Pope in Egypt: Catholics and Copts recognise shared
baptism
(Vatican Radio) In a common declaration, signed by Pope
Francis and Coptic Pope Tawadros II, Catholics and Copts declare for the first
time that they will recognise each other’s sacrament of baptism.
The joint statement was made public following a meeting of
the Catholic and Coptic leaders in Cairo on Friday. It comes forty-four years
after Pope Paul VI first met with the previous Coptic Pope Shenouda III in May
1973. That encounter marked a milestone in relations, following centuries of
separation, and it led to the setting up of a Commission for theological
dialogue with the whole family of Oriental Orthodox Churches.
In the new common declaration, Francis and Tawadros recall
the progress made since then and call for a deepening of their shared roots in
faith through common prayer. In particular the statement calls for a common
translation of the Lord’s Prayer and a common date for the celebration of Easter.
Catholics and Copts, it says, can witness together to the
shared values of human life, the sacredness of marriage and the family, and
respect for creation. The declaration calls for intensified prayers for all
Christians who are persecuted and killed for their faith, especially in Egypt
and the Middle East.
Most significantly, the statement also resolves an issue
which has been a constant source of tension in the dialogue between Copts and
Catholics: that of insisting on a second baptism for Christians who convert
from one Church to another. Today, the two popes declare, “we will not repeat
the baptism that had been administered in either of our Churches for any person
who wishes to join the other”.
Please find below the full text of the Common Declaration
1. We, Francis, Bishop of Rome and Pope of the
Catholic Church, and Tawadros II, Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See
of Saint Mark, give thanks to God in the Holy Spirit for granting us the joyful
opportunity to meet once more, to exchange a fraternal embrace and to join
again in common prayer. We glorify the Almighty for the bonds of fraternity and
friendship existing between the See of Saint Peter and the See of Saint Mark.
The privilege of being together here in Egypt is a sign that the solidity of
our relationship is increasing year by year, and that we are growing in
closeness, faith and love of Christ our Lord. We give thanks to God for this
beloved Egypt, the “homeland that lives inside us,” as His Holiness Pope
Shenouda III used to say, the “people blessed by God” (cf. Is 19:25) with its
ancient Pharaonic civilization, the Greek and Roman heritage, the Coptic
tradition and the Islamic presence. Egypt is the place where the Holy Family
found refuge, a land of martyrs and saints.
2. Our deep bond of friendship and fraternity has its
origin in the full communion that existed between our Churches in the first
centuries and was expressed in many different ways through the early Ecumenical
Councils, dating back to the Council of Nicaea in 325 and the contribution of
the courageous Church Father Saint Athanasius, who earned the title “Protector
of the Faith”. Our communion was expressed through prayer and similar
liturgical practices, the veneration of the same martyrs and saints, and in the
development and spread of monasticism, following the example of the great Saint
Anthony, known as the Father of all monks.
This common experience of communion
before the time of separation has a special significance in our efforts to
restore full communion today. Most of the relations which existed in the early
centuries between the Catholic Church and the Coptic Orthodox Church have
continued to the present day in spite of divisions, and have recently been
revitalized. They challenge us to intensify our common efforts to
persevere in the search for visible unity in diversity, under the guidance of
the Holy Spirit.
3. We recall with gratitude the historic meeting
forty-four years ago between our predecessors, Pope Paul VI and Pope Shenouda
III, in an embrace of peace and fraternity, after many centuries when our
mutual bonds of love were not able to find expression due to the distance that
had arisen between us. The Common Declaration they signed on 10 May 1973
represented a milestone on the path of ecumenism, and served as a starting
point for the Commission for Theological Dialogue between our two Churches,
which has borne much fruit and opened the way to a broader dialogue between the
Catholic Church and the whole family of Oriental Orthodox Churches. In
that Declaration, our Churches acknowledged that, in line with the apostolic
tradition, they profess “one faith in the One Triune God” and “the divinity of
the Only-begotten Son of God ... perfect God with respect to his divinity,
perfect man with respect to his humanity”. It was also acknowledged that
“the divine life is given to us and is nourished in us through the seven
sacraments” and that “we venerate the Virgin Mary, Mother of the True Light”,
the “Theotokos”.
