From the first century through the early part of the 11th century, there was one universal Christian church spread throughout the Roman Empire in the Weast and in the East. But in 1054, the Western and Eastern churches of Christendom broke off. Churches in the East refused to recognize the primacy of the church in Rome after the church in Jerusalem fell, and the Apostle Peter as the first bishop of Rome.
Today, the Western Church became officially known as the Roman Catholic Apostolic Church, and continued to uphold the primacy of the bishop of Rome as the successor of Peter as the first pontiff. It has the largest Christian membership worldwide with 1.1 billion of around 2 billion Christians. The Orthodox churchers have a membership of around 250 million, with the Russian Orthodox Church having the largest membership of 165 million.
An Ongoing Work of Unity
On 22 September 2010, the 12th Joint Theological Commission for the Dialogue Between the Roman Catholic Church and Orthodox Churches met in Vienna, Austria discuss theological issues in an effort to pave the way for the unity of the oldest Christian churches in history. Metropolitan John of Pergamon (Patriarchate of Constantinople) and Archbishop Kurt Koch (president of Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity) co-chaired the commission.
But the road to unity remains tricky and treacherous. Both Churchers were concerned that essential Christian teachings can get watered down in the process. Specifically, some Orthodox may fear they will be asked to accept a type of "papal primacy" that their conscience cannot accept. Some Catholics may also fear that Orthodox faithful may be admitted in communion with the Church without accepting essential doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church.
Still the developments in the past years provided a unique opportunity for the universal Chrisian Church to be one once more, and once again answer the desire of the Lord Jesus Christ for the unity of His Body as written in the Gospel of John. That these two old churches were able to put themselves together in a dialogue for unity is something to behold, a positive sign for the unity of Christendom in the future.
Threats of Division
While schism maybe necessary in order to preserve the truth of Christianity and protect it from heresy, the Holy Spirit can work wonders when Christian dialogues of unity like this occur.
Growing threats around the world also invite Christendom to strengthen each other in unity. Jesus warned in Luke 11:17, "Every kingdom divided against himself will be laid waste and house will fall against house." And divisions in Christianity appear to be where Satan succeeded in its attack on the Kingdom of God.
In the West, secularized Christianity have gained dominance. The culture of death is growing and spreading. Anti-Catholic winds are gathering as misguided interpretation of the Bible created more and more divisions even among the ranks of Protestants. Meanwhile, Islam is undoubtedly gaining wider influence.
A New Common Path
The 12th Joint Commission finds a potential promise in the idea of a unified universal Church with the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church as "sister churches" with the Pope as "titular" head.
But the roads to travel still remained long. The Orthodox churches prized their decentralized structure, and may find it hard to accept a central headship in the bishop of Rome. Meanwhile the Roman Catholic Church remained for millenia as an essentially heirarchical organization. Pope Benedict XVI though have shown openness in bringing back to the fold those who have left the Church for no fault of their own, just like the Anglicans who protested the ordination of women in the Church of England.
Koch said that "the basic discussion is about how these churches lived in the first millenium and how we can find a new common path today.
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