c. 2003 Religion News Service

(The Rev. Mark S. Hanson is presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America and president of the Lutheran World Federation.)

(UNDATED) On Oct. 16, Pope John Paul II will mark the 25th anniversary of his election as bishop of Rome.

As the fourth longest reigning pope in history, John Paul II marks this anniversary with a remarkable series of accomplishments. The most traveled pope in history, he has brought the Good News of Jesus Christ personally to millions of people around the globe. He has insistently challenged Christians to be engaged in God’s world for the sake of justice and peace. The pope’s personal experience of the harsh realities of communism and his persistent call for freedom contributed, I believe, to the fall of the iron curtain.

Praying in a Jewish synagogue and Muslim mosque were powerful and humble signs of his commitment to concord in a fearful and divided world.

Still, no one should underestimate the significant contributions this pope has made to the ecumenical movement _ the quest for unity among Christians.

While defending with great clarity the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church through 14 encyclicals or teaching documents and a similar number of apostolic letters, John Paul II also has reminded us of our Lord’s calling to deepen the unity Christians share in Jesus.

Although some may argue John Paul’s conservative theological commitments have increased the divide among Christians, I remain convinced that in his heart this pope is truly committed to the search for the visible unity of the Christian church.

As evidence of this conviction, and writing as a Lutheran, one of the most important signals of John Paul II’s ecumenical commitment is his personal support for the signing of the Joint Declaration on the Doctrine of Justification between the Lutheran World Federation and the Vatican in 1999. Not only did this document clarify the teaching of this fundamental Christian doctrine, it achieved through “differentiated consensus” an agreement on one of the most controversial issues from the time of the Reformation.

This event also began the process of deepening relationships between the two theological traditions. Lutherans and Roman Catholics around the globe together are experiencing a heightened awareness of how much we share in our confession of the Christian faith. This closer relationship has resulted in even greater hospitality characterized especially by more intense conversation and closer personal relationships.

The Vatican’s commitment to making this agreement “come alive” in local congregations through prayer and study between Roman Catholic and Lutheran members is another sign of the commitment to ecumenism.

A second significant contribution to the ecumenical movement occurred when the pope published the encyclical “Ut Unum Sint” (On Commitment to Ecumenism) on May 25, 1995.

This teaching document not only points to this pope’s commitment to the unity of the church but also invites conversation about the role of the bishop of Rome as an agent for achieving that unity. Acknowledging the papacy represents a major stumbling block for Christian unity, John Paul II nonetheless forges ahead with a proposal that the role of the bishop of Rome be discussed by all Christians, looking toward a reform of the papal office and ministry so that it may indeed serve as an instrument of the church’s unity.

Even the pope’s most recent encyclical, “Ecclesia De Eucharistia” (On the Church and the Eucharist), published last April, while making clear that sharing Holy Communion together is not possible short of complete doctrinal agreement and reunion with the bishop of Rome, nonetheless sounds a clarion call that unity around the Lord’s Table is a matter to be longed for and prayed for most urgently.

Finally, one needs to take into account the numerous ways in which the ecumenical community was included in the events marking the great jubilee year of 2000. Ecumenical representatives assisted Pope John Paul II in opening one of the great jubilee doors at the church of St. Paul’s Outside the Walls in Rome during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Prayers for peace included an ecumenical as well as an interfaith dimension. Nor can anyone forget the unprecedented liturgy during the season of Lent in which the pope and Vatican officials at the highest levels asked for forgiveness for the sins committed by sons and daughters of the Catholic Church.

Has every decision of this pontiff significantly advanced the cause of church unity?

Certainly not.

But surely history will judge that Pope John Paul II is one of the most significant figures on the world stage in the closing years of the second millennium and at the dawn of the third. Many of his contributions have fostered and deepened relationships among the Body of Christ and have moved us closer to our Lord’s desire “that all may be one.”

Let us mark the occasion of the 25th anniversary of John Paul II’s pontificate by committing ourselves to pray and work for justice and peace in the world, and greater understanding among people.

DEA END HANSON