Week of Christian Unity 2021: A Report from the Vatican

On the occasion of the just-completed Week of Christian Unity, L’Osservatore Romano, the Vatican daily newspaper, has published a report on the state of ecumenical dialogue by Bishop Brian Farrell, Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity. The report mentions the trilateral Lutheran-Catholic-Mennonite dialogue, along with some 15 other bilateral dialogues and discussions in which the pontifical council was engaged during 2020.

Mutual understanding and reciprocal trust

22 January 2021

The year 2020 will long be remembered for the transformation of life, communal and personal, caused by the pandemic. The Ecumenical world, too, has suffered from the restriction imposed due to the health crisis. In relationships among Christians, divided but eager to overcome separations, personal contacts are essential. The mutual understanding and reciprocal trust necessary to deepen communion are born and grow only through encounter. Many meetings, many church gatherings and ecumenical dialogues have had to be cancelled or postponed to a future date. Certain meetings have been replaced by video conferences, but there is no doubt that a conversation mediated by technology does not produce the same effect as an exchange of ideas, beliefs, and motivations that takes place in person. Yet, even in this fateful year, the search for Christian unity has continued, and has made progress. Sixty years after its founding (June 1960), the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (pcpuc) carries onward with conviction its mandate: to promote ecumenism in the Catholic Church and the relationships of the Catholic Church with other Christians, in their Churches and communities. …

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First hymn in new Mennonite hymnal will again be by a Catholic

A recent article in the Mennonite World Review answers a few questions about Voices Together, the new hymnal that the Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Church Canada plan to release this fall. Chief among them: What will be hymn no. 1?

Bridgefolk participants have noted approvingly that the first words of hymn in the current Mennonite hymnal, released in 1992 — “What is this place?” — were penned by the then-Catholic-priest Huub Oosterhuis of the Netherlands.

The new hymnal will again open with a text written by a Catholic, Sister Delores Dufner OSB, a member of St. Benedict’s Monastery in St. Joseph, Minnesota. Dufner has participated in Bridgefolk conferences and spoke on a panel concerning hospitality in 2006.

Duffner’s text, “Summoned by the God Who Made Us,” is being set to the tune “Nettleton” (best known as the tune to “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessingj”). The refrain:

Let us bring the gifts that differ
and, in splendid, varied ways,
sing a new church into being,
one in faith and love and praise.

Trilateral report on baptism by Lutherans, Catholics, Mennonites released

Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity
News release
30 July 2020

Representatives of the Catholic Church, the Lutheran World Federation, and the Mennonite World Conference met periodically from 2012-2017. These trilateral Conversations focused on the understanding and practice of Baptism in light of contemporary missional challenges facing these Christian communities.

The final report entitled Baptism and Incorporation into the Body of Christ, the Church summarizes the outcome of these Conversations. The text is published together with a Catholic Commentary authored by Professor Peter Casarella (Duke University, USA). The report is published as a study document in the hope that through wide diffusion, both within the three communities and among Christians in general, it will contribute to better mutual understanding on the mystery of Baptism and greater faithfulness to Jesus Christ.

The report treats three fundamental themes: 1) the relationship between Baptism, sin and grace; 2) the celebration of Baptism and the communication of grace and faith in the context of the Christian community; 3) the living out of Baptism in Christian discipleship.

The publication of the report was announced by a joint communiqué issued for the publication of the report.

Participants in the meetings on behalf of the Mennonites were Prof Dr Alfred Neufeld † (co-chair, Paraguay); Prof. Dr Fernando Enns (Germany); Revd Rebecca Adongo Osiro (Kenya); Prof. Dr John Rempel (Canada); Revd Dr Larry Miller (co-secretary, France/USA).

Lutheran delegation members were Prof. Dr Friederike Nüssel (co-chair, Germany); Bishop Emeritus Dr Musawenkosi Biyela (South Africa); Prof. Dr Theodor Dieter (France); Revd Prof. Peter Li (Hong Kong-China); Revd Raj Bharath Patta (India/UK); and Revd Dr Kaisamari Hintikka (co-secretary, Finland/Switzerland).

