Church row looming

Anglican, Catholic and Orthodox leaders healing divisions in January

By David Willey in Rome

The Vatican has decreed that Catholic theologians and commentators must stop calling Protestant churches sister churches.

The phrase is already in wide general use, but the Vatican says it cannot be properly used in future because the Anglican and other Protestant churches are not "churches in the proper sense".

Two new documents recently approved by the Pope are expected to arouse strong criticism among churchmen, both Catholic and Protestant working for Christian unity.

Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, the Pope's chief theological adviser, is angry about what he considers sloppy terminology.

No 'sisters'

He has banned the use of the term "sister churches" to describe Christian communities that are not in actual communion with Rome.

The two documents have been written by the Pope's chief theological adviser Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger

He argues that there is only one mother church which is the Catholic church so it is terminologically incorrect to call say the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches sister churches as it places them on a level of equality.

The cardinal's ban, which has the Pope's approval, is contained in a document marked confidential and sent to the heads of Catholic bishops conferences around the world.

In another document, to be published in Rome next Tuesday, the cardinal says that the word "church" can correctly be applied to the Orthodox churches which broke away from Rome nearly 1,000 years ago, but not to those which broke away at the time of the Protestant Reformation.

In this document he says that the Reform Churches are not churches at all in the strict sense of the word.

The new documents are bound to be regarded by Christians of other denominations working for the re-establishment of Christian unity as a significant step backwards by the Vatican in their ongoing dialogue.