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Université de Fribourg Suisse

Institut d’études œcuméniques

LOCAL CHURCH AND CHURCH UNIVERSAL:

TOWARDS A CONVERGENCE BETWEEN

EAST AND WEST

A Study on the Theology of the Local Church according to

N. Afanasiev and J. M.-R. Tillard

with Special Reference to

Some of the Contemporary Catholic and Orthodox Theologians

Thèse présentée à la Faculté de théologie de l’Université de Fribourg, Suisse pour obtenir le grade de docteur

Par

Joseph G. Aryankalayil MST

Sous la direction du professeur

Guido VERGAUWEN OP

FRIBOURG (SUISSE)

2004

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Cette thèse a été approuvée par la Facultée de théologie de l’Université de Fribourg, Suisse, en sa séance du 25. 01.2005 sur la proposition de MM. les professeurs

Guido Vergauwen, O.P. (1er censeur), Benoît-Dominique de La Soujeole, O.P. (2e censeur) et Mme la professeure Barbara Hallensleben (Doyenne).

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A

CKNOWLEDGEMENTS

As I present this study, I raise my heart in profound gratitude to Almighty God for the constant help and providence with which He has accompanied me throughout my life, particularly during these years of research. A number of persons have stood with me and encouraged me throughout this project. Among them, I would like to mention with gratitude Prof. Guido Vergauwen, the director of this study, whose patient guidance and encouragement as well as valuable suggestions and insights have always motivated me to go ahead. I thank l’Oeuvre St-Justin and its Director, Nicolas Scherer, for sponsoring my study and stay in Fribourg. I wish to mention gratefully Mar Sebastian Vadakel, Very Reverend Fathers Thomas Parayady and Kurian Ammanathukunnel, the former and the present Director Generals of the Missionary Society of St Thomas the Apostle, for the trust they have placed in me and for the opportunity they have given me to pursue my doctoral studies at the University of Fribourg. In the preparation of this doctoral dissertation, I have been helped, encouraged and supported by a number of other persons. With deep joy and acknowledgement, I express the sentiments of gratitude to one and all.

Fribourg, Switzerland August, 2004

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T

ABLE OF

C

ONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS _______________________________________________________i

TABLE OF CONTENTS________________________________________________________ ii

ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS_____________________________________________ xx

INTRODUCTION ____________________________________________________________ 1

1. A Note on the Development of the Theology of the Local Church _________________ 1 2. Scope ________________________________________________________________ 7 3. Purpose _______________________________________________________________ 8 4. Method-Structure _______________________________________________________ 9

PARTONE:

RELATIONSHIPBETWEENTHELOCALCHURCHANDTHECHURCH

UNIVERSALACCORDINGTOTHEORTHODOXPERSPECTIVE _____________ 11

CHAPTER ONE:

NICHOLAS AFANASIEV:LIFE AND WORKS______________________________________ 12

1. Biography ____________________________________________________________ 12 2. Writings _____________________________________________________________ 16 3. Influences ____________________________________________________________ 20 3.1. Russian Eucharistic Spirituality _______________________________________ 20 3.2. Russian Theologians ________________________________________________ 21 3.2.1. S. Četverikov __________________________________________________ 21 3.2.2. Georges V. Florovsky____________________________________________ 22 3.2.3. Alexis Stepanovitch Khomiakov ___________________________________ 23 3.2.4. Sergius Nikolaevitch Bulgakov ____________________________________ 26 3.2.5. Nicholas Zernov ________________________________________________ 30 3.3. Jurisdictional Conflict of the Emigrant Russian Orthodox Church_____________ 31

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__________________________________________________________________________

CHAPTER TWO:

AUTONOMY AND INDEPENDENCE OF LOCAL CHURCHES

ACCORDING TO NICHOLAS AFANASIEV_________________________________________ 34

1. Introduction __________________________________________________________ 34 1.1. Goals of Afanasievan Ecclesiology_____________________________________ 35 1.2. Radical Distinction between Eucharistic and Universal Ecclesiology __________ 37 2. Eucharistic Ecclesiology as the Primitive Vision of the Church __________________ 38 2.1.1. Pauline Roots of Eucharistic Ecclesiology____________________________ 38 A) Church is the Body of Christ in its Eucharistic Aspect___________________ 39 B) Identity between Christ and the Church ______________________________ 41 C) The Local Church and the Church of God ____________________________ 42 D) Concluding Remarks _____________________________________________ 43 2.1.2. Patristic Roots of Eucharistic Ecclesiology ___________________________ 44 A) Introduction ____________________________________________________ 44 B) Traces of Eucharistic Ecclesiology in Clement of Rome _________________ 45 I) Concluding Remarks____________________________________________ 46 C) Eucharistic Ecclesiology of Ignatius of Antioch ________________________ 46 I) Co-inherence of the bishop and the local Church______________________ 47 II) Eucharist is at the heart of Ignatian Ecclesiology _____________________ 48 III) Concluding Remarks __________________________________________ 48 3. Universal Ecclesiology as a Slipping away from the Primitive

Conception of the Church _______________________________________________ 50 3.1. Introduction _______________________________________________________ 50 3.2. Cyprianic Ecclesiology as Universal Ecclesiology _________________________ 50 3.2.1. Unity of the Church and Its Empirical Multiplicity _____________________ 51 3.2.2. Catholicity: An Attribute of the Universal Church _____________________ 52 3.2.3. ‘Corpus ecclesiae’ and ‘Corpus episcoporum’_________________________ 52 3.2.4. Episcopate is united in ‘Cathedra Petri’ ______________________________ 53 3.2.5. From the Unity of the Episcopate to the Unity of the Church _____________ 54 3.2.6. Afanasiev’s Critique of Cyprianic Ecclesiology _______________________ 56 A) Cyprianic Ecclesiology Calls for Universal Primate_____________________ 56 B) Introduction of Law into Ecclesial Life_______________________________ 58

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__________________________________________________________________________ 3.2.7. Concluding Remarks ____________________________________________ 59 A) Roman Imperium and Cyprian _____________________________________ 59 B) Local and Supra-local aspects of ‘Ecclesia una’ in Cyprian _______________ 60 C) Cyprian’s view on the Primacy of Rome and its Bishop__________________ 64 D) Juridical Character of Cyprianic Ecclesiology _________________________ 65 3.3. Universalist Tendencies in the Didache _________________________________ 66 3.3.1. Concluding Remarks ____________________________________________ 70 3.4. Origen of Alexandria________________________________________________ 71 3.4.1. Concluding Remarks ____________________________________________ 72 4. The Local Church according to the Ecclesiology of Afanasiev ___________________ 72 4.1. The Eucharist Makes the Church ______________________________________ 72 4.1.1. Institutional Moments of the Eucharist and the Church__________________ 73 4.1.2. Identity between the Eucharist and the Local Church ___________________ 75 A) The Eucharistic Assembly and the Church ____________________________ 76 B) Christ and the Eucharistic Assembly_________________________________ 77 C) The Local Church and the Church of God ____________________________ 78 D) The Eucharist Structures the Local Church____________________________ 79 4.1.3. The Principle of Unity of the Primitive Local Church ___________________ 81 4.1.4. Unicity of Eucharistic Celebration under

One Unique President per Local Church _____________________________ 83 4.1.5. Shift from a Unique Eucharistic Celebration to

a Multiplicity of Eucharistic Assemblies _____________________________ 89 A) Fermentum_____________________________________________________ 90 B) Statio Urbis ____________________________________________________ 91 4.1.6. Shift from the Eucharist being the ‘Sacrament of the Church’

to a ‘Sacrament in the Church’_____________________________________ 91 4.1.7. Space Factor and the Multiplicity of Local Churches ___________________ 92 4.1.8. Concluding Remarks ____________________________________________ 94 A) Centrality of the Eucharist_________________________________________ 94 B) The Church and the Body of Christ__________________________________ 95 C) The Local Church and the Church of God ____________________________ 96

