Assumptions
Submitted by Dirk Gently on February 28 2000 at 23:56:40
In reply to The Assumption and praying to the dead Submitted by Heather on February 21 2000 at 23:13:52
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I tried the link again, and it was behaving itself this time. After reading through the document, I realized just how great the separation between Rome and the Orthodox Church has become. Sadly, it appears to be widening, the efforts of Pope John Paul II notwithstanding. The fundamental assumptions contained in the document include the Augustinian notion of original sin, which made the Immaculate Conception a logical necessity for Catholicism. This is an issue more intractable than the filioque or the use of leavened bread in Holy Communion. The only other issue which may be more difficult to resolve is also contained therein. The ecclesiological question of the papacy and its authority can be rephrased. Is the Church intended to be a monarchical structure with absolute authority vested in the apex, or is it a communion of persons, each equal in nature, yet one being first in honour and love? (If that phrasing of the question sounds suspiciously like a Trinitarian debate, you're absolutely correct!) Ut Unum Sint. (sigh) Dirk |