POINT / COUNTERPOINT : Lutheran Turns Catholic: Growth or Betrayal? : A Desire for Unity Forces the Decision

I have resisted with great difficulty, especially over the last five years, the recognition that I could no longer give an answer convincing to others or to me as to why I was not a Roman Catholic.

So on Sept. 8 I was received into full communion with the Roman Catholic Church and am preparing to enter the priesthood of the Catholic Church. This decision is the result of many years of prayer, reflection, conversation, and, I firmly believe, the leading of the Holy Spirit.

Over the last 20 years and more, I have repeatedly urged that the separated ecclesial existence of Lutheranism, if it was once necessary, is no longer necessary; and, if no longer necessary, such separated existence is no longer justified.

Therefore, cooperating with other evangelical catholics who shared my understanding of the Lutheran destiny and duty according to the Augsburg Confession, I devoted myself to the healing of the breach of the 16th Century between Rome and the Reformation. This means ecclesial reconciliation and the restoration of full communion with the Bishop of Rome. That is a consummation for which I continue to pray, and to which I earnestly hope my present decision will contribute.

With respect to the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America of which I was a pastor, the evidence made me conclude that its operative understanding of the Church is formed not by the ecclesiology of the New Testament, nor by that of the fathers, nor by that of the Augsburg Confession, but by American denominationalism.

I can no longer persuade myself that Lutheranism is an evangelical catholic movement of Gospel reform within and for the one Church of Christ. It now seems to me that Lutheranism is a Protestant denomination among Protestant denominations, and is determined to remain so.

I know well the claim of some Lutherans that separated ecclesial existence is necessary for the sake of the Gospel--as the Gospel is understood in terms of justification by grace through faith because of Christ. I beg such Lutherans to consider that that Gospel can be proclaimed today in the Roman Catholic Church. Moreover, it is by no means evident that the Lutheran denomination, as a matter of fact, bear witness to that Gospel.

I cannot begin to express adequately my gratitude for all the goodness I have known in the Lutheran communion. There I was baptized, there I learned my prayers, there I was introduced to Scripture and Creed, there I was nurtured by Christ on Christ; there I came to know the utterly gratuitous love of God by which we live astonished. For my theological formation, for friendships beyond numbering, for great battles fought, for mutual consolations in defeat, for companionship in ministry--for all this I give thanks and know that I will forever be in debt to the church called Lutheran.

Most especially am I grateful for my 30 years as a pastor. There is nothing in that ministry that I would repudiate, except my many sins and shortcomings. My becoming a priest in the Roman Catholic Church will be the completion and right ordering of what was begun 30 years ago. Nothing that was good is rejected; all is fulfilled.

I have been left in no doubt that many Lutherans, and perhaps others, will be grievously disappointed and even angered by this decision. I cannot ask them to share my joy at this time; I do ask them to try to understand. As God permits, I will at some future time give a fuller explanation of why I have done what I had to do. Those who know my writings know that I am aware of the problems to be encountered also in the Roman Catholic Church. But for now it is enough that I have been brought this far.

To those of you with whom I have traveled in the past, know that we travel together still. In the mystery of Christ and His Church, nothing is lost, and the broken will be mended. If, as I do believe, my communion with Christ’s Church is now the fuller, then it needs be that my unity with all who are in Christ is the stronger.

I do not presume to think that I could ever repay those who, over the months and years, have borne with me through the studies, conversations, arguments and doubts of this decision’s making. I am most particularly grateful to my former bishop, William Lazareth, and my new bishop, John Cardinal O’Connor, for their friendship, understanding, counsel and constant support.

There is now a great peace, but I know it will not always be peaceful.

POINT/COUNTERPOINT

The Rev. Richard J. Neuhaus, a prominent Lutheran scholar and writer known for his critiques of liberal Christianity, announced Sept. 8 that he was joining the Roman Catholic Church. Neuhaus was considered one of the 20 most influential Lutherans in the mid-1980s, primarily because of his newsletter, “Forum Letter,” and other writings on religion and politics. Here he explains his reasons for the change. The Rev. Charles Austin, pastor of Christ Lutheran Church in Ridgefield Park, N.J., and a former religion reporter for the New York Times, takes exception.