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__________________________________________________________________________ D) Eucharistic Celebration and Mission_________________________________ 98 4.2. The Local Church as a Communion ____________________________________ 99 4.2.1. Introduction ___________________________________________________ 99 4.2.2. Preliminary Concepts ____________________________________________ 99 A) Sacramental Basis of Communion __________________________________ 99 B) ‘Being always together’ and ‘Gathered for the same Thing’

as the Fundamental Principle of Ecclesial Life ________________________ 100 4.2.3. Church is an Organism based on Grace _____________________________ 101 A) Law and Ecclesial Life __________________________________________ 101 B) Surpassing of Law by Love _______________________________________ 101 C) Power of Love _________________________________________________ 103 4.2.4. Structural Character of the Local Church____________________________ 103 4.2.5. Diversity and Distinction and Complementarity of Ministries ___________ 105 A) Universal Priesthood ____________________________________________ 106 B) Hierarchical Ministry____________________________________________ 109 4.2.6. The Ministry of Eucharistic President ______________________________ 111 A) Development of the Ministry of Proéstôs ____________________________ 111 I) Terminology _________________________________________________ 111 II) Ministry of the Proto Presbyter __________________________________ 113 a) The Investiture of the First Presbyter ____________________________ 114 b) Transformation of the First-Presbyter to Bishop ___________________ 115 B) Proéstôs and the Local Church ____________________________________ 116 I) Proéstôs and the Eucharistic Assembly ____________________________ 116 II) The Eucharistic President and the Local Church ____________________ 117 C) Proéstôtés as Successors of Apostles________________________________ 118 D) Features of the Ministry of Proéstôs ________________________________ 118 I) Administration _______________________________________________ 118 II) Guardian of Orthodoxy and Orthopraxy ___________________________ 119 4.2.7. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 119 4.3. Local Churches and the Universal Church in the Eucharistic Ecclesiology _____ 120 4.3.1. Introduction __________________________________________________ 120

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__________________________________________________________________________ 4.3.2. The Local Church fully manifests the Church of God __________________ 121 4.3.3. Identity between the Local Church and the Church of God ______________ 122 4.3.4. The Local Church and the Catholic Character ________________________ 123 4.3.5. Concreteness of the Local Churches versus

Abstractness of the Universal Church ______________________________ 123 4.3.6. The Local Church as ‘Part’ or ‘Representative’ of

the Universal Church ___________________________________________ 125 4.3.7. Balance between Autonomy and Communion ________________________ 126 4.3.8. The Local Church’s Openness to Communion _______________________ 127 A) Fundamental Equality of Local Churches ____________________________ 127 B) The Eucharist as a Principle of Supra Local Communion________________ 128 C) The Local Bishop as a Bond of Communion _________________________ 129 4.3.9. Communion of Churches is sustained by a Process of Reception _________ 130 4.3.10. Reception: Differing Perspectives in the Universal Ecclesiology

and the Eucharistic Ecclesiology __________________________________ 132 4.3.11. The Eucharist as the Basis of the Re-establishment of Christian Unity____ 133

A) Re-establishment of Christian Unity according to

the Universal Ecclesiology _______________________________________ 133 B) Re-establishment of Christian Unity according to

the Eucharistic Ecclesiology ______________________________________ 135 4.3.12. The Church of Rome in the Communion of Churches_________________ 138 A) Preliminary Notions ____________________________________________ 138 I) Primacy versus Priority_________________________________________ 138 II) Hierarchy among the Local Churches _____________________________ 140 B) The Church of Rome as Church-in-Priority __________________________ 143 I) The Jerusalem Church in the Communion of Churches ________________ 143 II) Pre-eminence of the Church of Rome in the Communion of Churches:

Early Witnesses ________________________________________________ 144 a) Epistle of Clement of Rome ___________________________________ 144 b) Ignatius of Antioch__________________________________________ 145 c) Irenaeus of Lyon____________________________________________ 147

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__________________________________________________________________________ d) Cyprian of Carthage _________________________________________ 148 III) Primacy of the Church of Rome_________________________________ 149 C) Bishop of Rome and Communion of Churches________________________ 150 I) Papal Primacy: a Bone of Contention______________________________ 150 II) Statio Orbis and Primacy of Pope ________________________________ 152 III) Universo-Pontifical Ecclesiology________________________________ 153 IV) Pope and Episcopate at Vatican II _______________________________ 155 4.3.13. Concluding Remarks __________________________________________ 155 5. Conclusion __________________________________________________________ 158

CHAPTER THREE:

LOCAL CHURCHES AND SYNODALITY OF CHURCHES

IN THE CONTEMPORARY ORTHODOX ECCLESIOLOGY____________________________ 160

1. Introduction _________________________________________________________ 160 2. Conceiving the Local Church ____________________________________________ 160 2.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 160 2.2. Christ, the Eucharist and the Church___________________________________ 161 2.2.1. The Christological Foundation of the Local Church ___________________ 161 A) The Church as the Body of Christ and His Plenitude ___________________ 161 B) Pneumatological Presuppositions of the Relationship

between Christ and the Church ____________________________________ 162 C) Christ, the Church and the Eucharistic Celebration ____________________ 164 2.2.2. The Eucharist and the Church ____________________________________ 164 A) Mutual Co-extensiveness of the Church and the Eucharist_______________ 165 B) Disjunction between the Eucharist and the Church_____________________ 166 C) Pneumatological Conditioning of the Relationship

between Church and the Eucharist__________________________________ 167 D) The Eucharist as an Event of communion____________________________ 168 E) The Eucharist Structures the Church ________________________________ 168 F) The Eucharist does not exhaust the whole Reality of the Church __________ 169 2.2.3. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 170 2.3. The Bishop and the Eucharistic Community_____________________________ 170

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__________________________________________________________________________ 2.3.1. Patristic View on the Relationship between Bishop and the Community ___ 170 2.3.2. Bishop as an Icon of Christ ______________________________________ 173 2.3.3. Salvation and Communion with the Local Church and its Head __________ 174 2.3.4. Apostolic Succession and the Local Church _________________________ 174 2.3.5. Bishop as Ecclesiological Presupposition of

the Eucharist and the Eucharistic Community ________________________ 176 2.3.6. The Bishop and the Presbyterium__________________________________ 178 2.3.7. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 179 2.4. Eschatological Conditionality of the Local Church and Its Institutions ________ 180 2.5. An Orthodox Appraisal on the Principle of One Bishop per City_____________ 181 2.5.1. Arguments from Tradition _______________________________________ 181

A) Unicity of the Eucharistic Celebration per Church

in the Ancient Church ___________________________________________ 181 B) Multiplication of eucharistic Communities ___________________________ 182 C) Canonical Tradition on the Unicity of Ecclesiastical Structure ___________ 182 2.5.2. Analysis on the Basis of the Orthodox Diaspora in West _______________ 183 A) Territorial principle is an essential Condition for the Church’s Freedom____ 183 B) Jurisdictional Unity and Catholicity of the Church _____________________ 184 2.5.3. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 185 2.6. The Catholic Character of the Local Church_____________________________ 186 2.6.1. Introduction __________________________________________________ 186 2.6.2. Christological Foundation of Catholicity ____________________________ 186 2.6.3. Catholicity is an Interior quality___________________________________ 187 2.6.4. Catholicity and Diversity ________________________________________ 188 2.6.5. Catholicity is a Gift and a Task ___________________________________ 189 2.6.6. The Catholic Character of the Structure of the Local Church ____________ 191 2.6.7. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 191 3. Communion among Local Churches ______________________________________ 191 3.1. Trinitarian Basis of Koinonia ________________________________________ 191 3.2. Autonomy of Local Churches in the Context of Communion _______________ 192 3.3. Communion of Churches on the Basis of Mutual Identity __________________ 194

