Pope Francis and Justin Welby meet in Rome - June 2014

Pope Francis and Justin Welby meet in Rome, June 2014

The Holy Father and Justin Welby in their meeting this week rightly identify areas for mutual co-operation between the various Christian groupings and the Catholic Church. Slavery and human trafficking are odious and need to be confronted by all civilized people.

What is missing in media reports is the fact that the Holy See is generously welcoming Anglicans into full unity through the Personal Ordinariates provided by the apostolic constitution ANGLICANORUM COETIBUS. This is the first healing of the Reformation breach and is the only viable route to Christian unity on offer to the many and diverse groups of baptized Christians that continue to separate themselves from full communion with the universal Church.

Co-operation on social issues is very important, but the unity of the Church by the work of the Holy Spirit drawing people from all backgrounds into unity is what we need to pray and work for as well.

We have welcomed former Baptists, Mennonites, Charismatics, Seventh Day Adventists and others along with Anglicans into the full communion of the Catholic Church in our Ordinariate mission in Toronto. The New Evangelization is at work in the Ordinariates.

We need to celebrate this actual work of unity, a first fruit of ARCIC and the reforms of the Catholic Church since Trent which have responded positively to all the real issues of the Reformation.