Background Information to the Waterloo Declaration
The Anglican Church of Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada are intending to declare "full communion" in 2001. A Joint Declaration which was designed for that was overwhelmingly accepted by the synods of both churches – the general synod of the Anglican Church of Canada in 1998 and the convention of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada in 1999.According to the Waterloo Declaration "full communion is understood as a relationship between two distinct churches or communions in which each maintains its own autonomy while recognizing the catholicity and apostololicity of the other, and believing the other to hold the essentials of the Christian faith" (No. 7).
For Richard Leggatt, an Anglican representative of the commission being responsible for the Declaration, the future full communion will bring about the full interchangeability of both churches’ ministries. This means that the ordained ministry of the other church is recognized as "authentic". It is planned "to regularly invite one another’s bishops to participate in the laying on of hands at the ordination of bishops as a sign of the unity and continuity of the Church" (C). The same should take place at the level of the ordination to the presbyterate.
Both churches commit themselves to work together at all levels of the church and to consult each other on significant matters of faith and order, mission and service as well as to hold joint meetings of the decision-making bodies of both churches at all levels.
The Waterloo Declaration is part of a series of several similar declarations between Anglicans and Lutherans by which "full communion" is envisaged or has already been implemented. Thus the Waterloo Declaration is able to refer among others to the Porvoo Common Statement of 1993 which led to church communion between the British Anglican Churches and the Scandinavian and Baltic Lutheran Churches (without Denmark).
Approved: Joint Working Group
Draft: June 23, 1997
Called to Full Communion
Proposed Text to be considered by the National Convention of the Evangelical LutheranChurch in Canada and the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada in Waterloo,Ontario, in the year 2001.
Preface
1.In John 17:20-21, our Lord prayed that Christians might all be one so that the world mightbelieve in Christ through the witness of our unity. The 20th century has given rise to anincrease of movements which seek to give visible expression to this prayer. Christians havebegun to see the fulfillment of Jesus' words as they unite in action to address the needs oflocal and global communities. The churches themselves have entered into partnerships atevery level, from the neighbourhood to the world, through councils of churches, theologicaldialogues, and covenants which have fostered greater understanding in the search forcommon witness and visible unity. All these steps have moved us towards a healing ofancient divisions, including those which occurred during the 16th century in Europe.2.Lutherans and Anglicans are graced in that we can respond to this prayer for unity withouthaving experienced formal separation from one another. We share a common heritage ascatholic churches of the Reformation. Despite our previous geographic, linguistic and culturaldifferences, in recent years we have discovered in one another a shared faith and spirituality.This discovery has called us into a search for more visible unity in mission and ministry.
3.On the international scene, the Lutheran World Federation and the Anglican ConsultativeCouncil have participated in a number of formal discussions since 1972. These conversationswere encouraged by the international multilateral consensus document Baptism, Eucharist andMinistry (Faith and Order, WCC, 1982). In 1987 an international Lutheran Anglicanconsultation on episkope was held in Niagara. From this gathering some specificrecommendations were directed to the churches for their discussion. Consideration of theserecommendations led in northern Europe to The Porvoo Common Statement (1993), and inthe United States to the Concordat of Agreement (1997).
4.In 1983 Canadian Lutherans and Anglicans met to discuss the implications for the churches inCanada of the ongoing dialogue between Lutherans and Episcopalians in the United States.>From this meeting emerged the Canadian Lutheran Anglican Dialogue (CLAD), whose firstseries of meetings led to the publication of its Report and Recommendations, (April 1986).This report gave impetus to the desire of the two churches to produce an agreement whichcould provide a basis for the sharing of the eucharist between our churches.
5.A second series of discussions (CLAD II) resulted in the agreement Interim Sharing of theEucharist, which was approved in 1989 by the National Convention of the EvangelicalLutheran Church in Canada and by the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Canada. Inthat agreement, we
agreed to live in a relationship of interim eucharistic sharing; acknowledged one another as churches in which the Gospel is preached and taught; committed ourselves to share a common life in mission and service, to pray for andwith one another, and to share resources.
6.The experience of six years of interim eucharistic sharing led the two churches in 1995 totake further steps towards full communion. The National Convention and the General Synodrenewed the Interim Eucharistic Sharing Agreement until 2001 and further agreed
to request all neighbouring congregations to undertake joint projects and celebrate theeucharist together annually; to receive one another's lay members, when moving from one church to the other withthe same status (baptized/communicant/confirmed) which they held in their firstchurch; to foster the development and implementation of agreements which permit an ordainedminister (priest or pastor) to serve the people of both churches, including presiding atthe sacraments of the Church, wherever, and according to whichever rite, the localbishop of each church deems appropriate ; to develop structures with the purpose of evaluating and improving the bishop'sministry through collegial and periodic review; to call for our two churches to move towards full communion by 2001.
