Lesson 17: Christian Unity
1.How many Churches did Jesus found?
He founded only one Church, the Roman Catholic Church. Jesus said, “Upon this rock I will build my church.” (Matthew 16:18)
Due to an unmerited gift of God’s mercy we belong to the one Church that Jesus Christ founded.
2. Where do the other Christian Churches and communities come from?
Other Churches and Christian communities broke away from the Roman Catholic Church.
3. Can those who die outside the Catholic Church be saved?
Those who die outside the Catholic Church can be saved.
- If they do not know, and it is not their fault that they do not know, that the Catholic Church was founded by God and is truly necessary for salvation.
- If they follow their conscience and are truly sorry for the times that they do not follow their conscience.
We who know that God founded the Catholic Church must remain in the Catholic Church if we want to be saved.
The Venerable John Henry Newman (1801- 1890)
John Henry Newman lived his long life in England. He was baptized in the Anglican Church, and as an Anglican came to live a very holy life. He was a preacher and a writer. By studying the Fathers of the Church and what the Catholic Church teaches he came to realized that the Catholic Church was the one and only Church founded by Our Lord Jesus Christ. He thus started to prepare to enter the Catholic Church. Not long before becoming a Catholic Lucy Pusey, the young daughter of his friend, Edward Pusey, died. Her death was very holy, even though she was not a Catholic. Newman noted that she could be saved as an Anglican because, through no fault of her own, she was ignorant of where the true Church was. He however knew that the Catholic Church was the true Church, and thus be knew that he had to enter into the Catholic Church in order to be saved.
4. What faith is required to be a Christian?
To be a Christian one must believe at least the following.
- One must believe in the mystery of the Holy Trinity: that there are three Persons in one God.
- One must believe in the mystery of the Incarnation: that the Son of God, who is God, became man.
- One must believe in the mystery of Redemption: that the incarnate Son of God died on the Cross and rose again from the dead so that we could be saved from our sins and receive eternal life.
Groups such as Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons are thus not “Christians,” since they do not believe in the Holy Trinity and that Jesus Christ is true God and true man.
5. Are non-Catholic Christians in partial communion with the Catholic Church?
Yes, non-Catholic Christians are in partial communion with the Catholic Church, since they have elements of truth and sanctification that came from the Catholic Church. The Holy Spirit uses them and we embrace them as “brothers.” The Orthodox Churches are very close to us. Protestants are less so, but possess at least the essential elements of the faith mentioned in number 3.
6. What are the two major groups of Christians?
The two major groups of Christians are the Orthodox and Protestants. They are very different.
The Orthodox broke away in 1054 AD. They have Bishops (successors of the Apostles) and thus they have Priests and the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Having bishops and priests, they have all 7 sacraments. They venerate Mary, the Mother of God, and have a rich spirituality. They are very close to the Catholic Church. However, they do not accept the authority of the Pope. Since 1054 some have returned to the Catholic Church and now accept the Pope. They are called Eastern Rite Churches.
Protestants broke away from the Catholic Church in the 16th century. They do not have bishops (successors of the Apostles) and thus do not have the priesthood and the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharist. Not having bishops and priests, the only sacraments that they possess are baptism and Holy Matrimony. They have errors in their belief system and disagree in many things among themselves. We are in agreement with them in venerating the Bible as the Word of God. In the good they do for others they depend upon the Catholic Sacrifice of the Mass and the intercession of Mary, even though they are unaware of it.
7. What is Ecumenism?
Ecumenism refers to the efforts to work and pray for the unity among Christians.
8. Where does the Church get its desire for the unity of all Christians?
The desire for the unity of all Christians comes from the Holy Spirt and the Heart of Christ. He prayed for the unity of all Christians the night before He died, and He continues to do so: “I pray… that they may all be one as you Father, are in Me and I in you, that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that you sent Me.” (John 17: 20-21)
Since Our Lord has a passion for the unity of all Christians, so should we. Promoting the unity of all Christians was “one of the principal concerns” of the Pope and the Bishops at the Second Vatican Council, and it continues to be so for them. (Decree on Ecumenism, #1)
9. Why is the prayer and work for the restoration of Christian Unity so important?
Prayer and work for the restoration of Christian unity is so important because the salvation of the world at least in part depends on it.
