Minutes of the retreat/session of the Near Eastern Mission in Jerusalem

Transcription

1 Minutes of the retreat/session of the Near Eastern Mission in Jerusalem (February 26 to March 6, 2011) Participants: 15 Assumptionists : Fr. Provincial (Benoît Grière), Fr. Jean-Daniel Gullung from the general staff, Fathers Michel Kubler, Lucian Dinca and Cornie Nelissen of the community of Bucharest, Celeste Pianezze and Gwenaël Petton of the Margineni community, Georges Hang (Blaj), Adrien Masson (Moscow), Daniel Gillier (Plovdiv and Blaj), and our Jerusalem brothers (Alain Marchadour, Jean Luc Eckert, Melchior Kakule Vanzwa, and Pedro Wouters) and Victor Blanco (who had been in Colombia and had just spent two months in Athens; he stayed in Jerusalem after the session). 8 Oblate Sisters: The provincial of Belgium in charge of the community in Jerusalem, Sr. Bernadeta (assistant general, Romanian), Sr. Regina (from Moscow), Sr. Monica (delegate of the provincial of Romania for the Near Eastern Mission) and the sisters of the Jerusalem community (Sr. Laurence, Sr. Gianina, Sr. Jeanne-Thérèse and Sr. Anne Petra, a Dutch sister who was there for a short visit). Several of us arrived a few days early in order to discover some of the major holy sites (Celeste and Gwenaël on Sunday, February 20 and then Lucian, Cornie, George, Daniel and Sr. Monica on Tuesday, February 22). Fr. Pedro Wouters served as our guide throughout the Holy Land during these days that preceded our retreat. The retreat, preached by Fr. Thomas Maier, the superior of the White Fathers in Jerusalem (of the community of St. Anne s in the old city), began on Saturday morning, February 26. Here is the theme he chose, well adapted to the situation in which we find ourselves: Following Christ according to the Eastern tradition. In order to give you an idea of the various conferences without getting into details, here are the titles of the talks: (by way of an introduction) the dispositions needed for prayer, the Creation of the world, the Creation of Man, the mystery of Christmas (God made Man), sins which entrap us (light and darkness), the Transfiguration; the retreat ended on Tuesday with a day by the Sea of Galilee (Mount of Beatitudes, Tabgha where we celebrated Mass outdoors along the lake, and Capharnaum) passing along the Jordan Valley on the way up and stopping in

2 Nazareth on the way back. It should be underlined that the retreat really was impregnated with the Eastern tradition by the very fact that most of the talks were illustrated by means of icons projected on a screen as well as troparia and kontakions of the mysteries or feasts in question. In order to get us started at the session that was foreseen (March 2-4), in the morning of March 2, Fr. Alain Marchadour, who has been the superior in Jerusalem for 12 years, gave us a lively presentation of our presence in Jerusalem. Here are the major phases: - In 1862, Fr d Alzon, who had just come into his inheritance, intended to buy the Upper Room/Cenacle, but Rome directed him toward Bulgaria and the plan for the Cenacle never materialized. - In 1882 the first pilgrimage to the Hoy Land took place by boat with more than a thousand pilgrims, including the Count de Piéllat, thanks to whom we acquired both Notre Dame de France and St. Peter-in-Gallicantu. - In 1887, the first two Assumptionists arrived in Jerusalem. - In , there were 9 Assumptionist students there. Their number would increase and remained between 20 and 30 until 1900; the peak was 43 in In the first years of 1890s there were more Assumptionists than Dominicans at the l Ecole biblique of Jerusalem, but because of the Modernist crisis the Assumptionists withdrew from the school in Nevertheless, links were not broken; from time to time, they would attend talks of Fr. Lagrange and Fr. Germer-Durand, famous archeologist, continued to give courses there. At this same time, the latter conducted archaeological digs at the site of St. Peter-in-Gallicantu. - In 1900, the building project at Notre Dame de France was completed. - After World War I ( ), the house emptied. - In 1931, after completing digs that confirmed that there existed here in the early centuries a place of worship where the denial of Peter was commemorated, Fr. Etienne Boubet, an Assumptionist, had the church of St. Peter-in-Gallicantu built. - In 1935 three Oblate Sisters arrived to help out for a while at the Notre Dame de France guest house. - World War Two and the events of 1948, when the Israelis occupied and gutted Notre Dame de France, marked the decline of this site. As of 1948, our two sites ended up in two

