A Reflection on Ecumenism

 

My ecumenical journey began with the fear of contamination that all good Catholic children felt when even passing a Protestant place of worship. That was the fifties and sixties. When we said the Creed we firmly believed in our superiority as the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church. All others were damned to hell as heretics. We neglected to understand that to be catholic (universal) we needed to accept that we were a People of God divided, incomplete and fractured. To say that this was the beginning of part of my life’s journey is true, for the lure of the ‘’forbidden’’ and my intellectual curiosity were too powerful to be suppressed by any dysfunctional dictates.

 

So, I have explored many different Christian approaches to God and Christ, as well as most of the major non-Christian religions. I  spent time in India studying Buddhism while teaching students from every religious tradition on the sub-continent. I’ve been an organist and choirmaster for Anglican churches as well as Roman Catholic. I’ve sung in Orthodox churches and have prayed for the souls of many friends in their own Protestant funeral services. As well, during the horrors of the AIDS crisis in Australia, I was called upon to conduct remembrance services in crematoria. I was privileged to sing at several concerts to promote the work of The AIDS Quilt Project. I’ve worked for social justice and peace organisations all through my adult life.

 

I suppose I have practised “spiritual ecumenism” as Cardinal Walter Kasper espouses. As he said, “…Every time Christians of different communities pray together, witness to the Gospel and help people in need, they are promoting Christian unity”. His booklet "A Handbook of Spiritual Ecumenism," encourages participating in ecumenical prayer services and discussions during Christian Unity Week. "The way toward reconciliation and communion unfolds when Christians feel the painful wound of division in their hearts, in their minds and in their prayers." Again, it says, “Prayer should be a Christians' first response.”