Posted on 09/09/2005 9:16:07 AM PDT by siunevada
In 1992, the war room of Bill Clinton's presidential campaign had a simple rule for cutting through the complexity of a national political race: "It's the economy, stupid!"
The current state of relations between Roman Catholics and the Orthodox churches of the East, although perhaps even more complex than American presidential politics, might similarly be reduced to an analogous catchphrase: "It's the primacy, stupid!"
Despite centuries of theological, liturgical and political controversies between East and West, most Orthodox and Catholic observers believe that today those differences could be understood as healthy diversity, rather than motives for schism. At bottom, there is only one real remaining obstacle to unity, but it's a whopper: the role and power of the pope, summed up in the word "primacy."
Virtually every time Orthodox and Catholics come together, there are reminders of the point. This week in Assisi was no exception.
The occasion was a symposium sponsored by the Pontifical University Antonianum, run by the Franciscans, and Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece, on the theme of "The Eucharist in Eastern and Western tradition." The Eastern scholars were mostly Greek Orthodox, representing a church which, along with Russian Orthodoxy, has long been regarded as the most resistant to ecumenical overtures from Rome.
The meeting is especially significant in light of the fact that Benedict XVI has announced that ecumenism, above all with the Orthodox churches, is among the top priorities of his pontificate.
Among the conveners were the Catholic Archbishop of Corfu, Yannis Spiteris; the Orthodox Metropolitan of Aleppo (in Syria), Paul Yazigi; the Catholic apostolic vicar in Anatolia (Turkey), Bishop Luigi Padovese; and Msgr. Eleuterio Fortino, undersecretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
Most of the Orthodox I talked to in Assisi seemed to agree that the original vision of the ecumenical movement after the Second Vatican Council -- "full, visible, structural unity" between the divided branches of Christianity -- was probably a bit unrealistic, and is unlikely to happen anytime soon.
Greek Orthodox Metropolitan Paul Yazigi of Aleppo told me that he doesn't believe structural unity with Catholicism is in the cards.
"It's not a political problem for us, whether Rome or Constantinople is the most powerful throne," he said. "It's a theological problem. We can accept the pope as a sort of first patriarch, but it's the mode of exercising that primacy that's the problem. The College of Bishops must be above the pope."
"We can better find the truth when we act together, in a Holy Synod," Yazigi said. "We cannot accept a system where the pope is more powerful than the bishops."
Yazigi said that doesn't mean that Orthodox and Catholics can't work together.
"We are united in many things," he said. "Even the ecclesiological differences are small, but they are very important."
Orthodox theologian Petros Vassiliadis likewise told me structural unity between Catholics and Orthodox is difficult to imagine.
"We can recognize two great traditions, East and West, but not under one structure," he said. "The Orthodox world will never accept a substantive primacy of the pope."
Part of the reason, Vassiliadis said, is the strong Orthodox emphasis on the autonomy of the local church and bishop.
"In the Orthodox world, even the patriarch can't celebrate Mass outside his own diocese without the permission of the local bishop, and sometimes it is refused," he said. "The bishop enjoys a quasi-absolute position."
Another factor, he said, is political.
"There is a small percentage of fanatics in the Orthodox church who see Rome as the enemy, but they have a strong hold on the bishops, who don't want to rile them," Vassiliadis said.
Given those realities, both Yazigi and Vassiliadis said that the goals of the ecumenical movement should be redefined, away from structural unity, toward mutual understanding and joint action on issues of social and cultural interest.
"I think we can enrich one another's theology, we can get to know one another better, and I think we can work together on things we both care about - the fight for the soul of Europe, for example," Vassiliadis said. "To expect more than that is probably asking too much."
One step forward, Vassiliadis said, would be for the Orthodox to do for Catholics what Catholics have already done for Orthodox -- recognize them as "sister churches."
"Catholics recognize the validity of our ministries and sacraments, but it's not as clear from the Orthodox side," he said. "I think it would be very helpful to clarify this."
As an example of Vassiliadis' point, some Orthodox communities baptize Catholic converts to Orthodoxy, on the grounds that their original baptism was not valid. (From the Catholic point of view, this amounts to "re-baptism"). This practice varies widely from church to church, and sometimes within churches. The Russian Orthodox Church generally does not (re-)baptize Lutherans or Catholics, for example, while some clergy within the Church of Greece do.
Interestingly, the Catholic vicar in Anatolia, Turkey, Padovese, was more optimistic about structural unity.
"I think it's achievable," Padovese told me. "After all, we're living in an era of pluralism."
"This is not going to happen fast," Padovese said. "But I believe it is going to happen."
Since Padovese is a senior Catholic official in Turkey, I asked him about the prospects for a papal visit in November.
"We're waiting for Pope Benedict at the end of November for the Feast of St. Andrew," Padovese said. "I believe he will come."