3 separate administrative districts: Notre Dame de France in the Israeli zone and St. Peterin-Gallicantu in the Palestinian/Jordanian zone. - In 1967, after the Six-Day War, one third of Notre Dame de France was given back. - In 1969, the general chapter raised the question, Should we keep Notre Dame de France? An Assumptionist study group came to Jerusalem in January 1970; it was decided to sell it. The act of sale to an Israeli organization was to be signed in October 1970 in New York, but once the Arab world rose in protest, the Vatican intervened and nullified the sale arguing on the basis of canon law. - The Religious of the Assumption came to help out at St. Peter s from 1993 to The Oblate Sisters took over in March The afternoon of March 2 and the morning of March 3, Fr. Frans Bouwen, a White Father, stationed in Jerusalem since 1969, a member of various official commissions of dialogue with the Orthodox and pre-chalcedon churches and the current editor of the magazine Proche-Orient chrétien, first gave us a remarkable introduction to the genesis and development of the Eastern churches and, then, to what is happening now with the various churches present in Jerusalem and the Holy Land. I Genesis and development of the Eastern churches In principle, diversity is a great source of richness for the Church, but, in the course of history, this diversity, unfortunately, became division. The reasons are many and ecumenical situation today bears the scars of this history. 1. Genesis of the diversity: After the apostolic period, as the early Christian community spread from Jerusalem, local churches were established and organized gradually and relatively early on along the lines of the major geographical regions, languages, cultures, and around major administrative, cultural, and religious centers of the period: - Within the Byzantine/Roman Empire there were 5 great centers (the Pentarchy): Rome, Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch (Syriac language), Jerusalem (which lost its own liturgy and ended up adopting the Byzantine liturgy, although the traditions of Jerusalem influenced all other liturgies);

4 - Outside of the Byzantine/Roma Empire: Armenia, Persia, Ethiopia, India. Each Church developed its own characteristics: language, liturgy (rite), theology, canon law, spirituality... Each of these churches has not only its own liturgy, but also its own Christian tradition, the result of a different inculturation of the Gospel. (N.B.: Major question of inculturation: How far can one go in diversity without threatening unity?) This diversity co-existed in harmony and unity until the period of the great Christological controversies and dogmatic divisions of the 5th century. 2. Origin of these divisions a) The first four ecumenical councils:. Nicea (325): definition of the divinity of Christ against the Arians;. Constantinople I (381): definition of the divinity of the Holy Spirit (the Credo of Nicea- Constantinople is more ecumenical than the Apostles Creed which is Western);. Ephesus (431): condemnation of Nestorianism (Nestorius);. Chalcedon (451): condemnation of Monophysitism (Eutyches). Their consequences on the divisions of Churches in the East:. Ephesus was not accepted by the Church of Persia: the Assyrian Church of the East (wrongly called Nestorian ), more for political than doctrinal reasons... Chalcedon was not accepted by:. the Coptic Church in Egypt (Alexandria). the Syriac Church in Syria (Antioch). the Armenian Church. the Ethiopian Church. In the past, these non-chalcedon Churches were (wrongly) called Monophysite ; now they are called Eastern Orthodox Churches (or ancient Eastern Churches ). (N.B.: So, Chalcedon would profoundly divide the East; certain people have said that this division would eventually facilitate the development of Islam two centuries later). Birth of the Slavic Churches: as of the 9th century (Sts. Cyril and Methodius);

