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It wasn't really the new president, but the new pope, who ended up fulfilling many of the wishes of that Christianity Today editorial. In 1958, John XXIII took the papal throne, and, two years after Kennedy's election, opened Vatican II.

What's amazing is that Vatican II isn't even mentioned in Goodstein's piece, even though it did more than anything else to a) nuance and correct Roman Catholic doctrine on church-state relations (in Dignitatis Humanae) and b) begin rapprochement between Protestants and Catholics (in Unitatis Redintegratio) by embracing us as fellow believers and fellow Christians.

Major points in Dignitatis Humanae include the importance of individual conscience and striving for justice. And on these points more than any other have evangelicals and Catholics united. Yes, that unity has apparently sped up over the last decade, but it has done so as Catholic and Protestant stances on justice (particularly in regards to abortion, euthanasia, homosexual behavior, and other life issues) have become increasingly at odds with mainstream Western culture, and as it has become increasingly important to distinguish personal conscience from personal autonomy.

However, as close as Protestants and conservative Catholics are getting, we are still tragically divided. In a recent discussion with Christianity Today editors, CT executive editor Timothy George noted that the inability of Protestants and Catholics to share Communion should be something that grieves us deeply. In the debate over the Roman Catholic understanding of the Lord's Table, discussion has focused on proabortion politicians and gay activists. But few are talking about the differences with Protestant and Orthodox understandings of Communion, the difference between Open and Closed Communion, and if those nourished by the Body and Blood of Christ can join together at the same Table.

Catholics and Communion:

• Lay group attempts to block Eucharist | Gay-rights backers' action is disrupted (Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minnesota)
• Bishops temper Communion stance (Religion News Service)
• Protesters denied Eucharist | 10 supporting gay rights get only blessing in Holy Name (Chicago Tribune)
• Gay-rights activists denied Communion | Parishioners who wore rainbow-colored sashes to Mass in support of gays and lesbians were denied communion in Chicago, while laymen in Minnesota tried to prevent gay Roman Catholics from getting the sacrament (Associated Press)
• Catholic gay activists denied Communion in Chicago (Reuters)
• A divisive issue for Catholics: Bishops, politicians and Communion | Bishops' words have stirred strong passions among Catholics far and wide, prompting discussions that raise questions about the meaning of being both an American and a Roman Catholic (The New York Times)
• In New Jersey, an archbishop conservative and controversial | John J. Myers is one of a handful of outspoken bishops whose conservatism has become controversial, even in a church that has for a generation been moving toward a stricter adherence to doctrine under the prodding and direction of Pope John Paul II (The New York Times)
• Kerry and company aren't alone | Historically, not every Catholic is welcome to receive Communion (The Dallas Morning News)

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May (Web-only) 2004, Vol. 48