The first principle of the Ordinariate is then about Christian unity. St. Basil the Great, the Church’s greatest ecumenist, literally expended his life on the work of building bridges between orthodox brethren who shared a common faith, but who had become separated from one another in a Church badly fragmented by heresy and controversy. He taught that the work of Christian unity requires deliberate and ceaseless effort...St. Basil often talked with yearning about the archaia agape, the ancient love of the apostolic community, so rarely seen in the Church of his day. This love, he taught, is a visible sign that the Holy Spirit is indeed present and active, and it is absolutely essential for the health of the Church.

- Msgr. Jeffrey Steenson, Homily on the Occasion of his Formal Institution as Ordinary

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

ANGLICAN USE ORDINARIATES AND ECUMENISM

May 30, 2010
Bishop Peter J Elliott

Will establishing Anglican Use Ordinariates in Communion with Rome harm Anglican-Catholic ecumenical relations? This is a speculative question, because it involves the future, but it is important to suggest some answers.

I would argue that the Ordinariates may well improve and stabilize ecumenical relations between Anglicans and Catholics. Notwithstanding the spirit of Christian charity, abiding friendships and common cause that brings us together tonight, there is no use pretending that ecumenical relations between our respective communities have not already suffered harm in recent years. That situation has occasioned the papal offer to some Anglicans, that they might find a special place within the Catholic Church. In that perspective, permit me to begin with a somewhat painful personal memory that may at least help elucidate my opinion...

Read the rest at The Messenger.
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