In the last part of Our Lord’s prayer in John 17:20-21, Our Lord says: that they may all be one… that the world may believe that you sent Me.” (John 17:20-21)
As the Second Vatican Council noted: “such division openly contradicts the will of Christ, scandalizes the world, and damages that most holy cause, the preaching of the Gospel to every creature. (Decree on Ecumenism, #1)
10. How will all Christians become united?
The unity of all Christians will be a gift of the Holy Spirit. We however must work to receive that gift. Among these different efforts are:
-Mutual respect;
-Dialogue among theologians;
-Collaboration among Christians in the pro-life movement and in the promotion of justice in other areas; and
-Most of all, spiritual ecumenism, which is the soul of the ecumenical movement. Spiritual Ecumenism is prayer, conversion of heart, and holiness of life. Since sin is the deepest cause of the disunity among Christians, conversion and prayer are the most important means to use for the unity of all Christians.
11. When are Catholics an obstacle to Christian unity?
Catholics are an obstacle to Christian unity when they do not know their faith and they do not live holy lives. When Catholics lie bad lives non Catholic Christians are less able to see that the Catholic Church is the one Church that Jesus founded. As the Second Vatican Council stated: “Although the Catholic Church has been endowed with all divinely revealed truth and with all means of grace, yet its members fail to live by them with all the fervor that they should. As a result, the radiance of the Church’s face shines less brightly in the eyes of our separated brethren and of the world at large, and the growth of God’s kingdom is retarded. Every Catholic must therefore aim at Christian perfection.” (Decree on Ecumenism, #4)
As we come to live holier lives, “the radiance of the Church’s face” will begin to “shine” more “brightly in the eyes of our separated brethren and the world at large.”
12. What is the Octave of Prayer for Christians Unity?
The Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity takes place every year from January 18th to January 25th. At that time the Church under the leadership of the Pope prays in a special way for the unity of all Christians.
Fr. Paul James Francis Watson (1863-1940)
Fr. Paul James Francis Watson was the one who began the Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity. He was an Episcopalian, which is a form of Protestantism. Nonetheless, even as an Episcopalian he had in many ways a Catholic spirituality, including a great love for the Blessed Virgin Mary. Trusting in the intercession of Our Blessed Mother he had even raised a man from the dead. Guided by the Holy Spirit, while still a Protestant, he founded the Society of Atonement, which committed itself to working and praying for the unity of all Christians. Around 1900, because of his prayer and studies, he came to believe that the Roman Catholic Church was the one Church that Christ had founded, and that the Pope, the Successor of St Peter, was the visible head of that one Church. He nonetheless did not enter the Catholic Church right away, hoping that by waiting he could influence more non-Catholic Christians to become Catholic. It was while still outside the Catholic Church in 1908 that he began toe Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity. Having observed this octave of prayer only twice, in 1908 and 1909, he felt the call to enter the Catholic Church on October 30, 1909. He realized that it was because of the Octave of Prayer that he and seventeen members of his future religious congregation, the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement, received the grace of entering the Catholic Church. Pope Benedict XV extended the Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity to the whole Church in 1916.
Blessed Maria Gariella of Unity (1914-1939)
As a young girl Maria Segheddu was obstinate and rebellious. Nonetheless, her family and friends said that she would say, “No,” but then obeyed at once. At the death of her favorite sister she underwent a noticeable change. With much effort her outbursts of tempter disappeared and she became gentle. She began to pray a great dal, and she grew in the spirit of charity and goodness. After entering the Religious Order of cloistered nuns called the Trappist, she loved to compare herself to the prodigal son and was filled with thankfulness for God’s mercy toward her in calling her to be a religious. She was soften heard to say, “How good is the Lord!”. During this time she began to pray for the unit y of all Christians, even though she knew very little about he complex divisions among Christians. The prayer of Our Lord for the unity of all Christians in John 17 was often on her lips. “That all may be one.” (John 17:20) This to a certain extent was her constant prayer. The pages of the Gospel of John chapter 17 were yellowed by daily use in her personal copy of the Gospels. For the intention of Christian Unity she accepted the daily sacrifices of self-denial, and in this spirit she spent her humble, silent days of Trappist life in work and prayer. In the octave of prayer for the unity of all Christians (January 18-25) in the year 1938 she felt the call from God to offer hel life for the unity of all Christians. God, who had inspired her offering, also accepted it. On that very day she was stricken by an illness that ruined the good health she had had until then. Fifteen months of this painful illness led to her death on Good Shepherd Sunday, April 23, 1939. In the gospel for that day Our Lord states, “there will be one flock and one shepherd.” (John 10:16) Her life is just one more sign that God wants us to desire and strive for the unity of all Christians, primarily by prayer and the conversion of our hearts.
13. What is the role of Mary in restoring the unity of all Christians?
The Blessed Virgin Mary is not only the “Mother of God,” she is also the “Mother of the Church.” Due to the free will of God, it will be due to Mary’s prayers that all Christians will be united. As Pope John Paul II stated: “the cause of Christian unity properly pertains to the role of Mary’s spiritual motherhood.”