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__________________________________________________________________________ 3.4. The Universal Church versus the Local Church __________________________ 195 3.5. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 197 4. Synodality in the Life of the Church ______________________________________ 198 4.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 198 4.2. From the Phenomenology of Councils to their Ontology ___________________ 198 4.3. Origin and Development of Synodical Institution_________________________ 200 4.3.1. Transition to Provincial Conciliar Structures _________________________ 201 4.3.2. Episcopal Composition of Synods _________________________________ 201 4.4. Autonomy of Local Churches and Authority of Synodal Institution __________ 203 4.5. Synodality and Sacramental Life______________________________________ 206 4.6. Supra-Provincial Synodality _________________________________________ 207 4.7. Synodality and Primatial Authority in Contemporary Orthodoxy ____________ 208 4.7.1. Protos and Regional Synodality ___________________________________ 208 4.7.2. Exercise of Primatial Power ______________________________________ 210 4.7.3. Synodality in the Universal Level _________________________________ 211 4.8. Church of Rome in the Communion of Churches: the Orthodox View ________ 212 4.8.1. Development of Primatial Sees in the Primitive Church ________________ 212 4.8.2. The Church of Rome and the Communion of Churches ________________ 212 4.8.3. The Bishop of Rome and the Communion of Churches_________________ 214 A) Petrine Succession of the Bishop of Rome ___________________________ 214 B) Nature of the Roman Primacy _____________________________________ 217 C) The Ecclesial Basis of Primacy ____________________________________ 218 D) The Pope and the Conciliar Life of the Early Church___________________ 218 4.9. Orthodox Appreciation of the Catholic Doctrine of Collegiality _____________ 220 4.9.1. Collegiality and Communion of Local Churches______________________ 220 4.9.2. Relationship between Primacy and Collegiality_______________________ 222 4.9.3. Episcopal Conference___________________________________________ 223 A) Episcopal Conference and Collegiality ______________________________ 223 B) Episcopal Conference and Communion of Churches ___________________ 224 4.10. Concluding Remarks ______________________________________________ 224 5. Conclusion __________________________________________________________ 226

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__________________________________________________________________________

PARTTWO:

RELATIONSHIPBETWEENTHELOCALCHURCHANDTHECHURCH

UNIVERSALACCORDINGTOTHECATHOLICPERSPECTIVE _____________ 229

CHAPTER FOUR:

J.-M.R.TILLARD:MAN AND MISSION________________________________________ 230

1. Childhood and Formation_______________________________________________ 230 2. Professor of Theology _________________________________________________ 232 3. Illness and Death _____________________________________________________ 233 4. Theologian __________________________________________________________ 234 4.1. The Eucharist: the Key to the Theology of Tillard ________________________ 236 4.1.1. Religious life in the light of the Eucharist ___________________________ 236 4.1.2. Ecclesiology in the light of the Eucharist____________________________ 237 5. Ecumenist ___________________________________________________________ 238 6. Publications _________________________________________________________ 239 6.1. On Religious Life _________________________________________________ 239 6.2. On Church and Christian Unity_______________________________________ 241

CHAPTER FIVE:

OSMOSIS BETWEEN THE LOCAL CHURCH AND CATHOLICA

ACCORDING TO J.-M.R.TILLARD____________________________________________ 243

1. Introduction _________________________________________________________ 243 2. Preliminary Notions ___________________________________________________ 244 2.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 244 2.2. Sources of the Ecclesiology of Communion _____________________________ 244 2.2.1. Biblical Data__________________________________________________ 244 2.2.2. Patristic Data _________________________________________________ 246 2.3. Communion of Believers in the Communion of the living God ______________ 247 2.4. Communion as Gift and Task ________________________________________ 248 2.5. Communion as Unity in Diversity_____________________________________ 249 2.6. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 250 3. The Eucharist Makes the Church _________________________________________ 251

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__________________________________________________________________________ 3.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 251 3.2. The Eucharistic Body to the Ecclesial Body _____________________________ 251 3.3. The Church is Eucharistic ___________________________________________ 252

3.3.1. From the Eucharist, the Sacrament of the Body of Christ to

the Church, forma gratiae Dei ____________________________________ 253 3.3.2. From the Eucharist, the Proclamation of the Death of Christ to

the Church in the Act of Marturia _________________________________ 253 3.3.3. From the Eucharist, the Memorial of the Servant to

the Church in Diakonia _________________________________________ 254 3.4. The Eucharist, the Church and the Bishop ______________________________ 255 3.5. The Eucharist and the Communion ____________________________________ 255 3.5.1. The Eucharist as the Sacramentum of Communion ____________________ 255 3.5.2. Communion as the Fruit of the Eucharist____________________________ 256 3.5.3. The Universal Communion and the Eucharistic Celebration _____________ 256 3.6. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 257 4. Ecclesiological Significance of Locality ___________________________________ 259 4.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 259 4.2. Lessons from the Magisterium Past and Present__________________________ 260 4.3. Locality in Canonistics _____________________________________________ 261 4.4. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 262 5. Catholicity and the Local Church_________________________________________ 263 5.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 263 5.2. Birth of the Church Marks the Reversal of Babel

and the Fulfilment of Qāhal _________________________________________ 263 5.3. The Church as the fulfilment of the Gospel of God and ‘Musterion’ __________ 265 5.4. Communion as the Content of Salvation Announced by the Gospel of God ____ 265 5.5. The Church is the Manifestation of Communion _________________________ 266 5.6. Catholicity and Division of the world __________________________________ 267 5.7. Catholicity as a Task _______________________________________________ 268 5.8. Church which is always ‘Catholic’ is born ‘Local’________________________ 269 5.9. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 271 6. The Missionary Dimension of Local Churches ______________________________ 272 6.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 272

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__________________________________________________________________________ 6.2. Mission as a Transformation of Humanity to a Humanity according to God ____ 272 6.3. Contextualisation / Inculturation and Mission ___________________________ 273 6.4. The Local Church as the Starting Point of Mission _______________________ 275 6.5. The Local Church’s Concern for Christian Unity _________________________ 276 6.6. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 278 7. Dynamism of Communion within the Local Church __________________________ 279 7.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 279 7.2. Osmosis of Charisms and Services ____________________________________ 279 7.2.1. The Communal Structure of the Ministry____________________________ 279 7.2.2. The Ministry of the Bishop within the Priestly People of God ___________ 280 7.2.3. Communion among Various Hierarchical Ministries___________________ 282 7.2.4. Hierarchical Ministries and other Services of the Gospel _______________ 283 7.2.5. Practice of Synodality at the Level of the Local Church ________________ 284 7.3. Ministry at the Service of Koinonia ___________________________________ 285

7.3.1. From the Unitive Function in the Local Church to

the Eucharistic Presidency _______________________________________ 285 7.3.2. The Ministry of the Bishop and the Apostolic Ministry_________________ 287 7.4. The Bishop and his Sedes ___________________________________________ 289

