The Noted Ecumenist, Canon Paul Avis

Friends:

In the last two days I have had the privilege of hearing Canon Paul Avis, General Secretary of the Church of England's Council for Christian Unity, speak twice.

The first was a discussion of Dr. Avis' book Beyond the Reformation: Authority, Primacy and Unity in the Conciliar Tradition. Dean Ian Markham of Virginia Theological Seminary convened a faculty discussion of this work at his home on campus this past Wednesday evening. He was kind enough to include me.

The book is very informative on the history of Conciliarity and the Conciliar movement in the church. The history is complex. Avis argues that the Conciliar movement affected the Reformation. Themes of conciliarity are with us today in our ecumenical discussion but we sometimes fail to appreciate the long history of Conciliar thought.

Yesterday Canon Avis gave a lecture at Catholic University in the late afternoon on ethics and communion--at the invitation of Msgr. Paul McPartlan and Dean Irwin. Since I am a moral theologian by training, I was very interested to see what he would say. I was not disappointed.

He confirmed my belief that there is not much literature on ecumenical ethics and personal morality--there is more on social ethical questions. In his detailed presentation, he proposed a starting point and some principles to guide the discussion. A version of this presentation will appear in a book he is writing for T&T Clark.

What I am happy to see is that a leading ecumenist is beginning to address issues of personal morality. I think this is necessary. In fact I have convinced the Board of the North American Academy of Ecumenists to have its annual meeting, to be held here in Washington September 25-27, focused on ecumenical ethics. I will present more on this in a later blog.

It was two days of intense learning--something good for me.

It also was an intellectual feast for our Celebrations of Christian Unity.

Peace,
John

The Challenge of St. Paul

On Friday night I was very happy to hear Father John Donahue, SJ's lecture on Paul.
This was the annual Hecker Lecture at St. Paul's College. It was subtitled: The Challenge for Our Country Today.

I find it enjoyable to hear a leading biblical scholar speak to one of his areas of expertise.

There were numerous good points--and Fr. Donahue handed out some texts and bibliography.
[His text can now be found in Origins: Catholic News Service Documentary Service, 38/34, February 5, 2009, pages 541-546.

One point he made about St. Paul's Call has stuck with me.

Paul kept his Judaism.
And he accepted Christ.
The Call--experienced so dramatically--was transforming for him

This reminded me that in our ecumenical work it is not a matter of giving up our tradition but rather of going deeper in accepting Christ and letting our lives be transformed by the Spirit. This transformation can often occur in our dialogue with our fellow Christians. We don't give up our own personal Christian history but rather go deeper together.

Peace,
John

PS I was great to see and speak with friends who were in attendance.

Prayer Service at Christ Lutheran Church

Friends:

This Saturday there was a Prayer Service for Christian Unity at Christ Lutheran Church on 16th Street NW. About 45-50 of us gathered. A lunch of soup, bread and deserts followed--including an hour of conversation.

A major force behind this service was Mrs. Susan Beck.
Susan was a student in my ecumenism class at LTSG last January.
I was very happy that as an intern at Christ Lutheran she was so instrumental in developing this service.

This service brought together a number of the local clergy--they had not gotten together in a few years. They hope that they will get together again soon.

Susan is an example of what I often say in class--one or two people can make a difference in our ecumenical collaboration.

Peace,
John

Student Orientation at Wesley

Friends:

I had an opportunity yesterday to be present at part of the Orientation of
New Students at Wesley Theological Seminary. All was well-run and everyone was most hospitable as usual.

I enjoy seeing faculty members--and having a chance to chat with a few.

I also enjoy speaking to all the students--and conversing between sessions with a few.
Two spoke with me of their great interest in ecumenism and interest in getting involved
in the ecumenical work of the Consortium. This made me feel good.

Orientation was a very good experience.

Peace,
John

Thanks to Wesley Dean for Community Life Shelby Haggray for all her work.

Inauguration

Friends:

Yesterday the Inauguration of President Obama not only flooded the city with visitors but marked a change in American History. In Washington, where slavery was once practiced, an African-American became President.

I think that this is a milestone for all of us. It marks a turning away from racism and discrimination.

I believe that we will always have to work to build bridges and not to set up barriers.
This work is ongoing and will not end with one event.
But we can rejoice that we have come this far.

