That the reports of the Joint Anglican/Roman Catholic Study Commissions on Ministry and The Eucharist be circulated, for information and study, to the United Church and Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and to members of the Committee on Union and Joint Mission. CARRIED
That this National Executive Council commends the two statements (Eucharist, Ministry) of the Anglican/Roman Catholic International Commission to the diocesan synods for study and discussion before General Synod '75. CARRIED
1. That the Anglican/Roman Catholic Agreed Statement on the Doctrine of the Ministry be placed before all diocesan synods prior to General Synod 1975, for consideration and expression of opinion.
2. That this Statement be placed on the agenda of General Synod. CARRIED
"Submitted to the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity".
"December 1986".
"[W]e offer to the world-wide Church a positive and hopeful outlook on The Final Report. The task of bringing together two different but related ecclesial traditions such as those of the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church while respecting their identities is a delicate one. We believe it can be achieved. The theological and human issues raised by The Final Report are complex, but together, in openness to the Lord's gift of koinonia,we can build a unity which fosters rather than stifles diversity. We can because we must: 'Give what you command, and command what you will'. (Augustine, Confessions, 10, 29)" -- Intro., p. 2.
Contents divided into five main sections: Introduction -- On the Eucharist -- On Ministry and Ordination -- On Authority in the Church -- Conclusion.
On the Eucharist section divided into sub-sections: 1. Eucharistic Sacrifice -- 2. The Presence of Christ -- 3. Reservation.
On Ministry and Ordination section divided into sub-sections: 1. The Divine Origin of the Ordained Ministry -- 2. The Emergence of the Threefold Ordering of the Ordained Ministry -- 3. The Relationship of the Ordained Ministry to Other Ministries in the Church -- 4. The Functions and Priestly Character of the Ordained Ministry -- 5. Ordination: An Unrepeatable Sacrament -- 6. Apostolic Succession -- 7. Recognition of Anglican Ordinations -- 8. Ordination of Women.
On Authority in the Church section divided into sub-sections: 1. Universal Primacy -- 2. Jurisdiction -- 3. Scripture and Tradition -- 4. Infallibility -- 5. Marian Definitions.
Clarifications of certain aspects of the Agreed Statements on Eucharist and Ministry of the First Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission together with a letter from Cardinal Edward Idris Cassidy, President, Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
Cover title: Clarifications on Eucharist and Ministry.
Text dated September 1993 on p. 11.
Includes bibliographical references.
"A letter from Cardinal Cassidy, President of the Vatican Coucnil for Promoting Christian Unity, assures the two Co-Chairmen of the Second Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission that their clarifications have greatly strengthened the agreement reached on Eucharist and Ministry by the First Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission. That letter, the clarifications to which it referes and an explanatory statement by Bishop Mark Santer and Bishop Murphy-O'Connor are published here". -- back cover.
Contents: Members of ARCIC II in attendance at the Venice meeting, 1993, together with Members of the Drafting sub-Committee (Members of ARCIC I) -- A Statement by the Co-Chairmen of the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC II) / Mark Santer, Cormac Murphy-O'Connor -- Clarifications of certain aspects of the Agreed Statements on Eucharist and Ministry of ARCIC I -- Eucharist -- Ministry and Ordination -- Letter to the Co-Chairmen of ARCIC II from Cardinal Cassidy dated March 11th, 1994 / Edward Idris Cassidy.
Includes one paragraph on page 11 re the Ordination of women: "The Commission stated that its concern was the origin and nature of the ordained ministry, not the question of who can or cannot be ordained (Ministry and Ordination, Elucidation,5). However, the Response maintains that the Ordination of Women `affects' the Final Report's claims to have reached substantial agreement on Ministry and Ordination. We are confronted with an issue that involves far more than the question of ministry as such. It raises profound questions of ecclesiology and authority in relation to Tradition. This subject is part of the mandate entrusted to ARCIC II".
That the National Executive Council urge the Doctrine and Worship Committee and the Committee on Ministry to study the report on Ministry prepared by the Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission as soon as possible after its publication, and report their finding to the General Secretary of the Anglican Church of Canada, and to the Anglican Secretary of the International Commission. CARRIED
Section II - The Anglican Consultative Council commends to the Churches of the Anglican Communion two questions:
1. Whether the Agreed Statements on Eucharistic Doctrine, Ministry and Ordination, and Authority in the Church (I and II), together with the Elucidations, are consonant in substance with the faith of Anglicans?
2. Whether the final Report offers a sufficient basis for taking the next concrete step towards the reconciliation of our churches grounded in agreement in faith?
Text
That the National Executive Council send the two questions related to the reception of the ARCIC Final Report to diocesan and provincial synods for discussion and expression of opinion, and that time be given on the agenda of General Synod 1983 for discussion and appropriate action. CARRIED
Notes
Archbishop Scott amplified Mrs. Bays' report as he explained how the questions were formed, but felt the written material was needed before it should be discussed further.
The Provincial Synod having considered the Plan of Union, is dissatisfied with the statement of Faith and the Doctrine of the Ministry as an adequate expression of the "Faith and Order of the Church" as the Anglican Church of Canada has received them. The Doctrine as outlined in the Plan of Union, moreover, is not compatible with the doctrine contained in the statements on the Eucharist and the Ministry issued by the Anglican/Roman Catholic International Commission.
Therefore this Synod requests the National Executive Council, the Inter-Church Relations Committee, and the Committee on Union and Joint Mission to continue study of the Faith and Order of the Church.
Text
That the above Memorial calling for continued study of the Faith and Order of the Church be commended to the Doctrine and Worship Committee, Inter-Church Relations Committee, and Committee on Union and Joint Mission. CARRIED
"It must however in conclusion be stated that not all changes have increased the likelihood of Roman recognition. The ordination of women (at the time of writing there were said to be ten women bishops in the Anglican Communion), the movement for lay presidency at the Eucharist, the weakening of Anglican insistence on the indissolubility of marriage, the spread of theological liberalism, and a lack of firmness in some aspects of moral teaching combine to make it less easy for the justifiably demanding Roman authorities to acknowledge in Anglicanism the context which would make the native character of the ordination rite acceptable. On the other side, the Vatican criteria for recognition have become clearer, perhaps also stricter. I regret to conclude that the `new context' in which Anglican orders should be judged is not in every respect more favourable than the setting a hundred, or even nine years ago."