7.4.1. Role of the Local Church as a whole

in the Designation of its Bishop ___________________________________ 290 7.4.2. Ministry and ‘Representation’ ____________________________________ 292 7.5. One Bishop per City _______________________________________________ 293 7.6. The Local Church’s Openness to Communion ___________________________ 295 7.7. Bishop: Meeting-point of two Communions_____________________________ 299 7.8. Collegiality and Synodality of Churches________________________________ 300 7.9. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 301 8. The Church of Rome and the Communion of Churches _______________________ 304 8.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 304 8.2. ‘Principalitas’ of Rome _____________________________________________ 304 8.3. The Petrine and Pauline Roots of the Roman Primacy _____________________ 305 8.4. Rome within the Communion of Churches ______________________________ 306 8.5. Notion of Sister Churches ___________________________________________ 307

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__________________________________________________________________________ 8.6. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 308 9. The Bishop of Rome and the Communion of Churches________________________ 310 9.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 310 9.2. Primacy of the Bishop of Rome as an Ecumenical Problem_________________ 310 9.3. Pastor Aeternus and the Primacy of the Bishop of Rome ___________________ 313

9.3.1. Limits of Pastor Aeternus _______________________________________ 313

9.3.2. A primacy Measured by the Episcopate_____________________________ 314 9.3.3. Nature of officium of the Bishop of Rome ___________________________ 315 9.4. Reception of Pastor Aeternus by Vatican II _____________________________ 316 9.5. Tillard’s Interpretation of the Relation between Primacy and Episcopacy______ 318 9.5.1. Pope is a Bishop of a Local Church with a Special Vocation ____________ 318

A) Primacy of the Bishop of Rome: From ‘Sedes’ to ‘Sedens’ ______________ 319

B) Pope: Vicar of Peter in the See of the Church of Peter and Paul __________ 320 9.5.2. Pope is a Servant of Communion __________________________________ 322 A) Pope as the Visible Foundation of the Unity of Faith and Communion _____ 322 B) Sentinel of Faith and Communion__________________________________ 323 C) Confused Understanding of the Role of Servant of Communion __________ 324 D) Function of the Bishop of Rome: That of a Bishop among other Bishops ___ 327 E) Jurisdiction of the Bishop of Rome and that of

the Heads of Local Churches ______________________________________ 328 F) Articulation of the Power of Pope and that of

the Individual Bishops and the Episcopal College _____________________ 331 G) Understanding the Relationship between Local and Universal

according to the Principles of Subsidiarity and Synergy_________________ 333 9.5.3. Articulation of Primacy and Episcopate in the Synodal Institutions _______ 335 A) Councils and Synods of the Past ___________________________________ 337 B) Synod of Bishops_______________________________________________ 338 C) Episcopal Conference ___________________________________________ 339 I) The Theological Foundation of the Episcopal Conference _____________ 339 II) The Doctrinal Authority of the Episcopal Conferences _______________ 340 III) The Episcopal Conference and the Holy See_______________________ 342

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__________________________________________________________________________ 9.6. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 343 10. Conclusion _________________________________________________________ 345

CHAPTER SIX:

THE LOCAL CHURCH AND THE UNIVERSAL CHURCH:NEED FOR AN ECCLESIOLOGY OF

REGIONAL CHURCHES IN THE CONTEMPORARY CATHOLIC ECCLESIOLOGY _________ 348

1. Introduction _________________________________________________________ 348 2. Ratzinger-Kasper Debate on the Relationship

between the Local Church and the Universal Church _________________________ 349 2.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 349 2.2. Background of the Debate ___________________________________________ 349 2.3. Kasper’s Reaction to CDF’s Letter ____________________________________ 352 2.4. Response of Ratzinger______________________________________________ 354 2.5. Kasper’s Friendly Reply ____________________________________________ 358 2.6. Ratzinger’s Second Response ________________________________________ 362 2.7. Concluding Response from Kasper ____________________________________ 363 2.8. Reactions to the Ratzinger-Kasper Debate ______________________________ 365 2.8.1. Charles J. Chaput ______________________________________________ 365 2.8.2. Avery Dulles__________________________________________________ 366 2.8.3. Kilian McDonnell______________________________________________ 368 2.9. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 371 3. Lack of a Coherent Terminology _________________________________________ 372 3.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 372 3.2. Vatican II ________________________________________________________ 372 3.3. Theological Literature ______________________________________________ 374 3.4. Canon Law_______________________________________________________ 380 3.5. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 383 4. Realisation of the Church of God in a Place ________________________________ 384 4.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 384 4.2. Contributions of Vatican II towards a Theology of Local Churches __________ 384 4.2.1. The Local Church as the realization of the Church of God ______________ 385 4.2.2. The relation of the Local Churches to their Human Spaces is

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__________________________________________________________________________ 4.2.3. Institutions permitting the re-vivification of the Local Churches _________ 386 4.3. Theological Significance of Locality __________________________________ 386 4.3.1. Place as Geographical and Human Space____________________________ 386 4.3.2. Theological Significance of the Territoriality of the Local Church ________ 388 4.3.3. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 389 4.4. Constitutive Elements of the Local Church______________________________ 389 4.4.1. Role of Holy Spirit in the Building up of the Local Church _____________ 390 4.4.2. The Gospel and the Articulation of the Local Church __________________ 391 4.4.3. The Eucharistic Understanding of the Local Church and

Communal Aspects of the Church _________________________________ 391 4.4.4. Role of the Bishop in the Building up of the Church

and in its Link with the Communion of Churches _____________________ 393 4.4.5. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 394 4.5. Local Churches as Subject Churches __________________________________ 394 4.5.1. Promotion of Subject-Church at Vatican II __________________________ 395 4.5.2. Conciliar Teaching on Trinitarian and Sacramental Ecclesiology

Reveals Church as Subject _______________________________________ 396 4.5.3. The Call of the Local Church to act Responsibly with one another

for the Good of the whole Church _________________________________ 397 A) Spirit is the origin of the diversity of Churches and their Synodality_______ 397 B) Subject Church and Catholicity____________________________________ 398 4.5.4. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 398 5. Relationship between Primacy and Episcopacy ______________________________ 399 5.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 399 5.2. Some Initial Observations ___________________________________________ 399

5.2.1. Relationship between communio ecclesiarum

and collegium episcoporum ______________________________________ 399 5.2.2. Non-reciprocal Relationship between

the Episcopal College and the Pope ________________________________ 401 5.2.3. Minister and Church ____________________________________________ 402 5.3. Primacy and Episcopacy Conceived as ‘Relations’ _______________________ 403 5.4. The Papal Primacy as a ‘Munus’ of Unity ______________________________ 404