5 Baptism of the Rus (988). b) Schism between the Churches of East and West in 1054: There was a long, progressive, and reciprocal distancing and mutual ignorance between the two Churches ( estrangement : the East and the West became strangers to one another after the fall of the Roman Empire in the West; they no longer even spoke the same language (Greek and Latin); there were political and theological factors. c) Reformation of the 16th century in the West: (N.B.: Without the events of 1054, the Reformation would not have taken place because, before, there were two major centers that counterbalanced each other.) There were indirect consequences for the Churches of the East. In reality, the fact that one does not consider the churches that came out of the Reformation to be true churches because they are lacking certain fundamental elements had an influence on our attitude toward the Eastern Churches; so it was that missions were organized to attract members of the Eastern Churches and were well-received because the faithful did not have a strong ecclesial identity. That is where suspicions arose on the part of the Orthodox since they felt that the ecclesial character of their Church was being denied and that members of the Orthodox Church were being led deceitfully to the Catholic Church. Likewise, these Catholics of the Eastern rite are often seen as traitors. Are we a bridge or a wall? N.B.: At the Council of Churches of the Middle East, created in 1974 (the Catholic Church joined later), it is recognized that there are four families of Churches today: The non-chalcedon Orthodox Eastern Churches The Byzantine Orthodox Churches (Constantinople,...) The Catholic Church (Latin and Eastern) The Episcopalian (Anglican) and Evangelical Churches. There is one missing: The Assyrian Church which has two sacraments that we do not have (the Sign of the Cross and the Mystery of the Last Supper s Holy Leaven) and does not have the sacraments of the Anointing of the Sick or of Marriage and to which the Copts are quite opposed for historical reasons.

6 II The Churches present in Jerusalem and the Holy Land 1. Table of the main Churches (with their leader) A- 3 Patriarchs (but with different meanings attached to this name, patriarch ): a) Greek Orthodox Patriarch: His Beatitude Theophilos III (+synod) (N.B.: this is the only real one; he is the leader of a local church with a synod around him as his brother patriarchs of sister Orthodox Churches of which Constantinople holds pride of place, but without any power over the others. His jurisdiction extends to Israel, Palestine and Jordan and he also claims Qatar.) There are also under this jurisdiction, but independent with regard to their operation, the following three entities:. Mission of the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow;. Representation of the Orthodox Church of Romania;. The Russian Church beyond Russia s borders (White Russians). b) Latin Patriarch: His Beatitude Fouad Twal (with three auxiliaries: His Grace Boulos Marcuzzo in Nazareth; His Grace Selim Sayegh in Amman; His Grace William Shomali in Jerusalem); 2 emeriti: His Beatitude Michel Sabbah, patriarch; His Grace Kamal Bathish, auxiliary (N.B.: the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem is an ordinary bishop without a suffragan bishop; there are other Latin patriarchs in Venice, Lisbon, and Goa/India, which all have connections with the East; the only true Latin patriarch is that of Rome but, curiously, Benedict XVI has let this title go.) c) Armenian Orthodox Patriarch: His Beatitude Torkom Manookian (N.B.: The Armenian Church in Jerusalem is a monastic fraternity; all the priests are celibate. The patriarch governs with his synod, but the ordination of bishops, symbolically, takes place in Echmeadzine, Armenia and practically all the seminarians here come from Armenia.) B- 3 Eastern Orthodox Archbishops:. Coptic Orthodox Archbishop: Anba Abraham. Syrian Orthodox Archbishop: Mar Sewerios Murad

7 . Ethiopian Orthodox Archbishop: Abuna Mattias C- Eastern Catholic Archbishops or Exarchs:. Greek Catholic Melkites: His Eminence Joseph Jules Zerey, Exarch of Jerusalem; His Eminence Elias Chacour, Archbishop of Galilee and His Eminence Yasser Ayyash, Archbishop of Amman;. Maronite Archbishop and Exarch: His Eminence Paul Sayyah of Haifa;. Syrian Catholic Exarch: His Eminence Pierre Melki;. Armenian Catholic Exarch: Raphael Minassian;. Chaldean Exarch: Paul Collin. D- Anglican and Protestant Communities:. Anglican/Episcopalian Church: Bishop Suheil Dawani of Jerusalem;. Lutheran Church: Bishop Mounib Younan of Jerusalem;. Others: Presbyterians, Baptists (the most numerous), Nazarenes, Church of God, Assemblies of God, etc. N.B.: - They speak of 13 churches in the Holy Land (those with at least one bishop and having been recognized by the Ottomans). - The Custody of the Holy Land, O.F.M. (Fr. Custodian: Fr. Pierbattista Pizzaballa) has a special status. The Franciscans are in charge (care-takers) of the major holy sites. 2. Some statistics (approximate numbers) for the Holy Land, west of the Jordan River: N.B.: The figures, in the Holy Land as in the Bible, are many, precise, but inexact. Each group would like to have more than the others and many have a tendency to inflate their figures. Catholics: about 100,000 Greek Catholics (especially in Galilee) Latins (numerous in Jerusalem and nearby) Maronites (especially in Galilee) Others (Armenians, Syrians,...) Greek Orthodox Other Eastern Christian Orthodox 5 000

