Welcome Home to our Anglican Brethren
October 22nd, 2009 by Br. Peter Martyr Joseph Yungwirth, O.P.
On Tuesday, it was announced that certain Anglicans from around the world seeking unity with Rome are going to be brought into communion with the Catholic Church. This news is exciting and a moment in Church history as this is the largest Protestant group to seek reunion with Rome. This comes after years of diligent prayer for reunion.
Particularly for us Dominicans, this also comes in answer to one of our Lenten prayers because on February 21, 2009, many Dominican from around the world were asked by (then) Fr. Augustine DiNoia, O.P., Undersecretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, to pray the Litany of Dominican Saints and Blesseds from February 22 (the Feast of the Chair of St. Peter) through March 25 (the Solemnity of the Annunciation) for an at-the-time undisclosed intention. On Tuesday, we received an e-mail from Archbishop Augustine DiNoia, O.P., the Secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, with the following announcement:
“Today there was announced — at press conferences in Rome and London — the forthcoming publication of an apostolic constitution in which the Holy Father allows for the creation of personal ordinariates for groups of Anglicans in different parts of the world who are seeking full communion with the Catholic Church. The canonical structure of the personal ordinariate will permit this corporate reunion while at the same time providing for retention of elements of Anglican liturgy and spirituality.
When I asked the Friars (and other OPs - Ed.) to pray the Dominican litany from 22 February to 25 March earlier this year, the intention was that this proposal would receive the approval of the cardinal members of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith which was necessary if the proposal of some structure allowing for corporate reunion was to go forward. Our prayers at that time were answered, and now that the proposal has become a reality we can tell everyone what we were praying for then.
Fraternally,
+Abp. J Augustine DiNoia, O.P.
Archbishop DiNoia wants all of you to know that your prayers were very effective, and that he extends his most profound fraternal thanks.
Here is a link to the Vatican website that has the text of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith’s Note concerning this new, historic arrangement.
