The ecumenical Pope?
I found this in a Christian blog. Doing some poking around I have
found it reported in several news magazine's websites so apparently it
isn't just a rumor:
Almost unnoticed by the world's media looking for sensations at
the memorial service for John Paul II, Ratzinger quietly communed
Brother Roger Schutz, the Swiss Protestant pastor and founder of
the vibrant ecumenical community in Taize.
A little poking around revealed that apparently the Pope has known
Schutz for many years. Some speculate that Schutz possibly has
quietly converted. Certainly Taize has many followers of Rome among
its members. Some reports mention some Lutheran theologians being
communed as well. Some Roman theologians have speculated that the
Lutheran view of Real Presence is sufficiently Roman to let them be
served so this isn't as surprising as if the soon-to-be-Pope had
communed say Jerry Falwell. Still this would have been unthinkable
even 50 years ago I suspect. It will be interesting to see what else
happens now. If Benedict XVI is seriously going to promote
ecumenicism he will probably be very aggressive in doing so given the
anticipated shortness of his pontificate.
found it reported in several news magazine's websites so apparently it
isn't just a rumor:
Almost unnoticed by the world's media looking for sensations at
the memorial service for John Paul II, Ratzinger quietly communed
Brother Roger Schutz, the Swiss Protestant pastor and founder of
the vibrant ecumenical community in Taize.
A little poking around revealed that apparently the Pope has known
Schutz for many years. Some speculate that Schutz possibly has
quietly converted. Certainly Taize has many followers of Rome among
its members. Some reports mention some Lutheran theologians being
communed as well. Some Roman theologians have speculated that the
Lutheran view of Real Presence is sufficiently Roman to let them be
served so this isn't as surprising as if the soon-to-be-Pope had
communed say Jerry Falwell. Still this would have been unthinkable
even 50 years ago I suspect. It will be interesting to see what else
happens now. If Benedict XVI is seriously going to promote
ecumenicism he will probably be very aggressive in doing so given the
anticipated shortness of his pontificate.