ELCA-Roman Catholic Dialogue Continues to Compare, Contrast

CHICAGO (ELCA) -- Work continued in exploring the Lutheran and Roman Catholic traditions and their resources in history, scripture and theology for resolving continuing issues that stand in the way of full communion. Representatives conducting the 10th round of talks between the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) met Nov. 30-Dec. 3 in Las Vegas.
"The Church as Koinonia of Salvation: Its Structures and Ministries" is the title of the round. "Koinonia" is an anglicized Greek word that appears several times in the Christian Bible and is translated as "fellowship, a close mutual relationship; participation, sharing in; partnership; contribution, gift." The dialogue is taking up issues of koinonia as they relate to "ordained ministry and structures of church unity."
Dr. Margaret O'Gara, University of St. Michael's College, Toronto, Ontario, presented "Toward a Roman Catholic Evaluation of the 'Niagara Report,' the 'Porvoo Common Statement' and 'Called to Common Mission'" -- a paper on several of the Anglican (Episcopal) and Lutheran theological agreements that have made full communion possible between them.
Not all Lutheran churches claimed the historic episcopate -- a succession of bishops reaching back to the early days of the Christian Church. Through the agreements, O'Gara said, Lutheran churches will come into the historic episcopate as understood by Anglicans. From a Catholic and Orthodox point of view, this is a very important stage in the development of ministry among the churches, she said.
The Rev. Scott S. Ickert, Resurrection Lutheran Church, Arlington, Va., presented "Recent Lutheran Reflections on Universal Ministry." He reviewed previous dialogues on papacy and infallibility and current Lutheran scholars' positions on the subject.
The Rev. Lowell G. Almen, ELCA secretary, developed the Lutheran understanding of bishops from the constitutional and confessional documents of the ELCA.
Dr. Michael Root, Trinity Lutheran Seminary, Columbus, Ohio, presented "The Local Church, the Bishop and the Presbyter: An Argument." Root examined complimentary differences in Catholic and Lutheran understandings of local church, as parish or congregation, and regional church, as diocese or synod. He explored the implications of those understandings for a theology of ordination in those churches.
In addition to the four papers, time was given to a discussion of the Lutheran study of ordained ministry, the process by which the decision was made for women to be ordained in the predecessor bodies of the ELCA, and some developments on communion ecclesiology in German Catholic scholarship.
During the course of the meeting, the co-chairs -- the Rev. Charles H. Maahs, bishop of the ELCA Central States Synod, Shawnee Mission, Kan., and the Most Rev. Richard J. Sklba, auxiliary bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milwaukee -- appointed drafters of the text that will form the report of this round of the dialogue.
In addition to prayers to open and close each day of the meeting, dialogue members worshiped together at Christ the King Catholic Church on Dec. 2 and Christ Lutheran Church on Dec. 3.
The USCCB and the U.S.A. National Committee of the Lutheran World Federation initiated the first round of the "bilateral" dialogue that began in 1965. It has produced a number of common statements on such topics as Scriptures, saints and justification by faith.
Participants meet twice each year. The next meeting will be March 29-April 1 at St. Paul's College, Washington, D.C.

* Information for this story was provided by Brother Jeff Gros,
associate director of ecumenical and interreligious affairs for the
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), Washington, D.C.

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