7.Our two churches are using the following definition of full communion. "Full communion isunderstood as a relationship between two distinct churches or communions in which eachmaintains its own autonomy while recognizing the catholicity and apostolicity of the other, andbelieving the other to hold the essentials of the Christian faith. In such a relationship,communicant members of each church would be able freely to communicate at the altar ofthe other, and there would be freedom of ordained ministers to officiate sacramentally ineither church. Specifically, in our context, we understand this to include transferability ofmembers; mutual recognition and interchangeability of ministries; freedom to use each other'sliturgies; freedom to participate in each other's ordinations and installations of clergy, includingbishops; and structures for consultation to express, strengthen, and enable our common life,witness, and service, to the glory of God and the salvation of the world."
8.In a spirit of thanksgiving for what God has already accomplished in us, and with confidenceand hope for what God has prepared for the whole Church, we believe we can now act invisible witness to the unity which is ours in Jesus Christ. We are taking the next step in ourcommon pilgrimage of faith in the belief that it will be of service to a greater unity.
Proposed Joint Declaration
We, the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Anglican Church of Canada make thefollowing acknowledgements and commitments:A. Acknowledgements
We declare that in each church "the Gospel is preached in its purity and the holy sacraments areadministered according to the Gospel" (Augsburg Confession VII), that in each church "the pureWord of God is preached, and the Sacraments ... duly ministered according to Christ's ordinance inall those things that of necessity are requisite to the same." (Article XIX of The Thirty-NineArticles)
We acknowledge that both our churches share in the common confession of the apostolic faith.(Report and Recommendations, CLAD I, 1986)
We acknowledge that personal, collegial and communal oversight (episkope) is embodied andexercised in both churches in a variety of forms, in continuity of apostolic life, mission and ministry.(The Porvoo Common Statement, 1993)
We acknowledge that the episcopal office is valued and maintained in both our churches as a visiblesign expressing and serving the Church's unity and continuity in apostolic life, mission and ministry.(The Porvoo Common Statement, 1993)
We acknowledge that one another's ordained ministries are given by God as instruments of divinegrace and as possessing not only the inward call of the Spirit, but also Christ's commission throughhis body, the Church (An Appeal to all Christian People, Lambeth Conference, 1920); and thatthese ministries are the gifts of God's Spirit to equip the people of God for the work of ministry(Ephesians 4:11-12).
In the light of the above agreements, we make the following statements:
The Anglican Church of Canada hereby recognizes the full authenticity of the ordained ministriespresently existing within the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, acknowledging its pastors aspriests in the Church of God and its bishops as chief pastors exercising a ministry of episkope overthe jurisdictional areas of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada in which they preside.
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada hereby recognizes the full authenticity of the ordainedministries of bishops, priests, and deacons presently existing within the Anglican Church of Canada,acknowledging its priests as pastors in the Church of God and its bishops as chief pastors exercisinga ministry of episkope over the jurisdictional areas of the Anglican Church of Canada in which theypreside.
The Anglican Church of Canada and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada each understandsthe bishops of both churches to be ordained for life service of the Gospel in the pastoral ministry ofthe historic episcopate, although tenure in office may be terminated by retirement, resignation orconclusion of term, subject to the constitutional provisions of the respective churches.
B. Declaration of Full Communion
We declare the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada and the Anglican Church of Canada to bein full communion.
C. Commitments
As churches in full communion, we now commit ourselves:
to welcome persons ordained in either of our churches to the office of bishop, priest/pastor ordeacon to serve, by invitation and in accordance with any regulations which may from time totime be in force, in that ministry in the receiving church without re-ordination;
regularly to invite one another's bishops to participate in the laying on of hands at theordination of bishops as a sign of the unity and continuity of the Church, and to invite pastorsand priests to participate in the laying on of hands at the ordination of pastors or priests ineach other's churches;
to work towards a common understanding of diaconal ministry;
to establish appropriate forms of collegial and conciliar consultation on significant matters offaith and order, mission and service;
to encourage regular consultation and collaboration among members of our churches at alllevels, to promote the formulation and adoption of covenants for common work in mission andministry, and to facilitate learning and exchange of ideas and information on theological,pastoral, and mission matters;
to establish a Joint Commission to nurture our growth in communion, to coordinate theimplementation of this Declaration, and report to the decision-making bodies of both ourchurches;
to hold joint meetings of national, regional and local decision-making bodies whereverpracticable, and
to continue to work together for the full visible unity of the whole Church of God.
Conclusion
We rejoice in our Declaration as an expression of the visible unity of our churches in the one Bodyof Christ. We are ready to be co-workers with God in whatever tasks of mission serve the Gospel.We give glory to God for the gift of unity already ours in Christ, and we pray for the fuller realizationof this gift in the entire Church.To be signed by the National Bishop of The Evangelical LutheranChurch in Canada and the Primate of The Anglican Church ofCanada
Wording in sections A.2, 3, 4, 5; and C.1, 2, 3, 4, 5 is derived from
The Porvoo Common Statement (October, 1992) © David Tustin and
Tore Furberg. Published in 1993 by Church House Publishing for
the Council for Christian Unity of the General Synod of the Church
of England.