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

against the present practice of blessing such marriages in the Catholic Church by the priest, who
has a liturgical form from the Roman Ritual, namely the Rite of Celebration of Marriage.
UNITY IN FAITH WITH DIVERSITY IN RITES
We find St. Dioscorus of Alexandria, before the end of his first year, in correspondence with
Pope Leo I, who did not miss the opportunity of giving liturgical directions, as from the See of
St. Peter, to the new successor of St. Mark. “He wrote, on June 21 st 445 to Dioscorus, that ‘it
would be shocking to believe that St. Mark formed his rules for Alexandria otherwise than on the
Petrine model’; therefore, what we know to have been observed by our Fathers we wish to be
retained by you also,” “viz, that the ordination of priests or deacons should not be performed at
random on any day, but early on Sunday morning and repeating the eucharistic celebration on
great festivals, in the Church, as often as a fresh congregation might take it necessary.”
The Coptic Church, however, did not bow to the claims of the Roman See, nor has changed any
of her Apostolic Traditions. Until the present time, it is only the consecration of bishops that is
performed on Sundays according to the Apostolic Tradition, while the ordination of priests and
deacons is performed at any day of the week. While it is possible at any day to repeat the
eucharistic celebration in the same church but on different altars and sanctuaries, with different
liturgical vessels, by different celebrant fasting priests and deacons, yet on great festivals, it is
only one liturgical celebration which is allowed in each church in all the Coptic churches at the
same time without repetition whatsoever.
The one sided unions performed by the Council of Florence (1439-1443) with the Eastern
Churches had no roots and were doomed to failure. In the union performed with the Jacobites of
Egypt, recorded in the bull of reunion cantate Domino dated February 4 th 1442, pressure tactics
were used in collecting and warning against the so called “errors of the Copts and Ethiopians”,
for example, they did not know about confirmation and “extreme unction”, they omitted the
Filioqe, the venerated Dioscorus as a saint, they allowed divorce in case of serious crime ...etc.
These were actually legitimate liturgical, canonical and theological differences incomprehensible
at the time to the Latin mind. The bull demanded of the Copts “true obedience, to obey always
and faithfully the order and commands of the Apostolic See.” It is clear that the papal claims
were always rejected, and such forced unions never had real existence and were totally ignored
by contemporary Coptic and Oriental Orthodox historical records.
UNITY IN FAITH BUT NOT IN JURISDICTION
Church unity has to be manifested in the full agreement and communion in faith, hope and love,
communion in the sacraments and communion in the ministry through conciliar practice, but
never in jurisdiction.
In the Ecumenical Movement, the Orthodox of both families of Churches are often alone in
emphasizing the importance of the dialogue of faith. Others often claim that common action and
a sense of belonging together is enough and that Christian unity is already achieved on some
vaguely described spiritual level. The Orthodox would wish to look for unity in faith, which
leads to unity in sacraments and in the fullness of ecclesial life. This is what is now taking place
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