4. With deep gratitude we recall our own
fraternal meeting in Rome on 10 May 2013, and the establishment of 10 May as
the day when each year we deepen the friendship and brotherhood between our
Churches. This renewed spirit of closeness has enabled us to discern once
more that the bond uniting us was received from our one Lord on the day of our
Baptism. For it is through Baptism that we become members of the one Body
of Christ that is the Church (cf. 1 Cor 12:13). This common heritage is the
basis of our pilgrimage together towards full communion, as we grow in love and
reconciliation.
5. We are aware that we still have far to go on
this pilgrimage, yet we recall how much has already been accomplished. In
particular, we call to mind the meeting between Pope Shenouda III and Saint
John Paul II, who came as a pilgrim to Egypt during the Great Jubilee of the
year 2000. We are determined to follow in their footsteps, moved by the
love of Christ the good Shepherd, in the profound conviction that by walking
together, we grow in unity. May we draw our strength from God, the
perfect source of communion and love.
6. This love finds its deepest expression in
common prayer. When Christians pray together, they come to realize that
what unites them is much greater than what divides them. Our longing for
unity receives its inspiration from the prayer of Christ “that all may be one”
(Jn 17:21). Let us deepen our shared roots in the one apostolic faith by
praying together and by seeking common translations of the Lord’s Prayer and a common
date for the celebration of Easter.
7. As we journey towards the blessed day when
we will at last gather at the same Eucharistic table, we can cooperate in many
areas and demonstrate in a tangible way the great richness which already unites
us. We can bear witness together to fundamental values such as the
sanctity and dignity of human life, the sacredness of marriage and the family,
and respect for all of creation, entrusted to us by God. In the face of
many contemporary challenges such as secularization and the globalization of indifference,
we are called to offer a shared response based on the values of the Gospel and
the treasures of our respective traditions. In this regard, we are
encouraged to engage in a deeper study of the Oriental and Latin Fathers, and
to promote a fruitful exchange in pastoral life, especially in catechesis, and
in mutual spiritual enrichment between monastic and religious communities.
8. Our shared Christian witness is a
grace-filled sign of reconciliation and hope for Egyptian society and its
institutions, a seed planted to bear fruit in justice and peace. Since we
believe that all human beings are created in the image of God, we strive for
serenity and concord through a peaceful co-existence of Christians and Muslims,
thus bearing witness to God’s desire for the unity and harmony of the entire
human family and the equal dignity of each human being. We share a
concern for the welfare and the future of Egypt. All members of society
have the right and duty to participate fully in the life of the nation, enjoying
full and equal citizenship and collaborating to build up their country.
Religious freedom, including freedom of conscience, rooted in the dignity of
the person, is the cornerstone of all other freedoms. It is a sacred and
inalienable right.
9. Let us intensify our unceasing prayer for
all Christians in Egypt and throughout the whole world, and especially in the
Middle East. The tragic experiences and the blood shed by our faithful
who were persecuted and killed for the sole reason of being Christian, remind
us all the more that the ecumenism of martyrdom unites us and encourages us
along the way to peace and reconciliation. For, as Saint Paul writes: “If
one member suffers, all suffer together” (1 Cor 12:26).
10. The mystery of Jesus who died and rose out of love
lies at the heart of our journey towards full unity. Once again, the
martyrs are our guides. In the early Church the blood of the martyrs was
the seed of new Christians. So too in our own day, may the blood of so
many martyrs be the seed of unity among all Christ’s disciples, a sign and
instrument of communion and peace for the world.
11. In obedience to the work of the Holy Spirit, who
sanctifies the Church, keeps her throughout the ages, and leads her to full
unity – that unity for which Jesus Christ prayed:
Today we, Pope Francis and Pope
Tawadros II, in order to please the heart of the Lord Jesus, as well as that of
our sons and daughters in the faith, mutually declare that we, with one mind
and heart,will seek sincerely not to repeat the baptism that has been
administered in either of our Churches for any person who wishes to join the
other. This we confess in obedience to the Holy Scriptures and the faith
of the three Ecumenical Councils assembled in Nicaea, Constantinople and
Ephesus.
We ask God our Father to guide
us, in the times and by the means that the Holy Spirit will choose, to full
unity in the mystical Body of Christ.
12. Let us, then, be guided by the teachings and the
example of the Apostle Paul, who writes: “[Make] every effort to keep the unity
of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as
you too were called to the one hope of your calling, one Lord, one faith, one
baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all”
(Eph 4:3-6).
Cairo, 28th April 2017
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