Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission on the Theology of Marriage (1968-1975)

Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission on the Theology of Marriage, 1967-1975

The Anglican-Roman Catholic Commission on the Theology of Marriage (ARCCM) was established at the same time that the Joint Preparatory Commission was established, following the March 1966 meeting of Archbishop of Canterbury Michael Ramsey to Pope Paul VI. Until 1968 when the ARCJPC completed its Malta Report, the ARCCM was considered to be a sub-commission of the ARCJPC. Early documents of the ARCCM have protocol numbers beginning ARCJPC/MM, with documents 11-33B using the ARCCM acronym. These documents are numbered separately from the ARCJPC collection. Records of the ARCCM are housed in the Lambeth Palace Library in the collection of the Church of England’s Council on Foreign Relations (ref no. CFR RC 186A).

In addition to the documents listed below, there are other documents relevant to ARCCM that were not assigned a protocol number. These can be found in the complete ARCCM fonds.

  • Use the “Google Custom Search” at the top right to search for keywords or themes in these documents
  • See the Acronyms list for further clarifications

Status of agreed statements

Agreed statements have been agreed by the dialogue members and submitted to the sponsoring churches for study.
These texts express the careful considerations of the members of the dialogue but are not official statements of either of the churches.
Copyright

Copyright in minutes, statements and other core papers is owned by the Commission and requests for extensive quotation or use should be directed to the co-Chairs. However, copyright in papers by named authors remains with the author.

ARCJPC-MM-1 – Introduction to the Principal Documents at Present Before the Sub-Commission by Professor the Revd. Canon G.R. Dunstan.

ARCJPC-MM-2 – Mixed Marriage: Status Quaestiones

ARCJPC-MM-3 – First Interim Report of the Joint Anglican/Roman Catholic Sub-Commission on the Theology of Marriage and its Application to Mixed Marriages.

ARCJPC-MM-3A – Joint Press Release (Friday 26th April 1968)

ARCJPC-MM-3B – Report on the Problem of Mixed Marriages (Provisional text, corrected after the Meetings at Nemi (25 February-4 March 1967), translation from the French original)

ARCJPC-MM-3CMixed Marriages: In the Light of the Word of God, Theological Aspects, Canonical Aspects, Pastoralia of mixed homes. Circulated by CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) to Anglican members of the Anglican/Roman Catholic Sub-Commission on Mixed Marriages, Windsor, 16th-18th April 1968. (This is an English Translation from the French version of the document produced by the full Roman Catholic group for the Nemi Conference (1-4 March 1967) as a result of their study of “Marriage and the Division among the Churches”)

ARCJPC-MM-3D – “Mixed Marriages” (Chapter 5 of Understanding the Synod by Peter Hebblethwaite, S.J., Gill & Son, 1968). Circulated by CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) to Anglican members of the Anglican/Roman Catholic Sub-Commission on Mixed Marriages, Windsor, 16th – 18th April 1968.

ARCJPC-MM-4 – Copy of a letter from the Right Reverend Thomas Holland, Bishop of Salford, to the Clergy in his Diocese.

ARCJPC-MM-5 – Second Meeting – Pineta Sacchetti, Rome, 27th – 30th November 1968.
Copy of a letter to the Right Reverend Mgr. J.G.M. Willebrands from the Most Reverend George O. Simms, Archbishop of Dublin, and the Most Reverend Ernest L. Unterkoefler, Bishop of Charleston, Joint Chairman of the Sub-Commission.

ARCJPC-MM-6Proposed Pastoral Guidelines for Inter-Christian Marriages by Monsignor Henry G.J. Beck in Lyndhurst, New Jersey. Paper was prepared for discussion at Detroit, October 1968, by the Mission and Worship Section of the Joint Roman Catholic/Presbyterian and Reformed Conversation Group.

ARCJPC-MM-7 – Second Meeting – Pineta Sacchetti, Rome, 27th – 30th November 1968. The Pastoral Approach to the Problems of Mixed Marriage by The Right Reverend Donald H.V. Hallock, Bishop of Milwaukee.

ARCJPC-MM-8 – Second Meeting – Pineta Sacchetti, Rome, 27th – 30th November 1968. The Relation of the Encyclical ‘Humanae Vitae’ to the Sub-Commission’s Task by Professor the Reverend Canon G.R. Dunstan.

ARCJPC-MM-9 – Second Meeting – Pineta Sacchetti, Rome, 27th -30th November 1968. The Relation of the Encyclical ‘Humanae Vitae’ to the Sub-Commission’s Task by The Right Reverend Langton Douglas Fox, Auxiliary Bishop of Menevia.

ARCJPC-MM-10 – Preparation for the Second Meeting of The Joint Anglican/Roman Catholic Sub-Commission of The Theology of Marriage and Its Application to Mixed Marriages. The majority is in English but includes letters in Italian.