Peace,
John

Interchurch Marriages

Friends:

As some of you know, I have been involved for 2 decades with Catholic Engaged Encounter.
CEE is a movement in the church that provides weekends for Engaged Couples.
Often these couples are interchurch--that is, from two different Christian tradiions.
In this instance one of the parties is Catholic.

Two years ago, the CEE community in our region invited me to give a workshop on the Spirituality of Interchurch couples. I was happy to do so. About 60 of the presenting couples attended the workshop, which I gave twice.

I shared the text of this presentation with Father Tom Ryan.
He asked if he could include it in his ecumenical e-newsletter, Koinonia.

The article just appeared.
It is entittle "Reaching Out to Interchurch Couple: Finding a Common Spirituality"

If you think it might be helpful to you, it can be accessed at:

www.paulist.org/namerica/ecumenism_k_interchurch.htm.

Peace,
John

Fear in Ecumenism

Friends:

I am enjoying teaching my class on Spiritual Ecumenism at Union/PSCE in Richmond.

We have had some interesting question and answers/discussions.

The question of Fear in ecumenism did arise.
This is a good question--because something new can arouse our fear.

In dialogue with others we can encounter others' ways of thinking that are quite different from ours. This experience can be quite stimulating. But it can also lead us to question our own views--fear can arise at this point. We might ask ourselves--Am I losing something really important if I adopt these ideas?

While often what others believe complements what we believe, at other times, others' beliefs challenge our own.

Time in prayer--quiet prayer--can be critical at this juncture. Our fears can surface during our prayer time. We can turn them over to the Spirit--and also give some deeper consideration to what we are afraid of. Our fears can be irrational--or related to past experiences and not the present one .... As we pray we may see the wisdom of others--or our own wisdom--or the integration of both wisdoms.

Prayer is important as we sort through our fears--and come to a deeper level of ecumenical conversation.

Peace,
John

Friends:

I thought that I should post my Christmas letter for all who do not receive it by post.


Dear Friends:


The Consortium Year 2008 could be considered the Year of Friendships and Communication.

* The Development Committee transformed into the Friends Committee. Since positive relationships are the foundation for ecumenism and interfaith dialogue, the Board Committee will fulfill the WTC mission by providing opportunities for conversation and friendship. This will be done especially through the Annual Friends’ Reception on April 23rd at St. John’s Lafayette Square. The Reception is a low cost and substantive event—please bring your friends.

* The Consortium Student Board is quite active this year. The members have decided to get to know one another better. They have also decided to sponsor events where students can meet each other and engage in conversation.

* The Friends Committee has invited the members of the Consortium Student Board to attend the Annual Friends’ Reception.

* We hope to enhance communications by updating our website regularly. If you wish to know what is going on, the website is the first place to look [www.washtheocon.org]. The new Home Page, now ending its development phase, will be operative very soon.

* I am ‘blogging’ more these days. The Blog, Ecumenism Today—Coffee with Crossin--is both a low-key Commentary and a weekly Chronicle. I offer short reflections on Consortium events and Commentary, especially from the point of view of spiritual ecumenism, on whatever strikes me! You are welcome to respond with your own thoughts. The blog is accessible under executive director on our website.

I continue to pray for you every day—and hope that you will pray for mutual understanding between Christians and among all faiths.


Peace,


(Rev) John W. Crossin, OSFS
Executive Director


Upcoming Events--as listed on the Consortium Website

Teaching is a Joy

Friends:

I am getting ready to teach--Spiritual Ecumenism.
The course begins next Monday in Richmond.

I have just run off the final version of the syllabus.
My handouts are ready.
I need to (re)write one more lecture this weekend--and then it is off to Richmond.

I enjoy this total immersion in the ecumenical world.
I learn a lot from the students--as they always have insights and they live in a bit of a different world than mine!

There will be a little sadness during these two weeks in Richmond.
Two of the Schools of the Richmond Consortium--Union and Baptist--will not be continuing in the WTC next year, while the 3rd, Virginia Union, intends to continue with us. Thus I will have less contact with the two in the future--I have enjoyed our relationship.

For the next few weeks I put aside my administrative duties and return, ever so briefly, to the classroom. It will be as always a learning experience.

Peace,
John