8 Anglicans and Protestants Approximate Total: (or between 1-2% of the total population). N.B.1: At the time of the last census in Israel (that is to say, not counting the occupied territories where there has not been a census ion a long time), there were 140,000 Christians, of which 20,000 were Arab. In the occupied territories, they say there are some 50,000 Christians (but that would include those in Jerusalem, who were already counted in the Israeli census). On the other hand, there are foreigners who are Christian (some 20,000-30,000 Filipinos) and who are not counted because they are foreigners. Likewise, Russian immigrants pose a big problem (1-1.5 million). Among them, one third are not Jewish; how many are Christian??? It would be important to point out that in Russia one is Jewish if one s father is Jewish while in Israel one is Jewish only if one s mother is Jewish. Moreover, certain Christians of Jewish origin do not declare so officially so as not to lose certain benefits. N.B.2: According to the figures given by the various churches, you get twice the number of the most realistic estimate of 180,000 Christians. Nevertheless, one must remember the following facts: Christians who are in mixed marriages are often counted twice as well as Christians who enter a Protestant church without notifying the authorities. Some new data:. the existence of a Hebrew-speaking Catholic community, that has a patriarchal delegate, Fr. David Neuhaus (a Jewish convert).. the Messianic groups: of Jewish origin (some 4-5,000), who do wish to belong to any church and who engage in quite of bit of proselytism and so cause a lot of tension with the Jewish authorities.

9 3. The Churches of Jerusalem: important historical facts and factors The statistics that were just given are like a mosaic one looks at without stepping back. In order to understand the full reality, historical context is needed. a) At the beginning: There was already diversity (Christians of Jewish origin and Christians of Gentile origin), but unity within this diversity. This diversity would grow rapidly after the Edict of Milan in 313, which allowed for pilgrimages to Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land. Everyone wanted a permanent representation in Jerusalem. At first, this didn t pose a problem, because the church was undivided and everyone recognized the bishop of Jerusalem as its bishop. In monasteries, everyone celebrated the liturgy in his own language during the week and then came together on Sunday to celebrate as one. b) After the Third Council and especially after the Fourth Council: destruction of unity Then, each group would bring its own bishop; but Jerusalem was not responsible for the divisions. c) The Muslim Conquest (638) N.B.: Around 500, there was certainly a large Christian majority. With the Arab conquest of the 7th century, there was an Arabization of Iraq and Morocco. This Arabization was total or partial (cf. the Kabyles). This Arabization was accompanied by an Islamization that lasted at least 4 or 5 centuries.

10 N.B.: An important ground for dialogue between Christians and Muslims is that both have their origin in the same people. It would be important to note that in Jordan there are Christians who have come from Bedouin origins, i.e. Arab background. d) Arrival of the Crusaders up to 1099 Once they arrive in 1054, they do not recognize the ancient patriarchate but name one of their own as patriarch of Jerusalem. After the fall of Jerusalem, the patriarch resided in St. John of Acco for some 200 years, and then in Europe (there is still a titular bishop). e) 14th century: Arrival of the Franciscans and the origin of the Custody (still there since). They are responsible for the holy sites, but little by little they also began to constitute some communities of Latin Catholics around them. f) Middle of the 19th Century: Decline of the Ottoman Empire It was easier at this time to insist on the arrival of other groups to the Holy Land (before, there were only the Franciscans and the Carmelites, who arrived after them). The motives for coming were diverse: certain Protestant groups thought that the end of the world was imminent, others came for mission purposes (with the theology of the time, the Catholic Church was the only Church) or to help out the very poor local Church. In fact, they made Catholics and Protestants out of Orthodox Christians; this may well have stemmed conversion to Islam, but it also created tensions with the Orthodox Church. N.B.: The origin of Catholic communities should not be confused with this phenomenon, since it occurred before this time. To conclude: Since the time of the apostles, even if there have been changes in language and foreign leaders, there has always been a living local community in Jerusalem.. Of course, in addition to the animation of the local community, there has been the important mission of welcoming.. The Greek Orthodox community best reflects the continuity of this presence from the beginning. 4.Ecumenical relations

