Reformátusok Lapja, 1972 (72. évfolyam, 1-7. szám)
1972-06-01 / 6-7. szám
REFORMÁTUSOK LAPJA 5 SHOULD THE R. C. CHURCH JOIN THE N.C.C.? An influential group of Catholic, Protestant and Orthodox churchmen are convinced that the Roman Catholic Church should join the National Council of Churches. In a document produced after two years of study and deliberation, and scheduled for release in mid-January, an official Joint Study Committee on Possible Roman Catholic Membership in the NCC concludes that “nearly every argument in favor of the continuance of the NCC (or a comparable successor) is also an argument for Roman Catholic membership.” The step if it comes — and it is up to the National Conference of Catholic Bishops to decide to apply for membership — would profoundly affect the collective life of American religious institutions for generations to come. On the whole, the 17-member committee found the Council’s record as a cooperative enterprise of the member churches to be favorable. After an exhaustive examination of the performance of the 21 year-old Council in behalf of its 33 Protestant, Anglican and Orthodox member churches, the committee found that “the NCC has made, and can continue to make, a major contribution as an organ of the ecumenical movement and as a service organization of the member churches.. . If the NCC were to be dismantled without an effective successor, great harm would be done to the cause of ecumenical Christianity in the United States.” In arguing for Catholic membership, the committee said further: “We believe that if the documents of Vatican II are a valid expression of what the RCC is and intends to be — as can scarcely be denied — Roman Catholic ecclesiological principles are in substantial accord with the aims and methods of the NCC. This being so, it would seem that the arguments for RC membership in the NCC are as strong as the arguments for membership in the case of many other member churches.” The report stressed, however, that “the ultimate decision” to apply for membership must rest on “responsible leaders of the RCC after due consultation with their own constituencies on various levels.” The committee, appointed by both religious bodies as the successor to a “working group” formed in 1966, is under the joint chairmanship of Bishop Charles H. Helmsing of Kansas City - St. Joseph, Mo., chairman of the U.S. Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs; and the Rev. Dr. John Coventry Smith, New York, general secretary of the Commission on Ecumenical Mission and Relations of the United Presbyterian Church in the U.S.A., and a President of the World Council of Churches. Top ranking theologians, seminary and divinity school heads, bishops, leaders of several communions and religious agency executives are among the committee’s nine Protestant, seven Catholic and one Greek Orthodox members. S:me Problems In endorshing the idea of Roman Catholic membership, the committee acknowledges a number of problems that would need to be faced and solved. On the practical side these include: ® “The possibility that the Council or its units might adopt some policies and programs which are not welcome” to the Catholic Church—on such issues, for example, as abortion, population control and divorce.” ® "Delays in adoption of joint policies or programs which, if done separately, would require less time and consultation.” ® The “risk” that some “prophetic vigor” might be lost, that “some common statements and decisions would be too bland.” Balancing these on the asset side, the report points out, are the “clear advantages in having common policies and programs that are not the sole responsibility of the Roman Catholic Church. Bearing this out, membership would mean that: ® “Interdenominational studies and staff work could probably be conducted with greater expertise . . . with less duplication of effort.” © “There would be a wider basis of support and understanding in the American community for positions not taken by the RCC alone” but the total NCC membership. ® “It would he a distinct advantage to all concerned” if issues presently dividing Catholics and Protestants (Christion education, abortion and divorce, among them) “could be discussed ecumenically.” Moreover, “the discipline of making Roman Catholic positions plausible to other Christian groups (would lead to) greater precision of theological understanding by Catholics themselves.” The ecumenical goals of the Council are virtually identical to those laid down for the Catholic Church in documents of Vatican II, the committee finds. They include: © Fostering oneness in the Church and promoting evangelism. © Encouraging study and use of the Bible. © Carrying out in cooperation missions of aid and service to all peoples. © To study, speak and act on “conditions and issues in the nation and the world,” to cite the NCC’s constitution, “which involve moral, ethical and spiritual principles inherent in the Christian Gospel.” “The close parallelism of purposes suggests the likelihood that the RCC in the United States might appropriately seek to become a member of the NCC, and that it might he welcomed in this capacity,” the committee comments. RCC — NCC Cooperation Short of applying for membership, the Roman Catholic Church has been collaborating with the NCC in many activities for a number of years. It has also sanctioned Catholic representation in much that the Council has been doing. In November, 1970, for example, the Conference of Catholic Bishops approved Catholic membership in the NCC’s Commission on Faith and Order, and five Catholics have since become members. This commission presently is staffed with two Catholics. Three other priests and religions serve in other NCC posts. Elsewhere the report cites further RCC-NCC cooperation in such areas as: © Official RC observers and fraternal delegates at NCC events. © Frequent consultation between top levels of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops and the NCC. O Working relationships in numerous programs of mutual concern and interest.
