ROME (CNS) -- Behind the headlines about tough words from Roman Catholic observers at the Anglican Communion's Lambeth Conference there also was straight talk about the blunt words only real friends could say.
At a July 29 dinner for the 75 ecumenical observers attending the conference, Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury said the guest speakers have praised the Anglican Communion on some points, but also have shared "truths that may be a little less palatable."
Introducing Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Archbishop Williams said, "One of the things that we have always looked for him to do for us is to ask some very awkward questions in a way that only a friend can ask with effect and pungency."
The next day, at one of 15 small sessions Anglican bishops could choose from, Cardinal Kasper offered a Roman Catholic assessment of the issues the Lambeth Conference was dealing with: the ordination of women priests and bishops; blessing same-sex unions and ordaining people who are openly gay; and trying to find a structure to strengthen and guarantee the unity of the Anglican Communion.
The Lambeth Conference is a gathering of Anglican bishops that meets once every 10 years; the official Catholic delegation to the conference had nine members, including three cardinals.
More than 100 people gathered July 30 for Cardinal Kasper's standing-room-only session. He told them, "It is a strength of Anglicanism that even in the midst of difficult circumstances you have sought the views and perspectives of your ecumenical partners, even when you have not always particularly rejoiced in what we have said."
The cardinal expressed the Catholic Church's hope that the Anglican Communion would find a way to maintain its unity, but also warned that accepting practices that go against Scripture and tradition, whether homosexual activity or the ordination of women, would be a huge setback to efforts to promote Christian unity.
Catholic News Service was given a copy of the cardinal's remarks in English, as well as texts of two of the three official Anglican responses to it.
Anglican Bishop Christopher Hill of Guildford, England, chairman of the Church of England Council for Christian Unity, said he had "huge admiration" for the cardinal's presentation and the "critical friendship" it demonstrated.
The cardinal, he said, made it clear that because of the ordination of women "the status of the dialogue (between Catholics and Anglicans) will almost certainly change; nevertheless I rejoice in the cardinal's opening paragraphs in which he speaks of his hope to remain in serious dialogue in search for full unity, so that the world may believe."
"In spite of our apparently contradictory behavior," Bishop Hill said, "Anglicans remain committed to the goal of full, visible unity."
While telling the Anglicans that the Roman Catholic Church believes the ordination of women and the acceptance of homosexuality go against Scripture and tradition, Cardinal Kasper acknowledged that the Anglicans have acted out of a sincere desire to affirm the dignity of all people and to promote the full involvement of women in the life of the church.
Bishop Hill suggested that future Anglican-Catholic dialogues look at "the nature of the tradition of the faith down the ages."
"I am sure the cardinal and I would agree that tradition must be in continuity with the apostolic faith in the deposit of the Scriptures, and also that tradition is nevertheless dynamic, led by the Spirit, and not mere historicism," he said.
It could be, he said, that tradition never "really engaged with this question (of the role of women in the church) until relatively recently."
Anglican Bishop David Beetge of Highveld, South Africa, co-chairman of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, acknowledged Cardinal Kasper's statement that Anglican-Catholic dialogue is bound to change.
But the dialogue will continue, he said, and should include further reflection on the structure of the church, the historical development of the office of bishop and the implications of the church as "koinonia" or communion.
"I also hope that this dialogue will continue to be strengthened by what we have already achieved in our journey together, by what we already share, and by what we do together, and can do together, for the sake of Christ's church and the world," Bishop Beetge said.
At the July 29 dinner for ecumenical observers at the Lambeth Conference, Cardinal Kasper said: "It is important that we not spend all our energy and resources worried only about church problems. Perhaps we can all have the tendency of looking too much at our navels; in German we have a good word for this -- 'nabelschau.'"
"We carry within us a message of hope, a hope which the world desperately needs, and which is in short supply," Cardinal Kasper said. "To bring this message to the world, in all its richness and strength, Christians and churches need to stand together and give common witness to the hope that is within us."
