Reformed Catholic Church
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The Reformed Catholic Church is an Independent Catholic church with roots in the Old Catholic Church of Utrecht. The Church was founded in 2000 by the Most Rev. Robert Allmen, OP, a former Roman Catholic priest. The current Presiding Bishop of the Reformed Catholic Church is Most Rev. Phillip Zimmerman, SJ. The Church is based in Columbus, Ohio, and is not a member of the Union of Utrecht.
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[edit] Demographics
As of November 2006, the website of the Reformed Catholic Church lists 22 parish or religious communities in 19 US States[1] and 8 clergy in other countries [2].
Most of these communities are small missions and chapels dedicated to developing intimate connections between members. The RCC parishes participate in the micro-church concept which celebrates the unique joys found in the very small church. As a reaction and an antidote to the mega-church movement, small or simple churches embrace "littleness" as an authentic path based on the house churches of early christianity and the later developing small monastic communities.
[edit] Position in relation to other churches
The Reformed Catholic Church celebrates the liturgy according to Roman Catholic rites, and states that its bishops maintain a valid line of apostolic succession.
Its Statement of Principles [3] sets forth some differences from Roman Catholic doctrine and practice. The Reformed Catholic Church ordains women as priests and is expected to ordain its first woman bishop in 2007. The Church also allows priests to marry before or after ordination.
Furthermore, the Reformed Catholic Church accepts same-sex Holy Unions as sacramental, and accepts gays and lesbians as candidates for ordination. Several of the clergy are in life-long relationships, and in some cases both of the partners are clergy in the Church as well. The Church has no objection to birth control on moral grounds, and regards abortion as acceptable in limited circumstances.
In the Reformed Catholic Church's view,[citation needed] they are considered "catholic" by Rome because of the Vatican document Dominus Iesus, written by Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) and ratified by Pope John Paul II. [4] While many churches in independent catholicism hold this view on the document Dominus Iesus, there are those within the Roman Catholic Church which believe that it refers more to Eastern Orthodox churches than to independent catholic churches.
The Reformed Catholic Church's policy towards the Roman Catholic Church is to speak in what it considers charitable terms. Nevertheless, its presiding bishop, Archbishop Zimmerman, recently has issued a rebuttal[citation needed] of the denunciation of the Church by Roman Catholic authorities in Africa who allegedly have spoken of the Reformed Catholic Church as schismatic and its clergy as invalid.[citation needed] Despite this and differences of doctrine and practice between the two churches on such issues as the role of women, the Reformed Catholic Church has spoken of Vatican personnel as “Roman Brothers.”
[edit] Recent developments
On 2006-10-06, during the Church's Autumn Synod, four new bishops were consecrated: Patrick Batuyong of Atlanta, GA, David Frazee of Columbus, OH, Joshua Alekzandor of Muskegon, MI, and Peter Posthumus of Grand Rapids, MI. They were ordained by Archbishop Phillip Zimmerman, Bishop Craig Bergland and Bishop William Quinlan. These new bishops will help the presiding bishop in the affairs of the Church and continue church growth efforts.[citation needed] Also ordained during the Synod were seven deacons and two priests. In addition, there were sisters who undertook holy vows, and the Reformed Catholic Franciscans, an “umbrella organization” of the different Franciscan Orders in the Reformed Catholic Church all re-professed their holy vows. And on Saturday evening there was a Holy Union.
There has also been signs of interest in monastic life, as there have been talks about monastic communities possibly forming from existing communities in Michigan and Connecticut.[citation needed]
[edit] Name of church
There are several other church organizations which use the term "Reformed Catholic Church," not all of which are connected with or in communion with the aforementioned Church.
In particular, the Reformed Catholic Church should not be mistaken for the Miami, Florida-based Reformed Catholic Church International or the Reformed Roman Catholic Church, another independent Catholic denomination present in Africa. Some news stories in 2006 about the latter confused the RRCC with the Reformed Catholic Church. [5]
[edit] Notes
- ^ Lists of clergy and communities, by state, from the Church's website
- ^ Lists of clergy and communities, by country, from the Church's website
- ^ Document on Church website [1]
- ^ Declaration "Dominus Iesus" subtitled "On the Unicity and Salvific Universality of Jesus Christ and the Church." Article IV "Unicity and Unity of the Church" section 17: The Churches which, while not existing in perfect communion with the (Roman) Catholic Church, remain united to her by means of the closest bonds, that is, by apostolic succession and a valid Eucharist, are true particular Churches. Therefore, the Church of Christ is present and operative also in these Churches, even though they lack full communion with the Catholic Church, since they do not accept the Catholic doctrine of the Primacy
- ^ 2006-05-15 BBC story on a former Roman Catholic priest joining the Reformed Roman Catholic Church; the story incorrectly gives the name of his denomination as "Reformed Catholic".
