The present Pope made it clear long ago, and has stated this very clearly during his years in the Holy See, that he desires “the restoration of full, visible unity” among Christians. Those are his words, not mine. He has pledged his commitment to this end and he continues to work for this reality.

The last two days I cited two quotations from Pope Benedict XVI from the book Light of the World: The Pope, the Church and the Signs of the Times (Ignatius, 2010). This book is conversational and follows a Q & A format that makes it easy to read and understand. I encourage everyone interested in this subject to read the book.

Pope Benedict XVI answers a question about his ecumenism, and in particular his interest in talks with the Orthodox, by saying:

Ecumenism is a multilayered, multifaceted phenomenon. It involves the whole of global Orthodoxy, which is already quite varied in itself, but also global Protestantism, whose classical confessions are quite different from the […]

Yesterday, I quoted Pope Benedict XVI on mission and ecumenism. I believe this Pope, as was his predecessor, is a real advocate of the central thesis of my book, Your Church Is Too Small.  I am not suggesting that he would agree with everything I write, not by any stretch of imagination. I am a Protestant so I understand this cannot be true even in Protestant circles. But my central thesis is not re-union but relational unity. This unity begins with mutual recognition of our oneness in Christ as Lord. It also stresses what we can, and should, do together as brothers and sisters in Christ.

In the recently published interview with Benedict XVI, Light of the World, Peter Seewald asks the pontiff a question about the church that we should pay careful attention to if we love unity.

Q. Is it really true that the Pope does not regard Protestants as a Church, but, unlike the Eastern Church, only as an ecclesial community? This distinction strikes many as […]

When Peter Seewald’s book Light of the World, based upon extensive interviews of Pope Benedict XVI, was released a few months ago it was met with consider fanfare in the media. The reason was Pope Benedict’s response to the question about using condoms to help save lives and stop the spread of HIV. When I read Light of the World I looked first for further insights into Pope Benedict’s views of ecumenism. I was not disappointed.

As I was reading Light of the World I recalled an earlier Seewald book, God and the World (2002). In this book he interviewed Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger (obviously before he became the pope). In this much larger book Cardinal Ratzinger has a great answer to a question about ecumenism that needs to be understood by Catholic and Protestant alike. Here is Seewald’s question and the pope’s answer:

Q. The Church prays for Christians to be united.  But who ought to join up with whom? 

A. The formula […]