Church communities

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Ecclesiastical communities (communitates ecclesiales, communitates ecclesiasticae) are Christian denominations in the parlance of the Roman Catholic Church , which, according to their criteria, cannot be called churches.

Pre-conciliar Catholicism

See also: ecumenical return .

Before the Second Vatican Council , the Roman Catholic Church identified with the Church of Jesus Christ in such a way that outside of itself it could only recognize heretics , schismatics and non-Christians. With a certain tension, Orthodoxy was usually referred to as church (es), which meant that historical usage continued to have an effect. The denominations that emerged from the Reformation were never recognized as churches by Rome before the Council.

Second Vatican Council

The relationship of non-Catholic Christians and churches to the Roman Catholic Church, on which the texts of the Second Vatican Council are based, can be illustrated in the model of concentric circles. The Roman Catholic Church forms the innermost circle (only in it is the “fullness of the means of salvation”), but Jesus Christ is the center. While Catholics the church "incorporated" are (incorporantur) , non-Catholics are in various ways connected with it or ordered to it.

The council distinguished between “churches” and “ecclesial communities”. This formulation was contested during the council. The first drafts of the text made a distinction between the “churches” of the East and the “communities” that emerged from the Reformation. The positive perception of communities already meant a significant advance compared to the idea that non-Catholic Christians were only assigned to the Catholic Church as individuals ("separate brothers", fratres seiuncti ). The "communities" came into focus as the places where these Christians live their faith. In the foreword of Unitatis redintegratio about the ecumenically committed non-Catholics it is explicitly stated that they “call on the triune God and confess Jesus as Lord and Savior, not only individually but also in their communities (in coetibus congregati) in to whom they have heard the good news and whom they call their church and God's church (Ecclesiam dicunt esse suam et Dei) . "

During the opening speech of the second session, Pope Paul VI spoke . of communities "who adorn themselves with the name of the church" - it remained unclear whether he would recognize this self-designation; in any case, he did not reject her. In fact, the Unity Secretariat under Cardinal Bea was faced with the difficult task of finding a common name that was appropriate not only for Lutherans and Reformed , but also, for example, for Quakers and Disciples of Christ , and which took their self-image into account. At the time of the Council, one could point out from the Catholic side that the differences between the denominations in the Protestant spectrum were so great that for the most part they practiced no communion among themselves.

In the third session, the decision was made to name “churches” of the East and “churches and ecclesial communities” of the West and leave it open which denomination in the West was called the Church and which was called the Church Community.

“The churches and ecclesiastical communities (Ecclesiae et Communitates ecclesiales) , which were separated from the Roman Apostolic See in the severe crisis that began in the West at the end of the Middle Ages, are through with the Catholic Church connected to the bond of special kinship ... "(Unitatis redintegratio 19)

Cardinal Franz König (1960)

The term "ecclesiastical communities" (communitates ecclesiales) comes from Cardinal Franz König , the term was intended to honor the "ecclesiastical elements" that were perceived in the respective denominations. Since the adjective ecclesiasticus already had a different connotation, the new adjective ecclesialis was created for the decree of ecumenism . The fact that the Latin term communitates ecclesiasticae is used differently in the Council document Lumen Gentium means no difference in content:

“The church knows itself to be connected for several reasons with those who, through baptism, are part of the honor of the Christian name but do not profess the full faith or do not maintain the unity of communion under the Successor of Peter . For many honor the Scriptures as the norm of faith and life, show sincere religious zeal, believe in love in God, the Almighty Father, and in Christ, the Son of God and Savior, receive the sign of baptism, which connects them with Christ become; yes they also recognize and receive other sacraments in their own churches or ecclesial communities (in propriis Ecclesiis vel communitatibus ecclesiasticis) . ”(Lumen gentium 15)

Newer development

There were remarkable ecumenical gestures between the Vatican and the Anglican Community after the Council. Paul VI put Michael Ramsey , the Archbishop of Canterbury during his visit to the Vatican in 1966 his own episcopal ring on which he in 1954 as archbishop of Milan had received. According to Paul Avis , the archbishop was completely surprised by this gesture; the ring has since been worn by the archbishop of Canterbury when he visits Rome.

The pontificate of John Paul II sent contradicting signals regarding the ecclesiastical character of the denominations that emerged from the Reformation, according to Bernd Jochen Hilberath : “... the Pope, together with the Archbishop of Canterbury, blesses the believers in St. Peter's Square and ignores the official one Doctrine is layman , since Anglican ordinations are still considered invalid; the same Pope ... presents the Swedish bishops with a ring and he writes an encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia ... the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 'may' publish the declaration Dominus Iesus , the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity at the same time ... Dialogue groups with all, who want to educate. "

The declaration Dominus Iesus , published on August 6, 2000, bore the theological handwriting of the then Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger. She not only repeated formulations of the council. While in the ecumenism decree the basic motive of naming something that connects, the defect of communities without a valid episcopate has now been emphasized, without, however, completely denying them an ecclesiality:

“The ecclesiastical communities (Communitates ecclesiales), on the other hand, which have not preserved the valid episcopate and the original and complete reality of the Eucharistic mystery , are not churches in the proper sense (sensu proprio Ecclesiae non sunt) ; but those baptized in these communities are incorporated into Christ through baptism and are therefore in a certain, if not perfect, communion with the Church. ”(Dominus Iesus 17)

It is noticeable here that in the pre-conciliar tradition, non-Catholic Christians are primarily perceived as individuals (“the baptized”) who are connected to the Church of Jesus Christ - the Roman Catholic Church.

