Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew: “We shared common concerns with Pope Francis”
“We have cooperated decisively for the greater rapprochement of our Churches” and “for the promotion of theological dialogue,” Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew told the Italian agency ANSA, referring to Pope Francis immediately after his arrival in Rome to attend the Pontiff’s funeral. He also recalled their joint efforts both in the refugee situation and in dealing with the consequences of environmental destruction.
“We have worked with dedication to further bring our Churches closer together. To promote theological dialogue between us. To overcome difficulties, but above all to highlight all those who unite us, with the aim that this path will lead us to the blessed day when we will once again share the Common Cup,” said Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
Calling the Pope “brother,” he pointed to the meeting scheduled for May in Nicaea of Bithynia, on the occasion of the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council. The Ecumenical Patriarch emphasised that “the God of life and death decided differently, to call him close to Him, and now brother Francis will pray from Heaven for all of us and for the unity of the Churches.”
Continuing, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew emphasised that the primates of the two Churches walked together “the path of awakening the powerful of the world and every person of good will to the refugee and migration issue. We sent a common message from Lesvos in every direction, so that all our well-intentioned fellow human beings may realise that behind the lifeless numbers there are faces of our suffering and frightened brothers and sisters.”
“We shared common concerns about our witness as shepherds, about the witness of our Churches in our modern societies, which are faced with multiple challenges in our world troubled by conflicts and wars,” he said, and did not fail to highlight the joint efforts to address the destruction of the environment and the effects of climate change. “We shared common views on the need to protect God’s Creation, to safeguard our common Home, at a time when the planet is experiencing daily environmental degradation and the consequences of climate change, a result of our own selfish behaviour,” emphasised Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
Source: ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ
