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| Pope Francis, Bishop Tony Palmer and Rev. Kenneth Copeland |
History sometimes turns on tragedies, leaving people to ponder what
might have been. A new Catholic focus for that question is a random
motorcycle accident last Sunday in England, and whether it may change
the arc of Pope Francis’ papacy on ecumenism, meaning the push for unity
among Christians.
Christians, of course, are fond of preaching peace and brotherhood,
but anyone looking at the notoriously splintered Christian landscape can
see they often don’t practice that gospel. Thoughtful leaders on all
sides have long tried to mend differences, with little effect, and there
has been mounting hope that Pope Francis will be the one to finally
move the ball, in part because of his long history of friendship with
other Christians.
Francis is set to travel on Monday to the southern Italian city of
Caserta to see a few of his old Protestant friends, and to pray with
them. The get-together unfolds under the shadow of the loss of someone
who was supposed to be there, Bishop Tony Palmer of the Communion of
Evangelical Episcopal Churches, who got to know the future pope while
ministering in Argentina.
Read more at The Boston Globe >>
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