Ecumenical Info

40 Years of Dialogue

June/July 2005

By Rev. Michael Demkovich, O.P.

In November of 1964 the Second Vatican Council issues its ground breaking document on ecumenical dialogue. Unitatis Redintegratio begins "The restoration of unity among all Christians is one of the principal concerns of the Second Vatican Council." It was a call to dialogue among the Christian communions, with special consideration of the Eastern Churches. The following year Pope Paul VI declared in the Council Nostra Aetate (in our times) which extended this dialogue to other great religions, especially Judaism and Islam. This October 28 is the 40th anniversary of that Declaration and it reminds us of our need to recognize the importance of inter-religious dialogue.

I recently had a conversation with a student about the difference between comparative religion and inter-religious dialogue. From the perspective of Nostra Aetate the difference is important. In the first case, comparative religion is the study of religions while inter-religious dialogue is about men and women of Faith who believe that God, or some ultimate reality beyond human genius is revealed in our world. It is this knowledge of God, the Absolute, which brings us together. An example of this will help. Just as there are various people who know me, they all don't know me in the same way. With some, they know me professionally, with others socially, or others in passing. When these people get together and start talking about me they all learn something of me, or once again confirmed in their knowledge of me. The ones who know me well, who know me the best, speak on my behalf because I have disclosed more of who I am to them. This is similar in inter-religious dialogue. God's self disclosure is something we believe and call it revelation. There is a fair and firm conviction that in Jesus Christ something more about God has been revealed to us, and we want to share this. Indeed, just as our friends who know us more deeply have a moral obligation to speak on our behalf, so too our intimacy with God in Christ holds a similar moral obligation. Nostra Aetate states:

The Catholic Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. She regards with sincere reverence those ways of conduct and of life, those precepts and teachings which, though differing in many aspects from the ones she holds and sets forth, nonetheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men. Indeed, she proclaims, and ever must proclaim Christ "the way, the truth, and the life" (John 14:6), in whom men may find the fullness of religious life, in whom God has reconciled all things to Himself.

The Church, therefore, exhorts her sons, that through dialogue and collaboration with the followers of other religions carried out with prudence and love and in witness to the Christian faith and life, they recognize, preserve and promote the good things, spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these men. (#2)

In this Declaration, Pope Paul VI made it clear that as we enter into dialogue with other religions, we ourselves must know the one of whom we speak. Pope John Paul II in his pontificate committed himself to Vatican II and Pope Paul's mission, making enormous contributions to both ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue. Pope Benedict XVI has signaled his intention to continue such dialogue when after becoming Pope he met with the representatives of Christian communions and non-Christian religious leaders who came to Rome.

We, for our part, can contribute to the dialogue by educating ourselves. It is so important that good dialogue be informed dialogue. It saddens me when good Catholics ignorantly make claims that are not what the Church holds, especially when Church teaching is far more charitable than what some people say. This is why in dialogue we need to know the one on whose behalf we speak. Our relationship to Jesus Christ is what we bring to the dialogue and this is true of each person in the dialogue as to their religious witness, Jew, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, etc.

With summer just around the corner I invite you to do a little summer reading. The legacy of Pope John Paul II is a rich one, well worth our reflection. Why not set the goal of reading some of his encyclicals? I suggest taking one encyclical a week or one over two weeks. You may even gather some friends, Catholics, non-Catholics, non-Christians to join in the study. Pope John Paul, as we have seen, was a person who spoke to the world. Perhaps by reading his thoughts we can grow in our understanding as Catholics and with other people of faith grow as women and men of good will. All of the encyclicals are easily available at the Papel Encyclicals Online Papel Encyclicals Online.

As a help, I would suggest the following encyclicals and I indicate the year it was written and offer some questions to use in your reading: (1) Redemptor Hominis (March 4, 1979) What does redemption mean and how does the Church assist with it in today's world? What is humanity all about? (2) Laborem Exercens (September 14, 1981) What does work have to do with religion? What is fair for the worker and employee? Is it possible to have a Spirituality of Work? (3) Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (December 30, 1987) Just what is going on in the world? Is authentic human development possible today? What does Faith tell us about living in our world? (4) Dominum et Vivificantem (May 18, 1986) What does it mean to say "we believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life? Is the Holy Spirit real? Don't we just need Jesus? (5) Ut Unum Sint (May 25, 1995) What about other Christians and other Religions? Isn't it really all the same thing, so why bother? What is the scandal of Christianity? Why should we work toward Unity? (6) Ecclesia De Eucharistia (April 17, 2003) What is so special about the Eucharist? Why do Catholics have such a different attitude about Communion? What does the real presence mean, any how? These are just 6 encyclicals of the 14 by Pope John Paul II, not to mention his almost 75 Apostolic Constitutions, Exhortations, and Letters.

Forty years of dialogue is a blessing for all of us, and for such dialogue to continue we need to better know our tradition. Why not use the summer months to read and make a substantial contribution to the dialogue? Take the summer to discover!