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__________________________________________________________________________ 5.5. Unity as Communion_______________________________________________ 405 5.6. Primacy as an Episcopal ‘Munus’ _____________________________________ 405 5.7. Functions of the Papal Primacy_______________________________________ 407 5.8. The Collegial Character of the Episcopate ______________________________ 409 5.9. Collegiality as a Service of the Church _________________________________ 412 5.9.1. Communio Episcoporum and Communio Fidelium ____________________ 413 5.9.2. Primacy vis-à-vis Communio Episcoporum and Communio Fidelium _____ 414 5.9.3. Perichoretic Understanding of Collegiality __________________________ 414 5.10. Collegiality and Communion of Churches _____________________________ 415 5.10.1. The Bishop, his Church and Communion __________________________ 416 5.10.2. Local Churches and Ecclesial Communion _________________________ 417 5.10.3. Communion of Churches to Communion of Bishops _________________ 417 5.11. Concluding Remarks ______________________________________________ 419 6. Relation between the Local Church and the Universal Church __________________ 420 6.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 420 6.2. Principal Conciliar Affirmations on the Relationship between

the Local Church and the Universal Church_____________________________ 421 6.2.1. Two ecclesiological models ______________________________________ 421 6.2.2. Key Conciliar Texts ____________________________________________ 421 6.2.3. Ambiguities __________________________________________________ 422 6.2.4. Methodological Option of the Council______________________________ 422 6.3. On the Priority between the Universal Church and the Local Church _________ 424 6.3.1. Different Understandings of the Universal Church ____________________ 424 6.3.2. Views on the Priority between

the Universal Church and the Local Church _________________________ 425 A) Theological Literature ___________________________________________ 425 B) Recent Magisterium_____________________________________________ 426 6.4. Towards an Understanding of the Relationship between

the Local Church and the Universal Church_____________________________ 428 6.4.1. In quibus et ex quibus: Reciprocal Immanence between

the Local Church and the Universal Church _________________________ 428 6.4.2. Simultaneity versus Anteriority ___________________________________ 430

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__________________________________________________________________________ 6.4.3. The Church as a Communion of Churches and the Relationship between

the Local Church and the Universal Church _________________________ 433 6.5. Concluding Remarks _______________________________________________ 434 7. Structural Expression of Communion in Regional Churches____________________ 435 7.1. Introduction ______________________________________________________ 435 7.2. Episcopal Conferences as Expressions of Ecclesial Communion

and Episcopal Collegiality __________________________________________ 437 7.2.1. Introduction __________________________________________________ 437 7.2.2. Historical Origin of the Episcopal Conferences _______________________ 438 7.2.3. Vatican Council and After _______________________________________ 438 7.2.4. Code of Canon Law (1983) ______________________________________ 439 7.2.5. Theological Status and Doctrinal Authority of

the Episcopal Conference________________________________________ 440 A) A Controversy over the Teaching Authority of

the Episcopal Conferences________________________________________ 440 B) Views of Theologians and the Magisterium __________________________ 441 I) Extraordinary Synod of Bishops (1985) ____________________________ 441 II) Salamanca Colloquium (1988) __________________________________ 442 III) Draft Statement (1988)________________________________________ 442 IV) Apostolos Suos (1998)________________________________________ 444 C) Do Episcopal conferences have a Doctrinal Function? __________________ 446 D) Theological foundations of Episcopal Conferences ____________________ 447 I) Two Schemas of the Church Structure _____________________________ 448 II) The Episcopal Collegiality in its Ontological

and Sacramental Foundation ______________________________________ 449 III) The Theological Basis of the Episcopal Conference _________________ 450

a) Shifting Views on the Theological Basis of

the Episcopal Conference _______________________________________ 450 b) The Episcopal Conference according to

a Dynamic Interpretation of Collegiality ___________________________ 453 7.2.6. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 455

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Table of Contents

__________________________________________________________________________ 7.3. Place of Catholic Oriental Churches within

the Catholic Communion of Churches _________________________________ 456 7.3.1. Introduction __________________________________________________ 456 7.3.2. Multiplicity of ‘Particular Churches’ in the Unity of the Church (OE 2) ___ 457 A) ‘Orientalium ecclesiarum’________________________________________ 457 B) Particular Church or Rite (Church-Rite) _____________________________ 458 C) Preservation of the Traditions of the Eastern Churches _________________ 460 7.3.3. Equality among Churches (OE 3)__________________________________ 460 A) ‘Particulares Ecclesiae, tum Orientis tum Occidentis’ __________________ 460 B) Reasons for the Equality of Churches _______________________________ 461 C) Zones of Authority of the Bishop of Rome in the Catholic Church ________ 462 I) Latin Churches of ancient Christianity _____________________________ 462 II) Latin Churches of Newly Evangelised Lands _______________________ 462 III) Catholic Oriental Churches ____________________________________ 462 D) Territoriality and Oriental Catholics ________________________________ 463 I) Personal character of a Particular Church___________________________ 463 II) The Anachronic Aspect of the Territorial Principle __________________ 464 E) Equality in Pastoral Care _________________________________________ 466 F) Equality in Evangelisation ________________________________________ 471 7.3.4. Autonomy of Oriental Catholic Churches (OE 5, 9, 16) ________________ 474 A) Jurisdiction of the Catholic Oriental Patriarchs _______________________ 477 B) Positive Contributions of the Institution of Patriarchate _________________ 479 7.3.5. Concluding Remarks ___________________________________________ 481 8. Conclusion __________________________________________________________ 482

GENERAL CONCLUSION:

CONVERGENCE BETWEEN THE EAST AND THE WEST____________________________ 484

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY _________________________________________________ 499

1. Writings of N. Afanasiev _______________________________________________ 499 2. Wrtings on Afanasiev __________________________________________________ 501 3. Writings of J.-M.R. Tillard______________________________________________ 503

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Table of Contents

__________________________________________________________________________ 4. Writings on Tillard ____________________________________________________ 507 5. Church Documents ____________________________________________________ 509 5.1. Documents of the Second Vatican Council______________________________ 509 5.2. Papal Documents __________________________________________________ 510 5.3. Other Documents from the Magisterium________________________________ 511 6. Ecumenical Documents ________________________________________________ 512 7. Bibliographical Sources ________________________________________________ 513 8. Other Studies ________________________________________________________ 514

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A

BBREVIATIONS AND

A

CRONYMS

AAS Acta Apostolicae Sedis, Commentarium officiale, Roma (1909→) ACan Année canonique, Paris (1952→)

ACO Acta conciliorum œcumenicorum

ACO.I Acta conciliorum œcumenicorum, Index

AEcR American Ecclesiastical Review, Washington D.C. (1889→) CDF Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith

AEcR The American Ecclesiastical Review, Washington, D.C. (1889-32, 1905→)

AG Ad Gentes, Decree on the Mission activity of the Church.

AHC Annuarium historiae conciliorum

AHDLMA Archives d'histoire doctrinale et littéraire du moyen age, Paris, (1926/27→)

AKathKR Archiv für katholisches Kirchenrecht, Mainz [etc.] (1897→)

Ang. Angelicum, Periodicum internationale de re philosophica et theologica, Roma, (1925→)

BETL Bibliotheca Ephemeridum Theologicarum Lovanientium CathR The Catholic Register

CatI Catholic Insight

CCEO Codex canonum ecclesiarum orientalium, The Code of Canons of the

Eastern Churches (1991)

CD Christus Dominus, Decree Concerning the Pastoral Office of Bishops

in the Church.

