Catholic–Protestant Relations

Ecumenism, which refers to efforts to promote greater collaboration and mutual respect among different religions or religious denominations of the same faith, has followed a somewhat torturous road where Catholic–Protestant relations are concerned.

On one hand, the Second Vatican Council eased the strictures on Catholics sharing spiritual activities and resources with Protestants and seemed to point to a future of greater unity and mutual respect. On the other hand, more recent Vatican initiatives have cast a long shadow over the prospects for Christian unity.

On June 30, 2000, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, as Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, sent a document to the presidents of all the bishops’ conferences declaring that the usage “sister Churches” to refer to other Christian churches was mistaken since “the one, holy, catholic and apostolic Universal Church is not sister but mother of all the particular Churches.” The expression “sister Churches,” with its seeming assertion of Catholic superiority, outraged many Protestants and set back the cause of Christian unity.

Meet the Expert:  Carl E. Braaten