Pope Francis said Wednesday that the full restoration of communion among all Christians is “an urgent priority in today’s world.”

In a letter to the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople, the pope expressed gratitude that Catholic and Orthodox Christians are seeking “to achieve full communion that will enable us one day, in God’s time, to gather together at the same eucharistic table.”
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Pope Francis in a message to Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I has called for a continuous analyzing of the historical and theological reasons for the ongoing divisions between the two Churches “in a spirit that is neither polemical nor apologetic but marked instead by authentic dialogue and mutual openness”.
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While formal dialogue about the theological and historical causes of the splits in Christianity are essential, so, too, is a recognition that “sinful actions and attitudes” have contributed and continue to contribute to divisions in the body of Christ, Pope Francis said.

“We are called, then, to work toward the restoration of unity between Christians, not merely through signed agreements but through fidelity to the Father’s will and discernment of the promptings of the Spirit,” Pope Francis wrote in a letter to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople Nov. 30, the feast of St. Andrew.
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Pope Francis led an ecumenical prayer meeting with the participation of the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Christian leaders from Bahrain
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His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew offered greetings and a pointed message to the delegates and participants at the World Council of Churches (WCC) 11th Assembly in Karlsruhe, Germany.

He began his remarks with the teaching and the belief that “the light of Christ shines more brightly than any darkness in our hearts and in our world,” offering this idea as the underlying premise to the theme of the assembly, that “Christ’s love moves the world to reconciliation and unity.”

Yet, we have fallen short of this ideal, he suggested. Asking each of us the question, “how can we reconcile our magnificent faith with our manifest failure?”
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The formal recognition of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine brings “a wind of hope” that new opportunities will be created for dialogue and concrete cooperation in the search for Christian unity, said the head of the Ukrainian Catholic Church. Archbishop Sviatoslav Shevchuk, major archbishop of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church, said he already has agreed with the Orthodox Church’s newly elected Metropolitan Epiphanius of Kiev to draw up a “road map” to examine where the two churches could work together. The archbishop made his comments in a long interview with Glavcom, a Ukrainian news site; the Ukrainian Catholic Church’s website published the English translation of the interview Jan. 10.
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After the vespers in honour of St Andrew, patron saint of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, Patriarch Bartholomew received an international Orthodox interparliamentary delegation of which 24 States are members, presided over by the Russian Gavrilof, who took part to the festivities.

The Patriarch told those present that the work of the Synod had just been completed and that the Tomos is being prepared for granting the autocephaly to the Ukrainian Church. In this context the new statute of the Ukrainian Church was discussed, a subject that will continue during the Ukrainian Synod in December during which it is hoped that all the Orthodox parties will participate, to arrive at the election of the primate and grant the so-called Tomos. A new church will thus be added to the existing 14: “It is a purely administrative fact that does not affect the magisterium of the Orthodox Church”, Bartholomew explained.
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Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople called on Christians to work together to build a culture of solidarity in the face of growing economic inequality and a lack of respect for the human dignity of the poor and of migrants.

The two leaders met privately May 26 before addressing an international conference sponsored by the Centesimus Annus Pro Pontifice Foundation, which seeks to promote the teaching of St. John Paul II’s 1991 encyclical on social and economic justice.

“The current difficulties and crises within the global economic system have an undeniable ethical dimension,” Pope Francis told some 500 business leaders, theologians and proponents of Catholic social teaching.
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As leaders of dozens of religions gathered in Assisi for dialogue and prayers for peace, they honored Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople as an exemplar of one who is so deeply rooted in his own religious tradition that he can reach out to others without fear.

Jewish, Anglican and Catholic leaders paid tribute to Patriarch Bartholomew as he was about to celebrate the 25th anniversary of his enthronement as spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians. Pope Francis was scheduled to participate in a celebratory luncheon for the patriarch Sept. 20 in Assisi.

The Assisi celebrations Sept. 18-20 were organized by the Rome-based Community of Sant’Egidio, the Diocese of Assisi and the Franciscan friars.
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Pope Francis, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Archbishop Ieronymos of Athens and All Greece met on the Greek island of Lesvos on 16 April to demonstrate their concern for the situation of refugees, migrants and asylum seekers who have come to Europe fleeing from situations of conflict and, in many cases, daily threats to their survival.