CeM Chrétiens en marche

ChiSt Chicago Studies, An Archdiocesan Review, Chicago (1962→) CIC Codex Iuris Canonici, The Code of the Canon Law (1983)

CiTo Ciencia Tomista, Salamanca [etc.] (1910→) CivCatt Civiltà cattolica, Roma (1850→)

CiŽ Crkva i Život

CLSA Proc Canon Law Soceity of America Proceedings

(23)

Abbreviations and Acronyms

__________________________________________________________________________ Com(US) Communio. International Catholic Review, Spokane, Washington DC

(1974→)

Conc(F) Concilium. Revue internationale de théologie, Paris (1965→) Conc(GB) Concilium. An International Review of Theology, London (1965→) Cont Contacts, Revue Orthodoxe de Spiritualité et de Théologie, Paris,

(1949→)

COri Christian Orient, Kottayam (1980→)

CQR Church Quarterly Review, London (1875→)

CrSt Cristianesimo nella storia:ricerche storiche, esegetiche, teologiche, Bologna: Universita degli Studi di Bologna(1980→)

CTI Commission théologique internationale

CTSA Proc Catholic Theological Society of America Proceedings

CVZERE Cerkovnyj Vēstnik Zapadno – Evropejskago Russkago Ekzarchata/ Le Messager de l’Eglise Russe en Europe occidentale, Paris, 1947→) DC Documentation catholique, Paris (1919→)

Devoir Le Devoir

Diak(US) Diakonia. A Quarterly Devoted to Advancing Orthodox-Catholic Dialogue, Bronx, N.Y. (1966→)

DS Denzinger H. – Hünermann P. (eds.), Enchiridion Symbolorum. Definitionum et Declarationum de Rebus Fidei et Morum (1995) DTC Dictionnaire de théologie catholique

ECR Eastern Churches Review, London (Incorporated into Sobornost, London) (1966→1978)

EeT Eglise et théologie, Paris (1958→) EeV Esprit et Vie, Langres (1969→)

EglCan L’Eglise canadienne, Montréal (1968→) EJCan Ephemerides Iuris Canonici, Rome (1945→)

ELit Ephemerides Litugicae, Città del Vaticano, (1887→)

EN Evangelii nuntiandi

ER The Ecumenical Review, Geneva (1948→)

ET English translation/version

EThL Ephemerides theologicae Lovanienses, Louvain [etc] (1924→) Etudes Etudes. Revue mensuelle, Paris, Desclée de Brouwer (1856→) EvTh Evangelische Theologie, München (1934→)

Foun. Foundations. A Baptist Journal of History abd Theology, Rochester, N.Y. (1958→)

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Abbreviations and Acronyms

__________________________________________________________________________

FT French translation/version

FZPhTh Freiburger Zeitschrift für Philosophie und Theologie, Feiburg, Schweiz (1931→)

GOTR The Greek Orthodox Theological Review, Brookline, Mass. (1954→) Gr. Gregorianum: Comentarii de re theologica et philosophica, Roma

(1920→)

GT German translation/version

HeyJ Heythrop Journal. A Quarterly Review of Religion, Theology, Oxford [etc] (1960→)

ICan Ius Canonicum, Pamplona (1971→)

IKZ Internationale kirchliche Zeitschrift, Bern (1911(1960→)

InVat Inside The Vatican

Irén. Irénikon, Chevetogne (1926(1960→) Ist. Istina, Boulogne-sur-Seine [etc] (1954→) ITC International Theological Commission

JDhara Jeevadhara, Kottayam

JEH Journal of Ecclesiastical History, London (1950→)

JES Journal of Ecumenical Studies, Philadelphia, Pa. (1964→)

JFStA The Journal of the fellowship of St Alban and St Sergius, London (1928→34) → Sobornost’

JThS Journal of Theological Studies, Oxford (1899→)

Jurist The Jurist, Catholic University of America, School of Canon Law, Washington DC (1941→)

Kanon Kanon. Jahrbuch der Gesellschaft für das Recht der Ostkirchen, Wien (1971→)

Kl. Kleronomia. Patriarchal Institute for Patriastic Studies. Thesalonikē (1969→)

KO Kirche im Osten, Stuttgart (1958→)

Kyrios Kyrios. Vierteljahresschrift für Kirchen-und Geistesgeschichte Osteuropas, Berlin (1947→)

LG Lumen Gentium, Dogmatic Constitution on the Church.

LTP Laval théologique et philosophique, Québec (1944→)

LV(L) Lumière et vie. Revue de formation et réflexion théologique, Lyon (1951→)

MD La Maison-Dieu. Revue de la pastorale liturgique, Paris (1945→) MesOrth Le Messager orthodoxe, Paris (1958→)

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Abbreviations and Acronyms

__________________________________________________________________________ MStr Mid-Stream

n. Note

ND NEUNER, Josef - DUPUIS, Jacques, The Christian Faith

Nicol Nicolaus: Rivista di teologia ecuenico-patristica, Bari, Italy (1973→) no./No. Number

nos./Nos. Numbers

NOR New Oxford Review

NRT Nouvelle revue théologique, Tournai (1879→)

NT Novum Testamentum. An International Quarterly for New Testament and Related Studies, Leiden (1956→)

Nuntia Nuntia. Commentarium cura et studio Pontificae Commissionis Codici Juris Canonici Orientalis Recognoscendo, Città del Vaticano (1975→) NV Nova et Vetera, Revue catholique pour la Suisse romande,Genève [etc]

(1926→)

OCA Orientalia Christiana Analecta OCP Orientalia Christiana Periodica,

OCP Orientalia Christiana Periodica, Roma (1935→)

OE Orientalium Ecclesiarum, Decree on the Catholic Churches of the

Eastern Rite.

OiC One in Christ. A Catholic Ecumenical Review, London (1965→) OIRS Oriental Institute of Religious Studies

OR L’Osservatore Romano, Città del Vaticano (1849→) Org Origins

OS Ostkirchliche Studien, Würzburg (1952→) ParOr Parole de l'Orient, Kaslik (1970→)

PenOrth La Pensée orthodoxe, Paris (1966→)

PeP Parole et Pain

Periodica Periodica de re morali, canonica, liturgica, Roma (1907→) PIOS Pont. Institutum Orientalium Studiorum

PO Presbyterorum Ordinis, Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests

POC Proche-Orient chrétien, Jerusalem (1951→)

PravMysl Pravoslavnaja Mysl' / La pensée orthodoxe, Paris (1928→)

PrePast Presenza pastorale

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Abbreviations and Acronyms

__________________________________________________________________________

RAn Revue Sainte-Anne

RB Revue biblique, Paris (1892→)

RCatT Revista catalana de teología, Barcelona (1976→) RDC Revue de droit canonique, Strasbourg (1951→) RevSR Revue des Sciences Religieuses, Strasbourg (1921→) RfR Review for Religious, St Louis, Mo (1942→)

RHDFE Revue historique de droit français et étranger, Paris (1855→) RHE Revue d’histoire ecclésiastique, Louvain (1900→)

RLR Religious Life Review, Dublin (1980→)

RSPhTh Revue des sciences philosophiques et théologiques, Paris (1907→) RSR Recherche de science religieuse, Paris (1910→)

RThom Revue Thomiste, Bruges [etc], (1893→)

RTL Revue théologique de Louvain, Louvain (1970→) ScEs Science et Esprit, Bruges (1960→)

Schol. Scholastik. Vierteljahresschrift für Theologie und Philosophie, Freiburg, Br. (1926→)

Sob. Sobornost. Fellowship of St. Alban and St Sergius, London (1979→) Sobornost’ Sobornost’. Fellowship of St. Alban and St Sergius, London

(1935→1978)

SOP Service orthodoxe de presse

Spiritus Spiritus, Paris

StCan Studia Canonica, Ottawa (1967→)

StZ Stimmen der Zeit, (Katholische) Monatsschrift für das Geistesleben der Gegenwart und Kultur, Darmstadt (1949→)

SVTQ St. Vladimir’s Theological Quarterly, New York (1969→)

Tablet The Tablet

ThD Theology Digest, St Mary’s College, St. Mary’s, Kan. (1953→) Theol(A) Theologia. Epistēmonikon periodikon, Athēnai (1923→)

Theol. Theology. A Journal of Historic Christianity. Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, London (1920→)

ThPh Theologie und Philosophie. Vierteljahreschrift, Freiburg, Br. (1966→) ThPQ Theologisch-praktische Quartalschrift, Linz, Donau (1848→)

ThQ Theologische Quartalschrift, Tübingen (1819→)