Catholic Church delegation members were Archbishop Luis Augusto Castro Quiroga, IMC (co-chair, Colombia); Revd Prof. William Henn, OFM Cap (USA/Italy); Revd Prof. Luis Melo, SM (Canada); Sister Prof. Dr Marie-Hélène Robert, NDA (France); and Revd Avelino González-Ferrer (co-secretary, USA/Vatican).

“Catholics and Anabaptists Working Together for Peace” by Ross Ahlfeld

Gerald Schlabach is quoted by the UK Catholic weekly, The Tablet (21 July 2020):

“Bridgefolk Mennonite-Catholic, Gerald Schlabach, author of A Pilgrim People – Becoming a Catholic Peace Church, states – ‘we do not begin by assuming that a ‘peace church’ must mean pacifist church. Rather, we start by encouraging our Catholic communities to become ever more skillful at working through their conflicts without recourse to violence and without demeaning one another’s dignity.’”
https://www.thetablet.co.uk/blogs/1/1535/catholics-and-anabaptists-working-together-for-peace

Postponed: 2020 Bridgefolk summer conference

Dear Friends of Bridgefolk:

Because of safety concerns and the sheer uncertainty of the recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, both here in Minnesota and across the nation, the Bridgefolk board made the decision to POSTPONE the 2020 Bridgefolk summer conference (July 23-26) at Saint Benedict’s Monastery and the College of Saint Benedict.

We are proposing postponing the conference to July of 2021, close to the usual dates for the Bridgefolk conference.

In the meantime, please be safe and proceed through friendship!

Marilyn Stahl Abbot John Klassen
Co-chairs of Bridgefolk

Coordinator Position

Follow the link to download an application for the position of Bridgefolk Coordinator.

Bridgefolk (committed to ecumenical dialogue and sharing between Mennonites and Roman Catholics) seeks a part-time Coordinator to assist the Board of Directors in guiding the mission and vision of its ecumenical work.

The Coordinator will assist the board co-chairs in planning and preparing for board meetings; attend to requirements for maintaining non-profit status in Minnesota; oversee the finances of the organization with the support of the treasurer; assist the board with fundraising initiatives; assist in the planning of the annual conference; and coordinate with planners of the Mennonite Catholic Theological Colloquium regarding the timing and themes of the colloquia.

The ideal candidate will be conversant with the work of Bridgefolk, energized by issues related to a sacramental life and a commitment to social justice, and able to balance both collaborative and independent effort. The Board welcomes applicants who can volunteer their time as well as those in need of a stipend. Bridgefolk is willing to cover conference fees and travel expenses associated with board functions, plus a negotiable annual stipend of up to $2,000.

Conference 2019 Media Release

The final Media Release for Bridgefolk 2019, Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg, Canada, 25-28 July 2019, previously distributed to the media, is now available online.

“Catholic-Mennonite Gathering Planned for Winnipeg”

Article online by Will Braun, Canadian Mennonite 23:13 (24 June 2019), 16-17. PDF of the complete issue is also available. Will is a senior writer for the magazine.

The 18th annual Bridgefolk conference will be held at Canadian Mennonite University, Winnipeg, MB, Canada, 25-28 July 2019. The theme is “Toward a Just Peace: Indigenous-Settler Reconciliation Through Friendship.”

+S. Theresa Schumacher OSB Died, 29 May 2019

Portrait: S. Theresa — *S. Theresa Schumacher OSB*

Sister Theresa (Mario) Schumacher OSB died, May 29, 2019, Saint Scholastica Convent, St. Cloud, Minn. Burial will be in the monastery cemetery. Friends may call at Saint Scholastica Convent, Sunday, June 2, from 1–4:30 p.m. or for a Vigil Prayer Service at 7 p.m. at Saint Benedict’s Monastery. Visitation continues at 9 a.m. until the time of the funeral on Monday, June 3. Benson Funeral Home, St. Cloud, is managing the arrangements. A long-time member of the American Benedictine Academy, S. Theresa Schumacher OSB served as president from 2006–08, was a member of the Collegeville Institute for Ecumenical and Cultural Research Board and an active member of Bridgefolk, a Catholic-Mennonite group who celebrate one another’s traditions. May she rest in peace eternal.