11 A. Two problems which have come from the past a) That of the holy sites This problem worsened after the Crusades and under the Ottoman Empire ( ), because each confession tried to gain favor from the Ottoman authorities for its community.... The spirit was not ecumenical at all; each group tried to guard and defend what it already had and to get the upper hand, whenever possible. That is why we have arrived at the status quo defined in 1852 and signed in 1856, which put a stop to the rights and attributes of each confession.. Unfortunately, not everything was sufficiently defined; there remain lots of gray areas which have triggered incidents, often at the time of the major feasts.. Still, relations are good for the most part. It is with the Greeks that things are the most strained (since they were the first, they feel that that they should have certain priorities). - The restoration of the Holy Sepulcher helped in the improvement of relations. The British in the 1930s weren t able to pull it off, but the Jordanians in the 1950s did end up succeeding after long and painful discussions. A certain trust was born, but not enough to be able to adapt the status quo and develop a common pastoral plan for the Holy Sepulcher. N.B.: The tradition of the Holy Fire, very popular among the Orthodox, dates to the 9th century. They consider it to be miraculous and they draw from it as a consequence that the date of their Easter is correct. The pilgrim Egeria, in the 4th century, bears witness that one would go to get the holy light at the Holy Sepulcher the evening of Holy Saturday and from there to light everything. b) The question of proselytism B. Change of attitude on the part of Catholics : Pilgrimage of Paul VI to Jerusalem, where he met the patriarch of Jerusalem, before his meeting with Patriarch Athenagoras. This is little mentioned or known, but is very important. The following year, there was the return of the relics of St. Saba to St. Saba Monastery (they had been in Venice). - 1st intifada (December 1987): At this time, those in charge of the Christian communities met and in January 1988 published a declaration in common (but the Israelis would not allow it to be published in Arabic).. This gave rise to meetings among the patriarchs (later enlarged to include bishops).

12 . Since then, at Christmas and Easter, the 13 heads of the Churches publish a message in common.. There are regular meetings about every other month and whenever an urgent need arises.. There were other declarations in common in 1994 and In 1999, there was a common vigil held for the year This continues, but lacks some vitality at the moment. This has to do in part with the people who are in charge (Most Rev. Sabbah was one of the engines; he knew how to suggest things to the Orthodox so that it looked like they were taking the initiative)..common catechism (requested by the Palestinian Authority for catechetical use in the schools). C. Ecumenism lived at the level of the faithful (it s quite different). The faithful define themselves as Christian (whereas Church authorities define themselves by confession). There are many mixed marriages.. The only thing that separates us is the date of Easter, they say. N.B.: In Jordan, on Cyprus, in Egypt, in Greece as well as in certain parishes in the Holy Land, Easter is celebrated at the same time as the Orthodox. Returning to the question of the Synod of Churches of the Middle East (afternoon of Thursday, March 3 by Fr. Frans Bouwen) N.B.: The actual name is Special Assembly for the Churches of the Middle East, and not Synod... A- Origins

13 . January 2009: ad limina visit of the Chaldean bishops (a suggestion of one Chaldean bishop). May 2009: Visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the Middle East (the local Church was reluctant to pursue this visit given the risks and many pitfalls, but, in the end, it turned out to be positive).. Convocation called in September 2009 entitled: The Catholic Church in the Middle East: Communion and Witness. It was meant to underline the need for greater communion in view of a more effective witness and the desire to involve the universal Church and raise its awareness.. only1 year of preparation instead of the usual 2 years for this type of assembly. Which led to the question: Would there be enough time to get all the local communities involved?. Lineamenta appeared in January 2010 with a request that responses be sent in by Easter (a quick turnaround). In certain places, they were able to get the local communities involved such as in Damascus; elsewhere, they were less successful.. Instumentum laboris was sent out in June 2010 at the time of the Pope Benedict s visit to Cyprus... Assembly took place from October 10-24, There were some hesitations because of the 1995 Synod for Lebanon (a rich text published in 1997, but with what results afterwards????) and the Synod in the Holy Land for all of the Catholic Churches, which took place between , which was a bit forgotten because of the significant change in personnel. B- The Synod a) The participants All the bishops who were in office (usually, at synods, the participants are delegates) took part, as well as some invited guests and representatives of episcopal conferences concerned with migrants (Europe, Canada, USA, Brazil, Argentina, Asia, Africa,...). 180 bishops had voting rights experts (without right to speak at plenary sessions). Fr. Frans was one of these auditors (with right to speak at plenary sessions)