TS Theological Studies, Theological Faculties of the Society of Jesus in the United States, Woodstock, Md. (1940→)

(27)

Abbreviations and Acronyms

__________________________________________________________________________ TZ(W) Theologische Zeitschrift, Wien (1813→)

UdC Unité des chrétiens

UnChr Unité chrétienne, Lyon (1970→)

Unitas(NY) Unitas. International Review. Unitas Association, New York (1949→)

UnSa Unam Sanctam

UR Unitatis Redintegratio, Decree on Ecumenism

US Una Sancta : Zeitschrift für interkonfessionelle Begegnung, Meitingen (1951→)

VitaPen Vita e pensiero

VJTR Vidyajyoti, Journal of Theological Reflection, New Delhi, India (1972→)

VRSChD Vestnik Russkago Studenceskago Christianskago Dviženija VS La Vie Spirituelle, Paris (1946→)

Wor Worship. A Review Concerned with the Problems of Liturgical Renewal, Collegeville, Minn. (1951→)

(28)

I

NTRODUCTION

This study is an attempt to discover areas of convergence in the Eastern and Western theological discourse on the relationship between the local Church1 and the Church universal. Two factors particularly inspired me to take up this project. The remote inspiration goes back to 1994, when, preparing a licentiate dissertation in ecclesiology at the University of Fribourg,2 I discovered the fruitfulness of a dialogal encounter between the East and the West.3 The proximate inspiration is, of course, the recent theological debate between two German Cardinals of the Roman curia—Joseph Ratzinger and Walter Kasper—on the question of the relationship between the local Church and the universal Church, which awakened me to the actuality of this question, debated by pastors and theologians from the early years of Christian history. The relevance of this study has to be judged in conjunction with three backgrounds: (1) the occulted status of the local Churches during the most part of the 2nd millennium and their eventual rediscovery during the 20th century, (2) development of the Catholic theology of the local Church after the Second Vatican Council and (3) the status of Catholic Oriental Churches within the Catholic Church. Hence, before detailing the scope, purpose, method and structure of this study, we consider it useful to give a brief sketch of the development of the theology of the local Church in Catholic ecclesiology.

1. A Note on the Development of the Theology of the Local Church

The manner in which we understand the reality of the Church and its organization determines the place we give to the local Church. The reality of the Church has been differently understood in different periods of history, and all these views can be summed up into two orientations. The first of these, existent at least from the 2nd century, developed a

1 Given the incoherent use of this term in the recent magisterial documents and theological canonical

literature, we have chosen to use it in a generic sense to designate not only an episcopal Church (diocese or eparchy) but also their groupings. For details on this question, see infra our discussion on “Lack of Coherent Terminology” in chapter six.

2 J. G. ARYANKALAYIL, Pneumatic Orientations in the Ecclesiology of Yves M. -J. CONGAR and Christian

Unity, Mémoire de licence. Fribourg, 1994.

3 It is a well-known fact the East as discovered and interpreted by Congar contributed greatly to the renewal

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Introduction

__________________________________________________________________________ structure of ecclesial life and canonical existence based on a vision which saw the Church as a communion of local Churches. More lately, another manner of understanding the Church got developed according to which the Church is conceived as a unique, virtually universal entity with its centre and normative instance in the See of Rome. These two orientations—despite having been mixed up or even synthesised on rare occasions—often times vied with each other for dominance or were even mutually isolated. In their mutual isolation, while one regulated the communion of Churches under the auspices of the episcopate and the synod, the other did it through the ecumenical power of the pope. This latter tendency was particularly pronounced in the West, where often—if not the entire Church—at least the entire Latin Church was seen as a mere extension of the local Church of Rome.4

The above tendency to see “the Church as an absolute monarchy,”5 in which the theology of the local Church could hardly find its proper place, became more pronounced in the Catholic Church in the wake of the Gregorian Reform of 11th century6 and the appearance of mendicant orders. If “[w]ith the Gregorian Reform of the 11th century the Papal authority7 was formulated and implemented and it was given legal basis with the codification of the Canon Law in the 12th century,”8 with the mendicants there appeared in the local Churches clerics who were directly accountable to the Roman pontiff and totally dissociated from the local presbyterium. During this period juridical concepts such as societas inaequalis,

hierarchica and societas perfecta9 were used by the Scholastic theologians to define the Church. According to the Papal-Monarchical-Pyramidal Ecclesiology they developed, the local Church was not considered a real Church because, although enjoying the fullness of

4 “…the growing authority enjoyed by the Roman see in the West tended to identify the whole Western

Europe with the Catholic Church,” E. R. HAMBYE, “Second Vatican Council and the Local Churches,” JDhara,

4 (1971), p. 303; “Du XIIe au XIVe siècle ils [les conciles] avaient été instrument de la papauté pour établir son

autorité universelle sur l’ensemble de la chrétienté latine,” E. LANNE, “La conception post-tridentine de la

primauté et l’origine des Eglise unies,” in: Tradition et communion des Églises. Recueil d'études, «BETL – 129» (Leuven: Leuven University Press; Peeters, 1997) p. 574, hereafter cited as E. LANNE,“LA conception

post-tridentine de la primauté….”

5 E. LANNE, “The Local Church: Its Catholicity and its Apostolicity,” OiC, 6 (1970), p. 290, hereafter cited

as E. LANNE, “The Local Church: Its Catholicity and its Apostolicity.”

6 “La plupart des auteurs s’accordent à dire que Grégoire VII a voulu consciemment affaiblir l’ordre

hiérarchique de l’Eglise en faveur d’un pouvoir rigoureux et centralisé du pape,” L. MEULENBERG, “Grégoire

VII et les évêques: centralisation du pouvoir?” Conc(F), (1972) no. 71, p. 60.

7 “Quant à la hiérarchie, Grégoire VII ramena au minimum l’importance des primaties régionales; les

archevêques virent leurs compétences réduites à l’ordination de leurs suffragants et à la présidence des synodes; quant aux évêques diocésains, ils se trouvaient sous la supervision immédiate de Rome,” Ibid.

8 K. PATHIL, “Theology of the Local Church,” JDhara, 28 (1998), p. 261.

9 That is, a complete society equipped with all the necessary means— potestas legislativa, judiciaria and

coactive— to realise its ends. Cf. Y. M.-J. CONGAR, “Autonomie et pouvoir central dans l’église vus par la

(30)

Introduction

__________________________________________________________________________ sacramental and mystical life, it was not taken as a societas perfecta as it lacked the fullness of the jurisdictional power.

This does not, however, mean that the defenders of the local Church were totally absent during this period. Thus already at the end of the first millennium we have a Hinkmar of Rheims, who insisted on the proper rights of the bishops, and a Gerbert of Aurillac, who maintained an idea of ecclesial communion according to which the Universal Church is made up of local Churches under the direction of the prima sedes.10 On the eve of the Gregorian Reform, we can see a Peter Damian developing a synthesis between the primatial power of the pope and the power of the local bishop. He highlighted the biblical and patristic idea that the Church realizes itself basically in the hearts of every believer.11 The spiritualist movements of the 12th and the 13th centuries also combated for the local Church although they were inspired more by congregationalist ideas than by a theology of communion. The anti-papal forces of the 14th century went even further. According to them, the actual bearer of power in the Church is the people. Later, people like Johannes Gerson, Pierre Bohier and Wilhelm Durandus tried in their own way to strike a balance between the episcopal power and the overarching universal monarchical power of the pope. Nevertheless these attempts were unsuccessful in launching an effective revival of the ecclesiology of local Churches. The reason is that the discussions of these men were held not primarily in theological but in power political terms.12

The Council of Trent was an event of far-reaching consequences as far as the Catholic ecclesiology is concerned. With this a new phase of reform starts in the Catholic world. At the time of the convocation of this council, one could still observe the co-existence of the two ecclesiological orientations mentioned above, viz. a vision of the Church in which local ecclesial realities had their rightful place and another vision according to which the Church is a universitas (congregatio) fidelium—leaning heavily on universalism and hierarchical

10 De inform. epics. (PL 139, 169.171); Cf. W. BEINERT, “Dogmenhistorische Anmerkungen zum Begriff

«Partikularkirche»,” ThPh, 50 (1975), p. 51.

