Coptic Church & Ecumenical Movement - Saint Mina Coptic ...

APPENDIX VII
LETTER OF CARDINAL WILLEBRANDS TO HIS GRACE BISHOP
SAMUEL
January 28th, 1977
Your Grace,
The Catholic members of the Joint Commission between our Churches who were
present at the Commission meeting in Vienna from August 26th to 29th, 1976 have
presented a report on that meeting and its recommendations to the authorities of the
Catholic Church. I would like to communicate to Your Grace, and through you to the
authorities of the Coptic Orthodox Church, our reactions to these recommendations.
First of all, I wish to assure you that the report of the Vienna meeting has been given
very careful consideration by the different parties in our Church who are concerned
with the relations between our two Churches, including, in a particular way, His
Holiness, Pope Paul VI. In addition, we have studied various other communications
and reports including your letter of November 15th, 1976 to His Eminence, the
Cardinal Secretary of State.
Thus, in giving very serious and sympathetic attention to every aspect of the report
presented to us, we have at the same time considered it in the context of what has
been accomplished over the whole period of time since the memorable meeting
between Pope Paul VI and Pope Shenouda III in May 1973.
We are happy to see that the Commission makes concrete proposals about theological
studies that clarify their objectives and present a timetable for carrying them out.
They are not academic exercises but are aimed at pointing the way towards full
communion between our two Churches. As we understand the proposal, the five
years project is flexible enough and realistic enough so that even if all theological
questions which exist between our Churches are not completely resolved by that
time, we will nonetheless have established a firm theological base for eventually
achieving that perfect communion which, in the final analysis, will be God’s gift to
us.
With regard to the concerns and proposals about pastoral problems, I feel it would be
helpful to clarify certain general ideas before entering into a consideration of the
proposals themselves.
Within the Catholic Church, it is the local Church, with the bishop, the various
religious congregations, the parishes, lay organisations etc., which is primarily
responsible for maintaining the Christian life of the community and its apostolic
work. There is a great deal of room for local initiatives and autonomous action. The
central authorities of our Church can stimulate and coordinate this activity, encourage
it where it needs help, guide or correct it where abuses may occur. The Church of
Rome, however, does not merely dictate to the local Church nor substitute itself for
it. Communion with Rome does not mean absorption by Rome.
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