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger , Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith 1981-2005, in 2003

Since the so-called “ecclesiastical communities” do not consider themselves deficient in their self-understanding, Dominus Iesus' language regulation was perceived as a degradation. “For the declaration, the churches of the Reformation are, so to speak, at the lowest level of the church hierarchy. ... With a clarity that leaves no room for doubt, the principle of dealing par cum pari, ie equal to the same, is rejected, ”said President Manfred Kock, President of the Council of the EKD.

His successor in office, Wolfgang Huber, gave a similar judgment . He recalled that less than a year before the appearance of the Dominus Iesus declaration, the joint declaration on the doctrine of justification had been signed, in which representatives of the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Church announced a dialogue “as equal partners (par cum pari) ” . Nothing of this can be felt in the declaration. Rather, this text "let the characteristics of the Roman Catholic understanding of the Church emerge which make it permanently unacceptable for Protestant Christians".

In an interview about this criticism from the EKD, Ratzinger said that it seemed absurd to him if Catholics were expected to regard Protestant regional churches , “these accidental historical formations” and “factual Protestant church entities” as churches in the same sense as they did Catholic Church. He suggested that the Protestant churches should defend their own ecclesiology more offensively: "There, 'church happens', to put it that way."

In July 2007 the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published the letter Responsa ad quaestiones de aliquibus sententiis ad doctrinam de ecclesia pertinentibus , in which the distinction between church and ecclesial community is affirmed:

"5. Question: Why do the texts of the Council and the subsequent Magisterium not attribute the title “Church” to the communities that emerged from the Reformation of the 16th century? Answer: Because, according to Catholic doctrine, these communities do not have apostolic succession in the sacrament of Holy Orders and therefore they lack an essential constitutive element of being a church. The ecclesiastical communities mentioned, which, mainly because of the lack of the sacramental priesthood, have not preserved the original and complete reality of the Eucharistic mystery, cannot, according to Catholic teaching, be called "churches" in the proper sense. "

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Peter Neuner : Churches and Church Communities . In: Michael J. Rainer (Ed.): "Dominus Iesus": offensive truth or offensive church? LIT Verlag Münster 2001, pp. 196–211, here p. 199.
  2. ↑ Peter Hünermann , Bernd Jochen Hilberath (ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3: Orientalium Ecclesiarum - Unitatis Redintegratio - Christ Dominus - Optatam Totius - Perfectae Caritatis - Gravissimum Educationis - Nostra Aetate - Dei Verbum. Freiburg / Br. 2016, ISBN 978-3-451-84561-1 , p. 160.
  3. ↑ Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 161.
  4. ↑ Peter Neuner: Churches and Church Communities Münster 2001, pp. 196–211, here p. 205.
  5. ↑ To translate here perhaps more aptly with associations, see Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (Ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 111.
  6. ↑ It remains open how the Roman Catholic Church views this self-designation, see Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 111.
  7. ↑ Peter Neuner: Churches and Church Communities Münster 2001, pp. 196–211, here p. 206.
  8. ↑ Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (Ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 178.
  9. ↑ Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (Ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 165.
  10. ↑ Christoph Böttigheimer : Textbook of Fundamental Theology. The rationality of the question of God, revelation and the church. 2nd, revised and updated edition. Herder, Freiburg / Basel / Vienna 2012, p. 690.
  11. ↑ Here we are specifically thinking of the Waldensians. The formulation avoids narrowing it down to the early 16th century.
  12. ↑ This refers to the Old Catholic Church.
  13. ↑ The phrase “were separated” avoids the statement that the churches or communities concerned have separated (culpably) from the Church of Jesus Christ. See Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 165.
  14. ^ David Neuhold: Franz Cardinal König - Religion and Freedom: Attempting a theological and political profile. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2008, pp. 100-102.
  15. ^ David Neuhold: Franz Cardinal König - Religion and Freedom: Attempting a theological and political profile. Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2008, p. 101. Note 247.
  16. ↑ Gerulf Hirt: Pope Paul VI. in Anglican eyes: encounters and projections in England. In: Gerulf Hirt et al. (Ed.): The Popes and the Protestants. Encounters in modern Europe. Böhlau, Cologne / Weimar / Vienna 2018, pp. 129–168, here p. 139.
  17. ^ Paul Avis: Anglicanism and Christian Unity. In: Jeremy Morris (ed.): The Oxford History of Anglicanism, Volume 3: Global Western Anglicanism, c. 1910 – present. Oxford University press, Oxford 2017, pp. 186–213, here p. 208.
  18. ↑ Peter Hünermann, Bernd Jochen Hilberath (ed.): Herder's Theological Commentary on the Second Vatican Council , Volume 3, p. 203.
  19. ↑ Florian Ihsen: A church in the liturgy. On the ecclesiological relevance of the ecumenical community of worship. Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2010, p. 75.
  20. ↑ Peter Neuner: Churches and Church Communities Münster 2001, pp. 196–211, here p. 208.
  21. ↑ Manfred Kock: Statement on the declaration “Dominus Iesus” published by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of the Roman Catholic Church. In: EKD. September 5, 2000, accessed June 9, 2019 .
  22. ↑ Wolfgang Huber: End or New Beginning of Ecumenism? . In: Michael J. Rainer (Ed.): "Dominus Iesus": offensive truth or offensive church? LIT Verlag Münster 2001, pp. 282–285, here p. 284.
  23. ↑ It seems absurd to me what our Lutheran friends want now. - The plurality of confessions does not qualify the claim of the true: Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger answers his critics . In: Michael J. Rainer (Ed.): "Dominus Iesus": offensive truth or offensive church? LIT Verlag Münster 2001, pp. 29–45, here p. 32 f.
  24. ↑ Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: Answers to Questions on Some Aspects of Doctrine on the Church. In: vatican.va. June 29, 2007. Retrieved July 15, 2019 .