11 Opusc. 11,6 (PL 145, 235); Cf. O. J. BLUM, St. Peter Damian. His Teaching on the Spiritual Life; J.

LECLERQ, S. Pierre Damien, ermite et homme de l'Eglise.

12 They were concerned with plenitudo Potestatis. “The further history of the Medieval Church in the West

saw repeated attempts at reviving the awareness of the particular Churches. Unfortunately these were inspired by the conciliar movement, which was built up more on legal principles than on theological ones. They also became mixed up with royal nationalism rather than a genuine desire to restore the spiritual content of the local Church. […] Even the originally genuine desire of many Jansenists to see the local Church restored as a living community foundered on the rocks of quasi-heretical views or of exaggerated primitivism,” E. R. HAMBYE,

(31)

Introduction

__________________________________________________________________________ organisation and independent of any localism.13 This parallel existence of the local and universal levels of Christian life did not last long. Soon the aspects characteristic to each local Church were progressively levelled to introduce a uniform tradition under the direction of the Church of Peter and Paul. The reforms launched by the Trent have contributed much to this evolution. The Roman tendency to centralize every aspect of ecclesial life under it was accompanied by its policy of uniformisation. A whole series of Roman Books (catechism, breviary, missal, Vulgate, etc.) were produced during this period in order to achieve universalisation of practical ecclesiology. This Roman attitude stands in contrast to the attitude of the regional political authorities of the time, who in unison accentuated the territorial character of the local Churches by conceding more and more social and civil functions to the parishes. Nevertheless, it must be remembered that, in doing so, they were motivated not so much by a concern for accelerating the spiritual dynamism of the Churches in their territory as by their concern to protect the area under their control from external interventions and influences. Roman authorities made use of the occasion to present the pope “as the shield and the guarantee of the liberty of local Churches in the face of political pressures.”14 Thus, we can say that the Council of Trent marks a turning point as far as the crystallization of the universalistic vision of the Church is concerned.

Another focal point, as far the development of the theology of local Church is concerned, is the First Vatican Council (1869-1870). Decades before this council, a new current called

Ultramontanism was gaining ground in the Western Church. It was characterized by an

exaltation of the authority of the pope and an insistence on all the Churches to adopt the liturgy and disciplinary traditions of the Church of Rome. The First Vatican Council marks the crowning moment of this current.15 Catholic Church now increasingly appeared as a vast diocese, that of the pope, in which the bishops—none of them was nominated without his consent—cut the figure of just executive officers of a central power. In this vast diocese, the pope enjoyed an episcopal, ordinary and immediate authority over each Church and faithful.

In this context, it is important to point out a remarkable document of the magisterium issued immediately after the conclusion of Vatican I, viz. the Joint Declaration of the German

13 Within this universalist perspective, terms Ecclesia and Ecclesia universalis were employed

synonymously. Cf. G. ALBERIGO, “Du seizième siècle à Vatican II,” MD, 165 (1986), 49-71.

14 Ibid., p. 63.

15 “The democratic, secular, liberal and revolutionary movements of the 19th century were encountered by the

First Vatican Council’s dogmatic definition of Papal Primacy and Infallibility, which was the culmination of a historical process of centralization of the Church,” K. PATHIL, “Theology of the Local Church,” p. 261.

(32)

Introduction

__________________________________________________________________________

Bishops.16 Its importance comes from its assertions on eposcopus and the episcopate. Alerted to political consequences of the Council’s definition of infallibility, Bismarck’s chancery issued a circular letter,17 alleging that—following the definitions of Vatican I—the bishops would no longer have their own standing. Reacting to this letter, the German bishops made a doctrinal exposé18 of the Catholic notion of bishop, an interpretation which obtained the approbation of Pius IX.19 It declared in no unclear terms that although the pope has jurisdiction over all the pastors and the faithful, it is an undeniable fact that the bishops are, by divine institution, the rightful pastors of their dioceses and the pope is bishop uniquely of Rome and no other diocese. This declaration—although dealing directly with the pope’s jurisdiction—is not unconnected with the theology of the local Church. It presupposes that by divine institution catholicity and apostolicity are transmitted to every local Church (diocese) by the episcopal institution.

Exactly a decade after the German Episcopate signed the above document, a French religious priest named Dom Adrien Gréa (1820-1927) came up with his L’Eglise et sa divine

constitution, which has had three editions so far20 and is considered as a pioneering work as far as the Catholic theology of the local Church is concerned. Gréa gives an important place to local Churches in his theology of the Church. In fact, they are treated before the universal Church governed by the supreme pontiff and the episcopal college united to him. The bishop is here presented in full relief as the head of the local Church. Despite being at once innovative and traditional, and capable of launching revival of the local Church in Catholic thinking, Dom Gréa’s work—quite like many other pioneering works21—was unable to leave a lasting imprint during his time, which was dominated by the universalist ecclesiology.22

16 Joint Declaration of the German Bishops (1875) FT: in Revue générale, 1 (1875), 354-356 (= Irén.,

(mai-juin 1928), p. 231ff / also found in: D. L. Beauduin, “L’unité de l’Eglise et le concile du Vatican,” in: Eglise et

Unité (Lille, 1948) p. 23ff), Cf. F. D. LOGAN, “The 1875 Statement of the German Bishops on Episcopal

Power,” Jurist, 21 (1961), 285-295; O. ROUSSEAU, “La vraie valeur de l’épiscopat dans l’Eglise d’après

d’importants documents de 1875,” Irén., 39 (1956), 121-142, hereafter cited as O. ROUSSEAU, “La vraie valeur de l’épiscopat….”

17 It was written on May 14, 1872 and published on December 29, 1879. 18 It was signed in January and February, 1875.

19 Cf. Brief of Pius XI in Revue générale, 1 (1875), pp. 477-478

20 L’Eglise et sa divine constitution. Préface de Louis Bouyer (Tournai: Casterman, 31965) [originally

published by Société générale de librairie catholique, Paris, 11885, 21907].

21 The best examples in this regard are J. A. Möhler’s Die Einheit in der Kirche, published at Tubingen in

1825, and Antonio Rosmini’s Delle cinque Piaghe della Santa Chiesa, published at Lugano in 1848. Both these works were largely ignored in their times, at least in what they said about local Church.

22 Cf. O. GONZÁLEZ DE CARDEDAL, “Development of a Theology of the Local Church from the First to the

Second Vatican Council,” Jurist, 52 (1992), pp. 14-15, hereafter cited as O. GONZÁLEZ DE CARDEDAL, “Dev. of

a Theol. of the Local Church.” “Le livre de Dom Gréa sur L'Eglise et sa divine constitution est de ces livres qui échappent à leur époque et qui sont susceptibles d’être bien mieux compris à quelques générations de distances,” L. BOUYER, “Préface,” in: A. GREA, L'Eglise et sa divine constitution, p. 7.

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Regarding the theological understanding of this sacrament, the fact which should be stressed is that from the early Christianity Chrismation-Confirmation is the