Pope John Paul II and his Ecumenical legacy

Every pontificate bears its own specific stamp and, since Vatican II, every Pope has had his own characteristic approach to ecumenism. Regarding ecumenical involvement, Pope John Paul II, during one of the longest pontificates ever, gave a new shape to the papacy. The year 2020 marks the centenary of the birth of John Paul II, but it is also a century-and-a-half since the First Vatican Council which, when it solemnly defined papal primacy, emphasised that such papal authority was to be exercised “in service of the unity of faith and communion.” Vatican II stated this even more clearly. John Paul II interpreted the “unity of faith and communion” in a broad, ecumenical sense. Therefore, he stated, early on in his pontificate, “I want to serve unity.” For him the Petrine ministry constituted the principle of unity for all Christians and he attached the highest importance to ecumenical leadership to the papal job-description. [excerpt]peer-reviewe

The common gift of Baptism - a field for catholic learning. Ecumenical investigations along ecclesiological linea

This article asks: What can the churches within the framework of a mutual recognition of baptism learn from each other with regard to being church together? An answer is attempted in three steps. First, a closer look at the so-called Magdeburg Agreement signed 2007 in Germany is taken in which eleven churches agreed on a mutual recognition of baptism. (The fact that the Coptic Orthodox Church in Germany was not among the signatories has been amended during the recent visit of Pope Francis to Egypt) The Agreement states a series of ecclesiological implications of baptism. Therefore, the second step looks at possible areas of Catholic learning and asks, what exactly is recognized by a mutual recognition of baptism? Areas of learning are identified in sacramentology, ecclesiology and the understanding of baptism itself. What is at stake respectively? Is baptism a sacramental act of salvation or a merely symbolic act of the human being? If baptism is only a personal act of confession and commitment, then the church serves no longer “as a sign and instrument” (LG1) by which God grants new life in the sacrament. Furthermore, which ecclesiological requirements and conditions – short of a mutual recognition as Church in the full sense of the word – have to be fulfilled for making a recognition of baptism possible? Finally, the contribution reflects on lifelong learning and Ecumenism of Life, taking into account ecumenical texts like Becoming a Christian: The Ecumenical Implications of Our Common Baptism. Does the process character of baptism which moves from the “I believe” of the person baptized towards the “we believe” of the Church not open up a path towards a common witness in one united church? The conclusion suggests that the churches should strive to learn together to become one Church

Llull y los atributos divinos en el contexto del siglo XIII

Uno de los conceptos más importantes de pensar y explorar la realidad es para Llull la noción de atributos divinos: sirven como medio para entender y ordenar el mundo, contemplando a Dios y dialogando con pensadores de otras religiones. Ya los primeros escritos de Llull muestran un concepto increíblemente elaborado de atributos divinos que Llull utiliza constantemente a lo largo de su vida.Llull and the divine attributes in 13th century context For Llull, one of the most important concepts of thinking and exploring reality is the notion of divine attributes: they serve as a means of understanding and ordering the world, contemplating God and dialoguing with thinkers of other religions. Even in Llull’s early writings one can find an amazingly elaborate concept of divine attributes which Llull continued to use throughout his life. Divine attributes; analogy; gnoseology; inter-religious encounter

Genetic mechanisms of critical illness in COVID-19.

Host-mediated lung inflammation is present1, and drives mortality2, in the critical illness caused by coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Host genetic variants associated with critical illness may identify mechanistic targets for therapeutic development3. Here we report the results of the GenOMICC (Genetics Of Mortality In Critical Care) genome-wide association study in 2,244 critically ill patients with COVID-19 from 208 UK intensive care units. We have identified and replicated the following new genome-wide significant associations: on chromosome 12q24.13 (rs10735079, P = 1.65 × 10-8) in a gene cluster that encodes antiviral restriction enzyme activators (OAS1, OAS2 and OAS3); on chromosome 19p13.2 (rs74956615, P = 2.3 × 10-8) near the gene that encodes tyrosine kinase 2 (TYK2); on chromosome 19p13.3 (rs2109069, P = 3.98 ×  10-12) within the gene that encodes dipeptidyl peptidase 9 (DPP9); and on chromosome 21q22.1 (rs2236757, P = 4.99 × 10-8) in the interferon receptor gene IFNAR2. We identified potential targets for repurposing of licensed medications: using Mendelian randomization, we found evidence that low expression of IFNAR2, or high expression of TYK2, are associated with life-threatening disease; and transcriptome-wide association in lung tissue revealed that high expression of the monocyte-macrophage chemotactic receptor CCR2 is associated with severe COVID-19. Our results identify robust genetic signals relating to key host antiviral defence mechanisms and mediators of inflammatory organ damage in COVID-19. Both mechanisms may be amenable to targeted treatment with existing drugs. However, large-scale randomized clinical trials will be essential before any change to clinical practice

Abstracts from the 8th International Conference on cGMP Generators, Effectors and Therapeutic Implications

This work was supported by a restricted research grant of Bayer AG

The Many Facets of Worldwide Ecumenism: Bridge-Building between the Vatican and the World Council of Churches

The Roman Catholic Church is not a member church of the World Council of Churches (WCC). Nevertheless, ever since Vatican II the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity (PCPCU) has been working closely with different bodies of the WCC on a continuous basis. Taking as its point of departure the latest Assembly, this article investigates the roots of the cooperation between the WCC and the Roman Catholic Church, has a closer look at the institutional bridges between the two partners, highlights some specific features shaping their cooperation, and reflects on the status quo of the ecumenical movement in light of the contemporary challenges that both partners in this ongoing cooperation have to face. Bodies with Catholic cooperation like the Joint Working Group, the Faith and Order Commission, and the Commission on World Mission and Evangelism managed to present major results of their work during the months leading up to the 10th Assembly of the WCC in 2013. Yet through these institutional bridges also the Catholic Church is currently challenged to take into account the many facets of worldwide ecumenism in order to start new ecumenically ground-breaking initiatives together with her multilateral ecumenical partner, the WCC.status: publishe

Vaticanum II - Anfang eines neuen Anfangs

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Most Precious Blood: pilgrimage and veneration of the relic in Weingarten and Mantua

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Allumfassend? - Zum ekklesiologischen Selbstverständnis heutiger Katholizität

„Katholisch“ wird im allgemeinen Sprachgebrauch heute oft als konfessioneller Eigenname verstanden; herkömmlich mitunter noch einmal enger identifiziert mit der „römisch-katholischen“ Kirche. Die Autorin, Konsultorin beim Ökumenischen Rat der Kirchen, zeichnet die Geschichte des Begriffs nach, an deren Beginn die Bedeutung „Universalität“ steht. Heutige ökumenische Arbeit knüpft an dieses Verständnis an. Als Wesenseigenschaft von Kirche schließt Katholizität die missionarische Sendung ein und findet ihre Verwirklichung in der „Ökumenizität“.status: publishe

The Common Gift of Baptism - a Field for Catholic Learning: Ecumenical Investigations along Ecclesiological Lines

Open access: https://hrcak.srce.hr/index.php?show=clanak&id_clanak_jezik=272263status: publishe