Padovese confirmed something that has long been rumored, which is that the hold-up in terms of making the visit official comes from the Turkish civil government, not the Orthodox Patriarch of Constantinople, which is eager for the visit. It's the opposite of the situation in Russia, where Putin's government has said it has no problem with a papal visit, but it's blocked by the Russian Orthodox.
Why is the Turkish government skittish?
"In part, it has to do with the internal politics of Turkey," Padovese said. "The trip will not be accepted by all. Not everybody wants a dialogue with the Western world, or with the Christian church. There are radical circles within Islam that the government has to worry about," he said.
Padovese said security is undoubtedly also a concern.
I asked if Joseph Ratzinger's reservations about Turkey's admission to the European Union, expressed before he was elected pope, were also a factor.
"If he comes, it would give him the chance to make his views a little more precise," Padovese said. "It was presented in the Turkish press like a complete refusal [of Turkey's candidacy], but it's more open than that."
Padovese speculated that the government may be waiting to formally announce the invitation to the pope until after Oct. 3, when negotiating sessions on membership with the EU begin. If it seems clear from the outset that the negotiations are going well, it would be easier to manage any domestic opposition to the pope's arrival; further, inviting the pope at that time would be an ideal way for Turkey to demonstrate its openness to the West, as well as its capacity to handle security and logistics for the travel of major world leaders.
Padovese also said that a papal trip would be a "major boost" to Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, by tradition the primus inter pares, or first among equals, in the Orthodox world.
"In Turkey, the Patriarch is not always seen in a good light," Padovese said. "There's a strong nationalist current in Turkey that doesn't like the patriarchate. This trip would strengthen its image," because Bartholomew would be seen as the pope's host and in some ways his equal.
Padovese said he believes there will be something different about the trip to Turkey, assuming Benedict does come, as opposed to other papal voyages.
"This would not be the trip of a head of state," he said. "It will be more directed at the people, showing them a church open to dialogue."
Given how that might challenge certain negative stereotypes of Christians in the Islamic world, Padovese added: "That's probably another reason that not everyone wants it to happen."
A senior Vatican official told NCR Sept. 7 that while nothing is official, he believes the trip will take place in late November.
* * *
Though I always find conversation with Orthodox Christians fascinating, the best story from this trip to Assisi came from a Catholic, and not a prelate or theologian or, for that matter, anyone at the symposium.
Instead, it comes from cab driver Bruno Fortini, a distant relative of Arnaldo Fortini, a famous historian and author from Assisi who has written widely on the life of St. Francis. This year, Bruno Fortini marks his 47th year driving a cab in the Umbrian town best know as Francis' birthplace.
Fortini told me that on his very first day on the job, back in 1958, his first client was a bishop who had come to Assisi for a pastoral congress being held in a local prison. Fortini picked him up at the train station and set off for the prison, not exactly sure how to get there by car, since it wasn't among the common tourist sites he had learned to identify in taxi driver's school.
"My son, how long have you been doing this work?" the bishop playfully asked, as Fortini began driving in circles.
"Excellency, this is my first day, and you're my first client," he said. "I come from a poor family, and I'd never driven a car before I took the training for this job. Plus, the car we trained in was much smaller. Please forgive me."
The bishop smiled, saying, "Don't worry. They can't start without me."
As he continued picking his way through the narrow Assisi streets, Fortini found that the cab was simply too big to make it anywhere near the prison. He had to stop several blocks away and accompany the bishop on foot, uphill. Since this prelate was a fairly rotund man, he arrived sweating and huffing, but nonetheless in good spirits.
After he paid the fare, the bishop started to enter the building, then doubled back.
"Since you're just starting this work, I think you need a blessing," he told Fortini, laying his hand on the cab driver's head.
"That hand felt like a ham hock, it was so thick," Fortini laughingly recalled.
The bishop removed a small metal cross from his pocket and gave it to Fortini, waving as he made his way into the prison for the meeting. Fortini still has that cross on the dashboard of his cab today.
This exchange took place in May 1958. In October of the same year, that bishop (who, unbeknownst to Fortini at the time, was actually Cardinal Angelo Roncalli, the patriarch of Venice) was elected as Pope John XXIII.
"Good Pope John" was beatified in 2000, and Fortini is convinced that his blessing still has juice.
"I haven't had an accident in 48 years of driving a cab," he said. "You can't tell me that's just good luck."
"We can recognize two great traditions, East and West, but not under one structure," he said. "The Orthodox world will never accept a substantive primacy of the pope."
This notion that "two lungs can't fit into one chest cavity" is countered by the Western and Eastern Catholic Churches. The Eastern Churches have their own hierarchy distinct from the Latin Rite, system of governance (synods) and general law, the Code of Canons for the Eastern Churches. The Supreme Pontiff exercises his primacy over them through the Congregation for the Eastern Churches.
They can use it on their masthead, if they want.
NCR Platform For Heretics
Actually the first two paragraphs are misleading. It is not the primacy, the Primacy of Rome is accepted and conceded by the Orthodox Church. "It is the primacy stupid," should have been filoque, among other things.
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