Pope Francis in Geneva for the 70th anniversary of the Ecumenical Council of Churches: let us walk together “opting for a mindset of service” to overcome divisions.
In order to progress along the ecumenical path, it is necessary to “work at a loss”, not thinking of protecting only “the interests of individual communities, often closely linked to ethnic identity or split along party lines, whether “conservative” or “progressive””. It is necessary “to choose to belong to the Lord before identifying with right or left; to choose, in the name of the Gospel, our brother or our sister over ourselves… In the eyes of the world, this often means operating at a loss. Ecumenism is “a great enterprise operating at a loss”. But the loss is evangelical. Pope Francis paces his words slowly before the central committee of the World Council of Churches (WCC) of Geneva, a body of which the Catholic Church is not a member but with which it has collaborated for decades as part of their reviewing boards.
Francis is welcomed into the modern structure by the chants of the choir - where one of the choristers is holding on her lap, her sick daughter without hair and with a mask to protect her face - and by the entire assembly where Lutheran pastors, evangelical bishops, Anglican priests and Orthodox metropolitans sit side by side. The first greeting was given to the Romanian Metropolitan Nifon of Tirgoviste, who says: “We gathered to offer praise to God and thanks for the “cloud of witnesses” that, during the 70 years of the Council’s existence, worked for Christian unity and for the unity of humanity and creation”. After him Bishop Mary Ann Swenson recalls that after the Second Vatican Council the Catholic Church and the WCC “had a fruitful dialogue and cooperation”, stating that “the vision and work” of Pope Francis “have enthused and strengthened the relationship and cooperation”.
Francis was the third Pope to visit the WCC, after Paul VI (10 June 1969) and John Paul II (15 June 1982). The day trip to Geneva provides an opportunity to deepen what in the eyes of the Pope is essential in the ecumenical process. An ecumenism, that of Bergoglio, less tied to the great theological summit dialogues, and more directed to prayer and common action, starting from the bottom, from the experiences of the faithful of the different Christian Churches.
“Walking, praying and working together” is the motto of the brief papal journey, the 23rd abroad in little more than five years of pontificate. Before Francis took the floor, after the introductory greetings, the “prayer of repentance” was recited and a passage from the Letter to the Galatians of Saint Paul was read.
In his speech, the Pope recalled the importance of walking. “We human beings are constantly on the move. Throughout our lives, we are called to set out and keep walking: from our mother’s womb and at every stage of life, from when we first leave home to the day we depart from this earthly existence. The metaphor of walking reveals the real meaning of our life, a life that is not self-sufficient but always in search of something greater”. But, Francis says, walking “is a discipline, it takes effort. It requires patience and exercise, day after day. We have to forego many other paths in order to choose the one that leads to the goal. We have to keep that goal constantly before us, lest we go astray. Walking also demands the humility to be prepared at times to retrace our steps. It also involves being concerned for our travelling companions, since only in company do we make good progress. Walking, in a word, demands constant conversion. That is why so many people refuse to do it. They prefer to remain in the quiet of their home, where it is easy to manage their affairs without facing the risks of travel.”
Quoting Saint Paul, the Pope emphasized how “the Christian life involves an unavoidable decision. We can either walk in the Spirit along the path opened up by our baptism or else we can “gratify the desires of the flesh”. Francis explained this last Pauline expression as follows: “It means thinking that the way to fulfilment is by acquiring possessions, selfishly attempting to store up here and now everything we desire. Rather than letting ourselves quietly be led where God would have us, we go our own way.”
It is easy to see “the result of this tragic loss of direction. The thirst for material things blinds us to our companions along the way, and indifference prevails in the streets of today’s world. Driven by our instincts, we become slaves to unbridled consumerism, and God’s voice is gradually silenced. Other people, especially those who cannot walk on their own, like children and the elderly, then become nuisances to be cast aside. Creation then comes to have no other purpose than to supply our needs”.
Walking according to the Spirit, Francis explains, means “rejecting worldliness.
It means opting for a mindset of service and growing in forgiveness. It means playing our part in history but in God’s good time, not letting ourselves be caught up in the whirlwind of corruption but advancing calmly on the way whose signpost is the “one commandment: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’”. “We are called, together, to walk along this path. This calls for constant conversion and the renewal of our way of thinking, so that it can conform to that of the Holy Spirit”.
Francis observes that in the course of history, “divisions between Christians have often arisen because at their root, in the life of communities, a worldly mindset has seeped in. First, self-concern took priority over concern for Christ. Once this happened, the Enemy of God and man had no difficulty in separating us, because the direction we were taking was that of the flesh, not of the Spirit. Even some past attempts to end those divisions failed miserably because they were chiefly inspired by a worldly way of thinking”.
To progress, then, the ecumenical path must be guided by the Spirit and “constantly refuse to withdraw into itself. Even if it means “to operate at a loss, since it does not adequately protect the interests of individual communities, often closely linked to ethnic identity or split along party lines, whether “conservative” or “progressive”.
“Yes - Francis admits - To choose to belong to Jesus before belonging to Apollos or Cephas, to belong to Christ before being “Jew or Greek”; to belong to the Lord before identifying with right or left; to choose, in the name of the Gospel, our brother or our sister over ourselves… In the eyes of the world, this often means operating at a loss. Ecumenism is “a great enterprise operating at a loss”. But the loss is evangelical”.
Bergoglio recognizes how “difficult it is to overcome hard feelings and to foster communion! How hard it is to leave behind centuries-old disagreements and mutual recriminations! It is even more formidable to withstand the subtle temptation to join others, to walk together, but for the sake of satisfying some partisan interest. This is not the “mindset” of the Apostle, but that of Judas, who walked with Jesus but for his own purposes. There is only one way to shore up our wavering footsteps: to walk in the Spirit, purifying our hearts of evil, choosing with holy tenacity the way of the Gospel and rejecting the shortcuts offered by this world”.
And he added, “Our differences must not be excuses, even now we can walk in the Spirit: we can pray, evangelize and serve together. This is possible and it is pleasing to God! Walking, praying and working together: this is the great path that we are called to follow! And this path has a clear aim, that of unity. The opposite path, that of division, leads to conflict and breakup. The Lord bids us set out ever anew on the path of communion that leads to peace. Our lack of unity is in fact “openly contrary to the will of Christ, but is also a scandal to the world and harms the most holy of causes: the preaching of the Gospel to every creature”. Therefore, Francis concludes, “for us as Christians, walking together is not a ploy to strengthen our own positions, but an act of obedience to the Lord and love for our world”.
After a blessing recited in German, the Pope left the WCC seat amid the choir chants. Before leaving, he greeted two sick people on the wheelchairs and embraced and caressed the child with a mask that, together with her mother, handed him a drawing. Bergoglio has reciprocated by giving her a small wooden crucifix. On board a coach, Francis moved to the Bossey Ecumenical Institute for lunch with the WCC top officials.
