NEWS AND VIEWS: Orientale Lumen Conference advances ecumenism (09/26/99)

NEWS AND VIEWS

Orientale Lumen Conference advances ecumenism

by Roma M. Hayda

The Orientale Lumen III Conference, held at Catholic University in Washington on June 15-18, was dedicated to the topic "Mary, the Mother of God, and the Church." This conference, the third in a series of annual conferences, provided an opportunity for Catholic and Orthodox Christians to discuss their respective traditions regarding the Theotokos (Mother of God). Presentations were given by well-known scholars and theologians, such as Archimandrite Robert Taft, S.J., and the Rev. Michael Fahey, S.J.: liturgical celebrations of many kinds were held; and there were many opportunities for everyone to learn from each other and share in an atmosphere open to dialogue.

The speakers represented the Roman Catholic, Ukrainian Orthodox, Russian Greek-Catholic, Greek Orthodox and Assyrian Churches. Among the conference participants were Eastern Catholics who share the Byzantine tradition (Melkites, Rumanians, Russians, Ukrainians and others), representatives of the Eastern Catholic Maronite and Malabar communities, and Coptic Christians. All told, the participants were about equally divided into three categories: Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Catholics and Roman Catholics.

Despite the diversity of faiths represented, there was a convergence of thought that Marian theology is Christ- centered. This understanding is rooted in the Sacred Scriptures and the traditions of the East and West, even though these traditions developed along different paths. Ignoring Mary and raising her to a goddess-like status are two opposing and extreme interpretations of Mary's role that developed in the latter half of the second millennium. However, Christian theology does not support either of these extremes.

For many years, the differences between Orthodox and Catholic traditions have been in the process of being overcome, nonetheless, the issue remains of the dogmatic definition of some Marian beliefs by the Roman Catholic Church, definitions that pose a problem for Christian Churches of some Eastern traditions. In particular, the Immaculate Conception of Mary and what the East calls Mary's Dormition (Uspinnia) and the West calls Mary's Assumption into heaven were treated extensively by theologians on both sides of the East-West divide.

At the core of the divergent understanding between East and West of the Immaculate Conception is the Augustinian understanding of original sin, which Eastern theology treats differently than does the Roman Catholic Church. However, theologians of different traditions agree that Mary also needed redemption and that her major contribution was her intelligent and voluntary decision to be the Bohorodytsia, the Mother of God, in the span of her earthly life and beyond. Theologians noted continually that at every moment of her life Mary was dependent on the Logos, her divine Son.

Related closely to the Augustinian notion of original sin is Mary's Assumption. The Rev. Fahey, who frequently is consulted by official Catholic-Orthodox ecumenists, said the Eastern Churches resent what they perceive to be the oversimplification in proclamation of some Roman Catholic dogmas. Narrowing down the mystery surrounding the Bohorodytsia easily leads to extremes and circumvents the East's transcendent view of Mary, the Theotokos - the living icon of divinization. The Rev. Fahey called for appropiate Christological and ecclesiological balance.

Throughout the conference, diverse Christian communities participating in this dialogue addressed conflicting areas, as well as the common ground for their beliefs. The Assyrian Church's presentation notably differed from that of other participants. Going back to Apostolic times, this Christian Church is Semitic in character. Its church interiors resemble that of a synagogue and do not have the iconography associated with most Eastern Churches. The Assyrian Church's Bishop Mar Bawai Soro explained that in the early centuries the Assyrian Church did have iconography, and does not object to iconography today, but the tradition was lost during many centuries of isolation amid an overwhelming Muslim majority.

Until relatively recently the Assyrian Church did not participate in the ecumenical dialogue. However, the contribution of the Assyrian Church confirms the common Christian theology of the Early Church, even though with distinct spiritual traditions, and it is a strong reminder of the real meaning of the eucharistic union within the community of Churches in the first millennium.

The Kyivan Christian tradition was represented by Dr. Roman Yereniuk of the Ukrainian Orthodox St. Andrew's College in Winnipeg. Dr. Yereniuk spoke from the perspective of the Ukrainian religious and cultural ethos. His talk was enhanced with innumerable illustrations of the Bohorodytsia icons with appropriate historical references, as for example the world famous Bohorodytsia of Vyshorod (also known as Our Lady of Vladimir) that is now in the Tretiakov Gallery in Moscow (but will soon be housed in a functioning church).

