Archbishop and Pope to 'seek closer ties'
Archbishop Rowan Williams meets Pope over Anglican conversion plans
Saturday, 21, Nov 2009 08:02
By Lewis Bazley.
The Archbishop of Canterbury and Pope Benedict XVI have pledged to seek an improvement in relations between the Anglican and Catholic churches after a meeting in Rome.
The meeting was arranged after the Vatican's contentious decision to invite disenchanted Anglicans into the Catholic Church.
The third discussion between the pair since the pontiff's election in 2005 came after the Pope's proposed Apostolic Constitution raised the prospect of allowing Anglican ministers, including married ones, to join the Catholic fold while retaining some Anglican traditions.
After the meeting the Vatican said the "cordial" talks confirmed the "shared will" of the archbishop and the Pope to work for closer relations between Anglicans and Catholics.
The Holy See had said earlier this month the invitation to disaffected Anglicans had been extended as the "Holy Spirit has moved groups of Anglicans to petition repeatedly and insistently to be received into full Catholic communion".
However, some critics have argued the Pope could be seen to be attempting to 'poach' members of the clergy.
Roman Catholic theologian Hans Kueng told the Italian newspaper La Repubblica that the Vatican's proposals were akin to "fishing" and a "non-ecumenical piracy of priests".
Durham University theology professor Paul D Murray, however, told the Bloomberg news agency the pontiff's invitation was not "an act of aggression".
"This is a Catholic response, which has some precedent, to Anglican initiatives," he added.
The Anglican church is poised sensitively over the issues of same-sex unions and the 2003 ordination of openly gay bishop Gene Robinson in New Hampshire in the US.
Speaking on Thursday, Dr Rowan Williams questioned "how far disunion and non-recognition are theologically justified" among churches.