Loading...
Loading...
Click here if you don’t see subscription options
Bishop Munib Younan of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, president of the Lutheran World Federation, Pope Francis and Rev. Martin Junge, general secretary of the Lutheran World Federation, attend an ecumenical event at the Malmo Arena in Malmo, Sweden, Oct. 31. The event opened a year marking the 2017 commemoration of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Although great strides have been made through 50 years of ecumenical dialogue, Catholics and Lutherans must continue to work toward becoming a full and visible sign of unity for the world, Pope Francis said.

A continued "communion of harmony" will allow Catholics and Lutherans to "find further convergence on points of doctrine and the moral teaching of the church," the pope told members of a pilgrimage from the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Finland on Jan. 19.

"I pray to the Lord that he may bestow his blessing on the Lutheran-Catholic Dialogue Commission in Finland, which is working diligently toward a common sacramental understanding of the church, the Eucharist and ecclesial ministry," he said.

The pope met the Finnish delegation during the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. The theme chosen for the 2017 observance was: "Reconciliation: The love of Christ compels us."

The week of prayer, Pope Francis said, urges Catholics and Lutherans to reconcile and "draw closer to one another anew through conversion."

"True ecumenism is based on a shared conversion to Jesus Christ as our Lord and redeemer. If we draw close to him, we draw close also to one another," the pope said.

Recalling his visit to Sweden last October to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther's efforts to reform the church, the pope said Luther's intention "was to renew the church, not divide her" and that the joint commemoration "was important on both the human and theological-spiritual levels."

"The gathering there gave us the courage and strength in our Lord Jesus Christ to look ahead to the ecumenical journey that we are called to walk together," he said.

Helping those who suffer persecution and violence, he added, can further unite Christians "on the journey toward full communion."

In doing so, the pope said, Catholics and Lutherans can put their witness of faith into practice "through concrete acts of service, fraternity and sharing."

Speaking off-the-cuff, Pope Francis thanked Lutheran Archbishop Kari Makinen of Turku for bringing his grandchildren to the meeting.

"We need the simplicity of children; they teach us the way to Jesus Christ," the pope said.

Comments are automatically closed two weeks after an article's initial publication. See our comments policy for more.
John Walton
6 years 10 months ago
The difference between Catholics and Lutherans -- they sing, we don't.

The latest from america

A Homily for the First Sunday of Advent, by Father Terrance Klein
Terrance KleinNovember 29, 2023
Pope Francis joins others in holding a banner during an audience at the Vatican June 5, 2023, with the organizers of the Green & Blue Festival. The banner calls for financing a "loss and damage" fund that was agreed upon at the COP27 U.N. climate conference in 2022. The fund would seek to provide financial assistance to nations most vulnerable and impacted by the effects of climate change. (CNS photo/Vatican Media)
With COP28 in the United Arab Emirates imminent, opinion in the developed world on climate change has become deeply polarized. Perhaps exhausted by the digital news cycle, many people have developed compassion fatigue.
David StewartNovember 29, 2023
This 1994 article by Dennis Hamm, S.J., on praying the examen has become a resource in countless classrooms and retreat centers.
Dennis Hamm, SJNovember 29, 2023
Black survivors have been nearly invisible in the Catholic Church sexual abuse crisis — even in Baltimore, home to a historic Black Catholic community that plays an integral role in the nation’s oldest archdiocese.