Leo XIV Positions Ecumenism of Blood as the Key to Christian Unity

The Pope first recalled that the Church of Rome was born "from the witness of the Apostles Peter and Paul and made fruitful by their blood and that of many martyrs." These martyrs we count among us today:

"Even today, there are Christians throughout the world whom the Gospel makes generous and bold, even at the cost of their lives. There thus exists an ecumenism of blood, an invisible and profound unity between the Christian Churches, which, however, do not yet experience full visible communion.”

The Pope then expressed his desire to seek Christian unity. He also explained the relationship between Christ and Peter. He recalled that Jesus's work among men is repeated among those who follow Him. He finally added that forgiveness is the key to the unity of the Churches.

But it must unfortunately be noted that the notion of ecumenism of blood is erroneous.

Precedents

This is not the first time that a pope has celebrated "martyrs" who do not belong to the Catholic Church. John Paul II had intended to hold an "ecumenical commemoration of the witnesses to the faith of the 20th century."

On May 7, 2000, the Third Sunday of Easter, he delivered a homily before representatives of the Orthodox Churches and the ancient Churches of the East. Representatives of Protestant communities and ecumenical organizations were also present. The meeting was held near the Colosseum.

John Paul II stated in particular that "in our century, 'the witness borne to Christ unto blood has become a common heritage of Catholics, Orthodox, Anglicans, and Protestants' (Tertio millennio adveniente, n. 37)."

A few years later, in 2005, a Universal Martyrology was published, prepared by the Bose Community—composed of members of various faiths, founded after the Council by Enzo Bianchi. This martyrology brings together Christians and members of many other religions.

On February 15, 2021, an ecumenical webinar was organized with the participation of Pope Francis, Coptic Orthodox Patriarch Tawadros II, and Anglican Primate Justin Welby, to commemorate the 21 Coptic Christians brutally murdered by the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, on Libyan territory, on February 15, 2015.

A week after the execution, Tawadros II inscribed the 21 victims in the Coptic Orthodox Church's book of martyrs. During the conference, Francis stated: "They are our saints, the saints of all Christians, the saints of all Christian confessions and traditions," the saints "of the people of God, of the faithful people of God," who "washed their lives in the blood of the Lamb."

He concluded his speech with these words: "Let us pray together today in this memory of these 21 Coptic martyrs: may they intercede for us all before the Father. Amen."

An Impossible Declaration

Obviously, there is no question concerning the terrible suffering endured by these victims of anti-Christian hatred. Nor can anyone ignore the fact that they preferred death to the denial of their belief in Christ. But it is simply not possible for the Catholic Church to declare them "martyrs." This declaration lacks a crucial dimension.

A martyr is in fact someone who has voluntarily suffered death inflicted in hatred of the Catholic Faith. Therefore, to be able to apply this title, it is essential that the person visibly belong to the Catholic Church through their profession of faith. For the Church cannot judge what is internal to the soul, but judges by the outward signs it observes.

This is why Pope Benedict XIV (1675-1758), in his treatise on the canonization of saints, explains that it is not possible to affirm the martyrdom of a person who does not belong to the Church. Does this mean that there cannot be martyrs outside the visible boundaries of the Church?

It is possible, continues Benedict XIV, but they are then "martyrs before God and not before the Church," which cannot judge them. They will receive in heaven the reward intended for martyrs, but remain unknown to us here below.

Thus, this doctrine professed by John Paul II, Francis, and now Leo XIV, besides having no theological foundation, according to Benedict XIV, has the effect of erasing the differences between the Catholic Church and other religions. It dissolves the clear boundary between the one true Church and all those who have separated from it.

It also creates the feeling that one can be saved indifferently in any religion and contributes to that relativism that is destructive of the true faith, which finds its starting point in the declaration Dignitatis Humanae of the Second Vatican Council.

There are no saints common to all Christian denominations and traditions. The Church does not have the power to declare this. We can certainly pray for non-Catholic Christians, but we cannot pray to them.