In this article, which deals with the office of ministry in the Roman Catholic
Church’s dialogue with the Evangelical Reformed Church, the author states
that the Church is based in her activities on the mission of Jesus as well as on
the power of the Holy Spirit and living the faith of the first apostles she preserves
her apostolic nature. The analysis of dialogue documents shows that the
common priesthood of the baptized does not mean that there are no special
features which, within the Church, are exercised by the representatives of a
particular office, entrusted with the ministry of Word and sacrament. It was
stressed that the liturgical validity of the act of ordination provides the epiclesis
of the Holy Spirit during the laying on of hands on the newly ordained by a
group of clergy. The Catholics and Reformed point to difficult issues such as
apostolic succession, although their views on its significance remain divergent.
It is highlighted that the fundamental structure of the Church and ecclesial
authority are collective in nature, which in the Reformed tradition is reflected
in the synodal system of church government and in the Roman-Catholic confession
is fulfilled in the College of Bishops. The both denominations have also
confirmed the existence of the fundamental structure of the office of bishop,
priest and deacon, having its origins in apostolic times. The Catholics and Reformed
emphasize the need of episkopé on the local, regional and global levels and at the same time they note some differences regarding who, on each of
these levels, can be considered as episkopos and what his function is to be.
It is also pointed out that according to the doctrine of the Catholic Church,
each ordained acts in persona Christi, and his office consists of the ministry of
the sent who acts on behalf of the Saviour in the service of the Word of God.Ks. dr MARIUSZ PIECYK – prezbiter diecezji Fréjus-Toulon (Francja);
święcenia prezbiteratu przyjął we Włocławku w 2005 roku; studia na
Uniwersytecie Kardynała Stefana Wyszyńskiego w Warszawie (2007-2011),
doktor teologii – specjalność: teologia ekumeniczna; wykładowca teologii
ekumenicznej w seminarium w La Castille oraz w Institut Diocésain
de Formation Pastorale w Toulon; referent ds. ekumenizmu w diecezji
Fréjus-Toulon.Institut Diocésain de Formation Pastorale w Toulon13/213114
