<head><style>body{font-family: Geneva,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:9pt;background-color: #ffffff;color: black;}p{margin:0px}</style></head><body id="compText">Exactly, Art; there are still many gaps between the two. I think the Eastern Orthodox mindset on transubstantiation is that it is too deep a mystery to be defined, but they believe that Christ is truly present. The Eastern Christians are less definition-oriented than Western Christians. They do have a great love for Mary, so that is something in their favor, and they have those magnificent icons. And the Eastern Christian Divine Liturgy is light years better than the sorry "happy-clappy" stuff that too often passes for "mass" in many US parishes. That's why I like the Eastern Rite Catholics so much, they have all the good stuff of the Easterners without the arrogance or other issues. If St. James ever went South (and I don't mean Dixie) as a parish, I would very likely start going to the Byzantine Rite parish in Annandale.<br><br>I think that, like the Protestants, there are those whom we share many things in common, but there are too many things to make unity possible in the near future. I think it will have to be a gradual thing over time - unite where we can on common issues where we agree (like the wrongfulness of abortion or euthanasia, the immorality of much of our society, etc.), but accept that there are areas where we disagree and unity should not be forced on either.<br><br>After all, it's been 1000 years since the East-West split and almost 500 since the Protestant split. The gaps cannot be bridged overnight by either side.<br><br>Bret<br><br><br><blockquote style="border-left: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 255); padding-left: 5px; margin-left: 0px;">-----Original Message-----
<br>From: Art Kelly <arthurkelly@yahoo.com>
<br>Sent: Sep 17, 2009 10:32 PM
<br>To: Apologetics Group <apologetics@gathman.org>
<br>Subject: Re: [Apologetics] Is Catholic-Orthodox Unity in Sight?
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<div>Can you imagine the Eastern Orthodox allowing the Pope to appoint their bishops? </div>
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<div>Remember, the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1253240695_10">Catholic Church</span> is mad at China over this very issue. The Chruch is not about to say, hey, it's OK for the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1253240695_11" style="border-bottom: 1px dashed rgb(0, 102, 204);">Eastern Orthodox churches</span> (if they were in communion with Rome) to appoint their own bishops but not for the Patriotic Catholic Church in China.</div>
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<div>Apart from the Papacy, there are a number of other significant theological differences between Catholics and Eastern Orthodoxers: Purgatory, the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1253240695_7">Eucharist</span> (they don't believe in transubstantiation per se and haven't defined exactly what they believe), the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1253240695_8" style="border-bottom: medium none; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Immaculate Conception</span>, the origin of the <span class="yshortcuts" id="lw_1253240695_9" style="border-bottom: medium none; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 0%; -moz-background-clip: -moz-initial; -moz-background-origin: -moz-initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: -moz-initial;">Holy Spirit</span>, and divorce and remarriage, to name just a few.</div>
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<div>I don't know if these issues have already been solved and we haven't heard about it or if there is some way they can be solved.</div>
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<div>But with God, all things are possible. (Gospel of St. Matthew 19:26)</div>
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<div><strong><font color="#0000ff" size="3">Art</font></strong></div><br>--- On <b>Thu, 9/17/09, Bret Bellamy <i><bbellamy@mindspring.com></i></b> wrote:<br>
<blockquote style="border-left: 2px solid rgb(16, 16, 255); padding-left: 5px; margin-left: 5px;"><br>From: Bret Bellamy <bbellamy@mindspring.com><br>Subject: Re: [Apologetics] Is Catholic-Orthodox Unity in Sight?<br>To: "Art Kelly" <arthurkelly@yahoo.com>, "Apologetics Group" <apologetics@gathman.org>, "Jim Murphy" <jmurf80@bellsouth.net><br>Date: Thursday, September 17, 2009, 9:05 AM<br><br>
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Hmmmm. I've heard a number of rumors and "teasers" about this over the years. I'm not sure it'll happen quite yet. There are still issues between the two faith communities, and I think many Eastern Orthodox will oppose any type of union short of Catholics saying the Pope is first among equals, that on a number of things the Catholic Church went off the rails, that Catholics were wrong and Orthodox were right, etc. The Orthodox members I recall from some 10 years ago on Dave Armstrong's old forum were pretty vehement that any "unity" would pretty much involve Catholics saying "we were all wrong and you were all right", and scraping and bowing to the Orthodox with much mea culpaing all over the place. Besides a lot of Orthodox groups would consider any Orthodox-Catholic unity as a total sellout and condemn those that did particpate as no longer Orthodox but heterodox. Some of the extreme Orthodox groups make
anti-Catholic fundamentalists look positively friendly.<br><br>Don't think this will happen yet. Shame, because if what I've seen of the Byzantine Catholic Rite is any indication, the Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy is one of the most beautiful forms of worship.<br><br>My two cents,<br><br>Bret<br><br><br>
<blockquote style="border-left: 2px solid rgb(0, 0, 255); padding-left: 5px; margin-left: 0px;">-----Original Message----- <br>From: Art Kelly <br>Sent: Sep 16, 2009 8:16 PM <br>To: Apologetics Group , Jim Murphy <br>Subject: [Apologetics] Is Catholic-Orthodox Unity in Sight? <br><br>
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<p class="articleHeadline" style="clear: both;">Is Catholic-Orthodox Unity in Sight? <a href="http://www.ncregister.com/daily/catholic-orthodox_unity_in_sight/#When:15:10:59Z" target="_blank" rel="nofollow">http://www.ncregister.com/daily/catholic-orthodox_unity_in_sight/#When:15:10:59Z</a><br><br>
</p><div><strong><font color="#0000ff" size="3">Art</font></strong></div></td></tr></tbody></table><br></blockquote></div></blockquote></td></tr></tbody></table><br>
</apologetics@gathman.org></arthurkelly@yahoo.com></blockquote></body>