VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The only name Pope Francis wants divided Christians to call each other is brother or sister. When one walks in the presence of God, this brotherhood results, the pope told evangelical and Pentecostal Christians July 28 in Caserta. The pope himself acknowledged that some people would be shocked by his decision to visit a Pentecostal church; while the Vatican has had an official dialogue with some Pentecostals and evangelicals since the 1970s, by and large, Catholic-Pentecostal relations have not been easy. For years, sect was the nicest thing even Vatican documents had to say about the burgeoning Pentecostal communities in Latin America and Africa. The nicest thing many of those communities have to say about the Catholic Church is even worse. And even as Pope Francis was preparing his visit to the Pentecostal Church of Reconciliation in Caserta, the Italian Evangelical Alliance and other communities issued a statement sharply critical of Catholic Church teaching and, especially, critical of evangelical communities in Italy and around the world who hope for ecumenical rapprochement with Rome. The groups said they maintain as incompatible with the teaching of Scripture a church that believes it is a mediator of salvation and a church that has assumed the responsibility of adding dogmas -- like the Marian ones -- to the faith. Apparent similarities with evangelical spirituality and faith in some sectors of Catholicism are not in themselves a reason for hope in a real change, said the statement published July 19. The leaders called on evangelicals warming to Rome to exercise healthy biblical discernment and focus instead on bringing the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the whole world. For Pope Francis, as for the popes who preceded him, that is a key point. While Pope Francis gestures are new, the basic idea of growth in unity being the result of growth in fidelity to Christ is not. During the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity in 2012, Pope Benedict XVI said, The full and visible Christian unity that we long for demands that we let ourselves be transformed and that we conform ourselves ever more perfectly to the image of Christ. The unity we pray for requires an inner conversion that is both common and personal. It is not merely a matter of cordiality or cooperation, it is necessary above all to strengthen our faith in God, in the God of Jesus Christ, who spoke to us and made himself one of us. It is not the Holy Spirit who makes division, Pope Francis told the Pentecostals. The one who creates divisions is the jealous one, the king of envy, that sower of weeds: Satan! The Holy Spirit creates diversity in the church, he said. And this diversity is very rich and very beautiful. But then, the Holy Spirit also brings unity and, in that way, the church is one in its diversity. Let us try to walk in the presence of God in order to be irreproachable, the pope said in Caserta. Let us try to go find the nourishment we need and end up finding our brother. Read the original news story here: Let me call you brother: Pope takes ecumenism one step at a time Read more news stories on this topic here: Evangelical Pastor Giovanni Traettinos Words to Pope Francis in Caserta Popes Address to Pentecostal Community in Caserta Truth is violated by falsehood, but it is outraged by silence. ~ Henri-Frederic Amiel, Swiss philosopher Science Deceptions Media Deceptions Reformation Spiritual Deceptions Health Deceptions
Posted on: Mon, 18 Aug 2014 09:19:06 +0000
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