Movement has its disappointments

The ecumenical movement that carries so much promise also has its disappointments. Any major directional change has its pitfalls. The political considerations of power players overshadow real achievements of the past and those yet to come. The June meeting in Baltimore of the International Joint Commission for the Theological Dialogue Between the Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church was canceled at the last minute due to the bombing in Serbia and the refugee crisis in Kosovo. Pressed by the Orthodox, the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Holy See issued a joint cancellation communique, another in a series of repeated postponements. The plenary session that should meet every two years has not met since 1993. One would think that in the face of serious problems it is that much more important to continue the discussions.

The International Joint Commission, which is the official dialogue group, is exclusionary in character - also a disappointment. For example, during the dialogue when Eastern Catholic Churches were at the center of discussion, the Ukrainian Catholic Church and other Eastern Churches in Union with Rome were not included and, therefore, not present to state their case. This is a frustrating element in view of the Catholic-Orthodox internal division within most Eastern Churches as the Kyivan and Antiochian Churches (among so many others) bear witness. Despite disappointments, meaningful progress has been made.

Despite constraints posed to dialogue by the established International Joint Commission, serious unofficial ecumenical dialogue groups make valuable contributions. The Kyivan Church Study Group, established in 1992, has effectively addressed the common roots of Ukrainian Orthodox Churches and what the Rev. Andriy Chirovsky of the Metropolitan Andriy Sheptytsky Institute in Canada defines more accurately as the Ukrainian Greco-Catholic Church. In addition, they addressed theological issues brought to the forefront by the International Joint Commission and by doing so the Ukrainian Catholic Church's position was presented from learned theologians. In the process, the study group continues to define the particularity of the Kyivan Christian Tradition and bring about an increasingly clearer picture of the internally divided Church that endured a painful and complex past.

The Kyivan Church Study Group and the Orientale Lumen document itself were the inspirations of the Orientale Lumen annual conferences. Sponsored by the Eastern Churches Journal, the Society of St. John Chrysostom, and the Catholic University's School of Religious Studies, the organizers have the intellectual capacity and genuine dedication to ecumenism to make a difference. Bishop Vsevolod of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the U.S.A. is on the planning committee of the Orientale Lumen conferences. For a decade he has served on the U.S. Catholic-Orthodox dialogue, representing the Standing Committee of Orthodox Bishops in America.

Besides theological, liturgical and Scriptural discourse on the Bohorodytsia, there was a clearly expressed desire to invite the ecclesial communities that came out of the Reformation experience to join the discourse. Privately, the question of canonical and noncanonical communities was also discussed. The ability to meet an acceptable level of discussion has been a [legitimate] concern, because scholarship is needed to address issues surrounding each Church entity. Unfortunately the matter of canonical status has been used by some Churches participating in the ecumenical dialogue for political purposes. For example, the Ukrainian Catholic and the Ukrainian Orthodox Churches (and there are several Orthodox jurisdictions) have experienced politically motivated moves by the Moscow Patriarchate.

On another note, in the case of the Ukrainian Churches, isolation of the Churches is not the answer. When this was mentioned to the organizers of the Orientale Lumen conferences, the response was that these conferences are not sponsored by any particular jurisdiction - all people of good will who are interested in the program are welcome to attend, and certainly no one would be excluded because of their adherence to any particular Church jurisdiction.

If at this time there is no active participation in the ecumenical dialogue of the Ukrainian Churches, then continued demands to be included without providing the commitment are meaningless. The ideal of ecumenism is to come together as a communion of communities (a eucharistic union), while respecting the fullness of diverse traditions. This process re-examines the Roman primacy, papal infallability and the collegiality of bishops of the first Christian millennium. Clearly, the model of the second millennium follows more closely the monarchical model of governance that does not always correspond to the Gospel.

Coming from divergent Christian traditions, the convergence of theological thought on Mary was impressive. Christ's centrality in Marian iconography and Mary's portrayal in prayer with her hands raised, as in the famous "Oranta" icon in the apse of St. Sophia Cathedral in Kyiv, is also a primary symbol of the Church. This eternal ideal remains always to be reached.

Roma M. Hayda is active in the lay and catechetical movements of the Ukrainian Catholic Church. She was a two-term president of the Patriarchal Society in the United States and currently heads this organization's Laity Council.

| Home Page |