ARCCM-11 – Third Meeting – National Liberal Club, London, 22nd – 25th November 1971. Copy of a letter to the Archbishop of Canterbury and Cardinal J.G.M. Willebrands from the Archbishop of Armagh and the Bishop of Charleston, Co-Chairmen of the Commission.

ARCCM-11A – Third Report of the Anglican/Roman Commission on the Theology of Marriage and its Applications to Mixed Marriages (also ARCIC-54A)

ARCCM-12 – Documents relating to the Anglican/Roman Catholic Commission on the Theology of Marriage and its application to Mixed Marriages. Refers to five meetings from 1968-1974.

ARCCM-13 – Notes on Conversation at Lambeth concerning Mixed Marriages. 4th October 1972. Lists who was present at the conversation.

ARCCM-14: Appendix 7: The New Testament Teaching on Marriage and Divorce, Memorandum prepared by The Reverend Professor G.D. Kilpatrick (The Church and the Law of Nullity of Marriage: Archbishops’ Commission report (SPCK, 1955), pp. 61-66).

ARCCM-14A: Appendix 8: The Gospel Passages Dealing with the Dissolution of Marriage, Memorandum prepared by the late the Reverend R.G. Heard (The Church and the Law of Nullity of Marriage: Archbishops’ Commission report (SPCK, 1955), pp. 67-69).

ARCCM-15 – Copy of ‘Marriage in the New Testament and in the Early Church’ by Willy Rodorf from Journal of Ecclesiastical History, Volume XX, Number 2, October 1969, (pp.193-201)

ARCCM-16 – Notes on the doctrine of a metaphysical vinculum prepared for the Joint Commission of the Anglican and Roman Catholic Churches by J.R .Lucas, Fellow of Merton College, Oxford.

ARCCM-17 – ‘On the Nature of the Marriage Bond (Vinculum Conjugale)’, by John Macquarrie.

ARCCM-18 – ‘Is the Marriage Bond An Indissoluble Vinculum’ by Helen Oppenheimer.

ARCCM-19 – ‘Indissolubility of Marriage in the New Testament: Law or Ideal?’ by Aloysius M. Ambrozic. Paper circulated at the suggestion of Bishop Spence. The paper was given at the annual convention of the Canon Law Society of Canada.

ARCCM-20 – ‘Words and Bonds’ by Michael Sharratt, Ushaw College Durham

ARCCM-21 – ‘Divorce in the New Testament’ by Henry Wansbrough, Ampleforth Abbey, York.

ARCCM-22 – Fourth Report of the ARCCM (also ARCIC-84C)

ARCCM-22A – Questionnaire on Anglican-Roman Catholic Mixed Marriages, November 1973.

ARCCM-23 – ‘The Anglican Understanding of Natural and Sacramental Marriage’ by G.R. Dunstan, Kings College, London, 1 March 1974.

ARCCM-24 – ‘How important is it to Anglicans that the children of mixed marriages be brought up as members of their own Communion, and why? An Episcopalian’s Response.’ by L. Mason Knox, Sacred Heart School of Theology, Hales Corners, Wisconsin, USA.

ARCCM-25 – ‘Theological Trends, Interchurch Marriage 1’ by John Coventry from The Way, Volume 14, number 2 (April 1974): 141-150.

ARCCM-25A – ‘Theological Trends, Interchurch Marriage II’ by John Coventry from The Way, Volume 14, number 3 (July 1974): 222=230.

ARCCM-25B – ‘Marriages Between Anglicans and Roman Catholics’.

ARCCM-26 – Note by Chancellor The Reverend E. Garth Moore, refers to the meetings of the Commission, Nullity of Marriage and Marriage, Divorce and the Church.

ARCCM-27 – Answers to Questionnaire from Anglican Provinces.

ARCCM-27A -Results of Questionnaire of Anglican/Roman Catholic Mixed Marriages.

ARCCM-28 – ‘Mixed Marriages: The “Cautiones”‘, A Discussion Paper by The Reverend Doctor Brian O’ Higgins.

ARCCM-30 – Prot.N.2717/68. From Sacra Congregatio Pro Doctrina Fidei (Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith), titled ‘Instructio Pro Solutione Matrimonii in Favorem Fidei’. The document is in Italian.

ARCCM-31 – Vatican II’s Ecclesiology by Bishop B.C. Butler.

ARCCM-32 – Notes for the Preparation of the Final (Fifth) Report of the Anglican/Roman Catholic Commission on the Theology of Marriage and its Application to Mixed Marriages. (also labelled ARCIC-122A)

ARCCM-33 – (1st Draft) Draft Final Report to go to Members of the Commission. Lists members of the Commission. Dated August 1974.

ARCCM-33A – (2nd Draft) Draft Final Report to go to Members of the Commission. List of Members of the Commission. Dated April 1975.

ARCCM-33B – Final Report of the ARCCM. Dated June 1975