14 . About 15 fraternal delegates (non-catholics, 1 rabbi and 2 Muslims 1 Sunni from Lebanon and 1 Shiite) The Pope presided at the opening Mass and at the closing Mass. He was present every morning at the beginning and at the last hour of the afternoon at the time of free exchange. b) How things progressed - During the first week, things alternated from plenary sessions to small group work. People worked at deepening the ecclesiology of unity within the Catholic Church. - During the second week, they worked on various propositions and the message to be given. - Having the synod was a success: having all the bishops of all the rites united in Rome was a wonderful experience.. The atmosphere was fraternal, there was great freedom of expression with diverse opinions expressed on emigration and relations with Muslims, with few conflicts because the emphasis was on listening.. Rich exchanges outside of the work sessions.. On the last day, there was lunch with the Pope accompanied on each side by Cardinal Bertone and Cardinal Sodano (Prefect of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches), together with all the patriarchs (cf Fr. Frans : they could have placed the patriarchs next to the Pope). c) The challenges - External challenges. Sense of urgency due to the situation of Christians in these areas. What can we do to assure the presence of Christians in these areas in the future?. Political problem of general instability, that creates the groundwork for all kinds of extremists; minorities as well as Christians are the first victims.. Impact of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the entire region. - Internal challenges: reinforcing communion in the Catholic Church. C- The major orientations of the Synod (or rather of the special Assembly)

15 1) The need for the formation of the personal faith of Christians, especially based on the reading of the Word of God (including the Old Testament) so as to move from a sociological faith to a personal faith, from an ethnic community to a true church. N.B.: In the Middle East, there are many non-practicing, sociological (ethnic) Christians. In the East, religion makes up part one one s identity; you can t live without religion. 2) The problem of emigration (because of the violence and other factors) - This is a huge issue. N.B.: Since 1991, more than half of the Christians of Iraq have left (Once 1 million, they are less than half of that). N.B.: In the Holy Land, it is ownership of land that constitutes presence (this is very important); that is why Christians are asked not to sell their land..voices of opposition with the accord: by accepting it, one is favoring emigration, but how can one not accept it?. In the countries that welcome migrants, there arise questions about the rites and their jurisdiction as well as their demand/claim for the possibility of maintaining a married clergy as in their homeland.. In the countries of the Gulf, there are two vicariates (which number 2 million Catholic migrants) of Latin jurisdiction, but there is also a demand for some Eastern jurisdiction since there is also a minority of Eastern Catholics. 3) Communion in the Catholic Church (N.B.: as for Fr. Frans, he didn t think they talked about this enough) - There exists the assembly of ordinaries of the Holy Land, created in , that meets regularly, but personnel has changed and one doesn t sense the same energy. -There are often problems with the new Church movements (Neocatechumenate, Communio e Liberazione, Focolari) who were very involved at the synod. 4) Ecumenism - Among the delegates from other confessions, some remained for the entire synod (as Georges Kodr and the Syrian bishop of Aleppo); others left after their presentations. - There exists the Council of Churches of the Middle East. It is in danger of dissolving because financial aid from the West has decreased with the result that the Council can t operate as before. It would have to alter its way of operating because it s important that it

16 be retained. But there has also been friction with the Copts because the Latin patriarch has demanded that the current secretary general, a Copt, resign. 5) Interreligious dialogue - With Jews (for 90% of the Middle East), it s a theoretical question, because they don t exist in their countries. - With Muslims, that will be the object of a later meeting. Conclusion: The greater part of the work remains to be done. That won t be easy because of the multiplicity of Churches. Each must engage in the work of renewal and at the same time it would be important for these various churches to work together.