The Lambeth Conference, which started in mid-July, runs until Aug. 3.
At a July 29 dinner for the 75 ecumenical observers attending the conference, Anglican Archbishop Rowan Williams of Canterbury said the guest speakers have praised the Anglican Communion on some points, but also have shared "truths that may be a little less palatable."
Introducing Cardinal Walter Kasper, president of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Archbishop Williams said, "One of the things that we have always looked for him to do for us is to ask some very awkward questions in a way that only a friend can ask with effect and pungency."
The next day, at one of 15 small sessions Anglican bishops could choose from, Cardinal Kasper offered a Roman Catholic assessment of the issues the Lambeth Conference was dealing with: the ordination of women priests and bishops; blessing same-sex unions and ordaining people who are openly gay; and trying to find a structure to strengthen and guarantee the unity of the Anglican Communion.
The Lambeth Conference is a gathering of Anglican bishops that meets once every 10 years; the official Catholic delegation to the conference had nine members, including three cardinals.
More than 100 people gathered July 30 for Cardinal Kasper's standing-room-only session. He told them, "It is a strength of Anglicanism that even in the midst of difficult circumstances you have sought the views and perspectives of your ecumenical partners, even when you have not always particularly rejoiced in what we have said."
The cardinal expressed the Catholic Church's hope that the Anglican Communion would find a way to maintain its unity, but also warned that accepting practices that go against Scripture and tradition, whether homosexual activity or the ordination of women, would be a huge setback to efforts to promote Christian unity.
Catholic News Service was given a copy of the cardinal's remarks in English, as well as texts of two of the three official Anglican responses to it.
Anglican Bishop Christopher Hill of Guildford, England, chairman of the Church of England Council for Christian Unity, said he had "huge admiration" for the cardinal's presentation and the "critical friendship" it demonstrated.
The cardinal, he said, made it clear that because of the ordination of women "the status of the dialogue (between Catholics and Anglicans) will almost certainly change; nevertheless I rejoice in the cardinal's opening paragraphs in which he speaks of his hope to remain in serious dialogue in search for full unity, so that the world may believe."
"In spite of our apparently contradictory behavior," Bishop Hill said, "Anglicans remain committed to the goal of full, visible unity."
While telling the Anglicans that the Roman Catholic Church believes the ordination of women and the acceptance of homosexuality go against Scripture and tradition, Cardinal Kasper acknowledged that the Anglicans have acted out of a sincere desire to affirm the dignity of all people and to promote the full involvement of women in the life of the church.
Bishop Hill suggested that future Anglican-Catholic dialogues look at "the nature of the tradition of the faith down the ages."
"I am sure the cardinal and I would agree that tradition must be in continuity with the apostolic faith in the deposit of the Scriptures, and also that tradition is nevertheless dynamic, led by the Spirit, and not mere historicism," he said.
It could be, he said, that tradition never "really engaged with this question (of the role of women in the church) until relatively recently."
Anglican Bishop David Beetge of Highveld, South Africa, co-chairman of the International Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, acknowledged Cardinal Kasper's statement that Anglican-Catholic dialogue is bound to change.
But the dialogue will continue, he said, and should include further reflection on the structure of the church, the historical development of the office of bishop and the implications of the church as "koinonia" or communion.
"I also hope that this dialogue will continue to be strengthened by what we have already achieved in our journey together, by what we already share, and by what we do together, and can do together, for the sake of Christ's church and the world," Bishop Beetge said.
At the July 29 dinner for ecumenical observers at the Lambeth Conference, Cardinal Kasper said: "It is important that we not spend all our energy and resources worried only about church problems. Perhaps we can all have the tendency of looking too much at our navels; in German we have a good word for this -- 'nabelschau.'"
"We carry within us a message of hope, a hope which the world desperately needs, and which is in short supply," Cardinal Kasper said. "To bring this message to the world, in all its richness and strength, Christians and churches need to stand together and give common witness to the hope that is within us."
The Lambeth Conference, which started in mid-July, runs until Aug. 3.