalamessa, who was deeply impressed by the Archbishop of Buenos Aires’s extraordinary openness to the current of Grace. “I’ve never seen a bishop in front of an interconfessional audience declare, ‘this is the Church’,” he told me during a break on Thursday.
Source: Austen Ivereigh - "Jubilee in Rome highlights charismatic fruits in Francis’s Pentecost papacy", Crux, 3 June 2017, https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2017/06/03/jubilee-rome-highlights-charismatic-fruits-franciss-pentecost-papacy/
Joe Tosini, Phoenix
It's no secret that division in a family brings harm and pain on many levels. The church which is described as the family of God remains divided. The attitudes and harsh judgements amongst professing Christians have caused deep wounds and centuries of conflicts.
"Father I pray that those who believe in me will be one so the world will know you sent me." That prayer of Jesus in the 17th chapter of the Gospel according to John is the reason Roman Catholics and a variety of Protestant Christians met together on May 23rd, 2015 in Phoenix, Arizona.
There was a declaration made that day by those in attendance to see the Church in Phoenix becoming relationally unified in a way that would make the claims of Jesus visibly seen and felt by those within and outside of the church.
My impression of our day but even more of the effort and working together of so many leading up to Saturday's meeting gives me hope that the church in all of its rich diversity can live and work as one family in the unity of the Holy Spirit.
Source: Joe Tosini - Founder, John 17 Movement, http://www.john17movement.com/
Perspectives on Reconciliation
Source: Wittenberg 2017 - "What Does Reconciliation Look Like To You?", from the Wittenberg 2017 (US) website
J.I. Packer
Across the years, Packer has been involved in theological conversations with Orthodox believers, Roman Catholics, charismatic Christians, as well as mainline Protestants. In each of these encounters, he has promoted a vigorous biblical and spiritual theology, in keeping with the Great Tradition. Packer has been ever mindful of the maxim of Richard Baxter, on whom he wrote his Oxford doctoral dissertation:
in necessariis Unitas,
in non-necessariis Libertas,
in utrisque Caritas.
Despite his charitable spirit and his desire to foster a unitive, irenic evangelicalism, Packer has not been able to avoid controversy. Nowhere have the reactions been more volatile than in the response to Packer’s participation in Evangelicals and Catholics Together. Like his friend Charles Colson, Packer became a major target of the initial evangelical protest against ECT.
Source: Timothy George - "Packer at Ninety", First Things, October 2016, https://www.firstthings.com/web-exclusives/2016/10/packer-at-ninety
Some Ideas
Learning from what others have done … a few examples that demonstrate humility, wisdom and creativity ...
4) Commemorative ceremonies
Significant dates … are becoming reconciliation events when believers gather to memorialize these painful memories in annual observances. German Christians have led the way
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8) Appreciation tours
Korean, Japanese, North American and European Christians moving beyond the traditional tours to the Holy Land and exploring the cultures of other nations in order to empathize with and appreciate the diversity of God's redemptive gifts within the peoples of the world. Reconciliation is a featured part of many of these journeys.
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11) Diversity in Unity Celebrations
Old wounds are eventually put behind us and unity can be celebrated as an accomplished fact. Recently a Los Angeles city councilman visited a block party put on by a neighborhood filled with believers. "If the city was like this block, LA would have no problems," said the amazed politician after observing the obvious harmony between a great diversity of cultures.
12) Receptions, Banquets and other Hospitality Based Gatherings
Eating together remains one of the most effective ways of bringing together eleemtns of society and Christians with a ministry of hospitality will always be at the forefront of the ministry of reconciliation. This is an activity that begins in teh home and the church dining hall and extends all the way to the convention center.
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14) Cross-cultural and Denominational Interchurch Hosting
It is increasingly common for pastors to exchange pulpits ore for whole congregations to visit one another for combined services and fellowship. Congregations have specialty ministry gifts and the division of labor for that God has created becomes evident when believers really begin to explore and "see" one another in the life of hte city.
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The methods listed above were discovered by united believers in the place of prayer. The Holy Spirit will reveal the perfect plan for you and your team as you also seek God for wisdom.
Source: John Dawson - What Every Christian Should Know About Reconciliation, pp. 43 - 46
Cuthbert the Bridge Builder
The Lindisfarne Gospels were created on Holy Island by Eadfrith, Bishop of Lindisfarne, 1300 years ago, to honour the memory of Cuthbert, born the year Aidan settled on Holy Island. As Cuthbert grew up and entered monastic life, Aidan sent the brothers Cedd and Chad on successful apostolic missions to the East Saxons (Essex) and the Mercians (the Midlands). Cuthbert became prior at Lindisfarne in 664, the year of the fateful Synod of Whitby when Rome demanded–and acquired–dominance over the independent and decentralised Celtic church.
Cuthbert the bridge-builder accepted the Whitby ruling. He stressed unity with diversity as he worked to reform the community and gained a widespread reputation as a holy man and worker of miracles. When the island was abandoned in face of the Viking threat, Cuthbert’s body and the Gospels crafted in his memory began an eventful journey ending 120 years later in Durham.
The Gospels richly embody Cuthbert’s emphasis on diversity in unity. Breath-taking in detail, colour and ornate design, the Gospels weave elements of book-making, ornamentation, script, illustration, theme and symbolism not only from the Irish Celtic and Roman traditions that were fused at Whitby, or from the scribe’s Anglo-Saxon roots. Experts have also identified elements from Coptic, Byzantine, Oriental and British Celtic sources.
The story of Lindisfarne and of the Gospels inspire many today to pray and strive towards a weaving together of God-given strands of spirituality which over time have become separated.
Source: Jeff Fountain - "The Book That Made Britain", Weekly Word eNewsletter, 27 July 2020
https://us9.campaign-archive.com/?e=0b86898e11&u=65605d9dbab0a19355284d8df&id=f4d0087745
The First Step - Forgive Those In My Own Tradition
My view of the episode was a bit different. I saw the Lord giving me grace among these brethren as something of a first step in my progression toward forgiveness. I knew that if I was to have any success at all with what the Lord had directed, if I was to be able to forgive the old main line churches, I had to first forgive these Pentecostal brethren, and bring them to a point of understanding one another.
Source: David du Plessis - From "A Man Called Mr. Pentecost", as told to Bob Slosser, Ch. 18, p. 170
An End-of-Life Review
Imagine when your earthly life ends and you relive your whole life - every moment. Imagine the day God shows you how your faithful, loving acts of service produced a ripple effect in God's economy. Dr. Mary Neal felt Jesus' embrace as she relived her whole life while trapped underwater in her kayak.
"I was shown events in my life, not in isolation but in the context of their unseen ripple effects. It is easy for all to see the impact our words or actions have on our immediate surroundings, but to see the impact of events or words dozens of times removed was profoundly powerful. Through this experience, I was able to clearly see that every action, every decision, and every human interaction impacts the bigger world in far more significant ways than we could ever be capable of appreciating."
Source: John Burke - "Imagine Heaven", Ch. 17, p. 243