Major insights from Roman Catholic church at C of E Synod
The Chair of the Council for Christian Unity (The Bishop of Guildford, the Rt Revd Christopher Hill) and The Rt Revd George Stack (Auxiliary Bishop in the Diocese of Westminster) on behalf of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales made a presentation on the ARCIC report.
Bishop Stack spoke about the Anglican Roman Catholic International Commission (ARCIC) report, ‘Mary, Grace and Hope in Jesus Christ’ saying that “questions raised by a study of the report are equally legitimate for Catholics as they are for Anglicans.”
“Many of you will remember the extraordinary scenes in Rome at the funeral of Pope John Paul II in April 2005. Among his many strong, identifiable, rock like characteristics was his devotion to Mary, Theotokos, Mother of God, God Bearer. He caused consternation when he became Pope and broke the rules of heraldry by insisting on having the letter “M” on his Papal coat of arms instead of an heraldic device. He regularly referred to his Episcopal motto as a sign of his devotion to Mary “Totus Tuus” — Totally Yours.
Perhaps surprisingly, it was this Pope who was noted for his devotion to Mary who wrote in his document on Church Unity “Ut Unum Sint” in 1995: …. “the Virgin Mary, as Mother of God and Icon of the Church …. is one of the areas in need of fuller study before a true consensus of faith can be achieved”.
The full text of his address:
http://www.rcdow.org.uk/diocese/default.asp?content_ref=3232