Reformed Churches Praise Pope's Servant Heart

Delegates from the Christian Reformed Church recently joined with other participants in the ongoing Roman Catholic-Reformed Dialogue in the United States to release a statement praising Pope Francis for “his servant heart” and “his intentional compassion for those on society’s margins.”

The statement was issued following the late September visit by Pope Francis to the U.S.

“As Reformed and Catholic participants in a long-standing official theological dialogue, we have been inspired by the ecumenical promise seen in the recent visit of Pope Francis to the United States,” the participants wrote.

“While the role of the Bishop of Rome has historically been a matter of contention between Reformed and Catholic communions, we affirm the manner in which Pope Francis modeled service of unity for the whole church and its ministry.”

Along with the CRC and the Roman Catholic Church, members of the dialogue include the Reformed Church in America, the United Church of Christ, and the Presbyterian Church (USA).

Rev. Ronald Feenstra, a professor of systematic theology at Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, Mich., and a CRC delegate to the dialogue, said members of the dialogue were meeting on Oct. 5 and 6 at New Brunswick Theological Seminary in New Brunswick, N.J., when they decided it was appropriate to offer the comments.

“As we talked about the visit of Pope Francis, we realized there was a significant amount of appreciation for what he had done and said while he was here — and we decided that we would say that,” commented Feenstra.

Although Reformed Christians disagree with the ways in which Catholics view the authority of the pope, it was important to point out that Pope Francis brought a unifying spirit with him to the U.S., said Feenstra.

“We saw in him public displays of some important aspects of Christianity,” he said.

In their reflection, Reformed and Roman Catholic dialogue members wrote that they were impressed by the Pope’s “pastoral visits with prisoners, his identification with immigrants, his care for the integrity of God’s creation, and his public testimony to the value of the gospel.”

Visiting with people in Washington, D.C., New York City, and Philadelphia, the Pope “gave voice and witness to aspirations of the wider Christian community,” the dialogue members wrote.

“Although we recognize that significant differences remain between us, we trust that the visit of Pope Francis will prompt further, honest dialogue — between our communions and others — in our search for a full expression of our unity in Christ.”

For more than a decade, the CRC has been a participant in the Roman Catholic-Reformed Dialogue in the United States, says Rev. Sue Rozeboom, Assistant Professor of Liturgical Theology at Western Theological Seminary in Holland, Mich., and a CRC staff delegate to the dialogue.

Rev. Peter Choi, pastor and director of spiritual formation at City Church in San Francisco, Calif., is also a delegate to the dialogue.

During the Seventh Round of the dialogue, the Roman Catholic and Reformed churches came to a common agreement on the mutual recognition of the sacrament of baptism.

In the most recent meeting, said Rozeboom in a report to the CRC’s Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations Committee (EIRC), dialogue members “presented a body of reflection on questions pertaining to ordination and ministry.”

Overall, the focus of this Eighth Round is on issues related to how the Roman Catholic and Reformed churches view the role of authority, including views on the pope and the role of bishops, synods, general assemblies, presbyteries, and councils.

“We are trying to see where there are similarities and where there are differences,” said Feenstra. “As with any relationship that has been broken, we want to make slow progress toward healing.”

Rozeboom, in her report to the EIRC, said the timing of the dialogue meeting could be considered “providential,” given that it occurred immediately following the Pope’s visit.

“Our opening agenda was delayed in order that we, as partners in Catholic-Reformed dialogue, might reflect aloud on the experience and significance of the Pope’s presence, messages, and activities,” she reported.

As a result, she said, the “fruitful and mutually convicting discussion gave rise to the generation of a statement by which we delegates might simply, though formally, bear witness to what transpired among us.”