Church in the World

Theologians question Vatican decision on intercommunion

Rome

In a highly unusual move, a theological journal published by the Vatican Press has opened its pages to a debate in which noted theologians question a decision taken by three Vatican offices.

At issue is the approval given on 26 October 2001 to intercommunion between the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church, the Eastern Rite Catholic Church of Iraq.

The Congregations for the Doctrine of the Faith and for the Eastern Church and the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity accepted the validity of the Assyrians' Eucharistic prayer, the 'Anaphora of Addai and Mari'.

This was a significant move because the prayer does not include a so-called institution narrative quoting Christ's words at the Last Supper, 'Take this, all of you?'. The Vatican offices, in effect, allowed intention and ecumenical sensitivity to outweigh strict adherence to a verbal formula. The Vatican journal, Divinitas, published four articles questioning the decision and six sympathetic to it.

Among the critics are Mgr Brunero Gherardini, the editor-in-chief of Divinitas. A professor of ecclesiology and ecumenism at the Lateran University and secretary of the Pontifical Academy of Theology, he was postulator for the beatification of Pope Pius IX. He argues that the consecration of the bread and wine happens only when the celebrant pronounces Christ's words. 'Silencing or modifying the words is not an act of devotion to Christ, but rather its contrary.'

Carmelite Fr Bonifacio Honings, professor emeritus at the Lateran and Urban universities, said 'when the Assyrian and Chaldean churches 'celebrate the Eucharist, both are convinced they are obeying the command of the Lord 'Do this in memory of me'.'
Peggy Polk, Rome