The three church leaders urged people not to ignore the humanitarian crisis created by the spread of violence and armed conflict, the persecution and displacement of religious and ethnic minorities, and the uprooting of families from their homes.

“The tragedy of forced migration and displacement affects millions, and is fundamentally a crisis of humanity, calling for a response of solidarity, compassion, generosity and an immediate practical commitment of resources,” reads their message. “From Lesvos, we appeal to the international community to respond with courage in facing this massive humanitarian crisis, and its underlying causes, through diplomatic, political and charitable initiatives and through cooperative efforts, both in the Middle East and in Europe.”

The three leaders said they are one in their desire for peace and in their readiness to promote the resolution of conflicts through dialogue and reconciliation.
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As part of the observation of the Time for Creation, Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, has once again sent an encyclical to remind churches and people of goodwill about the grave risks deriving from growing abuse of energy resources, threatening to increase global warming and the sustainability of the natural environment.

“We invite everyone to soberness of life, purification of passionate thoughts and selfish motivations, so that we may dwell in harmony with our neighbours and with God’s creation,” said Bartholomew I.

These reflections were shared by the Ecumenical Patriarch on the occasion of the start of a “Time for Creation”, a global event which invokes prayers for creation, eco-justice and peace with the earth. It has been celebrated each year since 1989 from 1 September to 4 October. This year’s event has been promoted by Pope Francis’s recent proclamation of 1 September as the “World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.”

The Time for Creation was affirmed by the WCC Central Committee in 2008 as an invitation “to observe through prayers and action a special time for creation, its care and stewardship.”
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Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, leaders of the millennium-long separated Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, have issued resounding and historic calls for the reunification of their global communities. Speaking to one another after a solemn Orthodox divine liturgy in St. George, an historic Christian center, Sunday, both leaders pledged to intensify efforts for full unity of their churches, saying such unity already exists among Christians dying in conflicts in the Middle East. For his part, Francis made what appears to be the strongest and most encompassing call yet from a Catholic pontiff for unity. Seeking to assure Orthodox leaders that restoration of full communion between the churches would respect Eastern traditions, he said reunion would “not signify the submission of one to the other, or assimilation.” “I want to assure each one of you here that, to reach the desired goal of full unity, the Catholic church does not intend to impose any conditions except that of the shared profession of faith,” said the pope.
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We, Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, express our profound gratitude to God for the gift of this new encounter enabling us, in the presence of the members of the Holy Synod, the clergy and the faithful of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, to celebrate together the feast of Saint Andrew, the first-called and brother of the Apostle Peter. Our remembrance of the Apostles, who proclaimed the good news of the Gospel to the world through their preaching and their witness of martyrdom, strengthens in us the aspiration to continue to walk together in order to overcome, in love and in truth, the obstacles that divide us.
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On his return from Jerusalem, where he met with Pope Francis at the Holy Sepulchre, the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, has revealed an important appointment for unity between Catholics and Orthodox: a gathering at Nicaea in 2025, where the first real ecumenical council of the undivided Church was celebrated.

Speaking exclusively with AsiaNews, Bartholomew says that together with Pope Francis “we agreed to leave as a legacy to ourselves and our successors a gathering in Nicaea in 2025, to celebrate together, after 17 centuries, the first truly ecumenical synod, where the Creed was first promulgated”. The Council of Nicaea (now Iznik, 130 km south-east of Istanbul), brought together more than 300 bishops from East and West in 325 and is considered the first true ecumenical council. It was there that the formula of the Creed was decided, similar to the one recited during the liturgy today, saying that Jesus “is consubstantial to the Father,” to counter the Arian ideology.
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Like our venerable predecessors Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras who met here in Jerusalem fifty years ago, we too, Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, were determined to meet in the Holy Land “where our common Redeemer, Christ our Lord, lived, taught, died, rose again, and ascended into Heaven, whence he sent the Holy Spirit on the infant Church” (Common communiqué of Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras, published after their meeting of 6 January 1964). Our meeting, another encounter of the Bishops of the Churches of Rome and Constantinople founded respectively by the two Brothers the Apostles Peter and Andrew, is a source of profound spiritual joy for us. It presents a providential occasion to reflect on the depth and the authenticity of our existing bonds, themselves the fruit of a grace-filled journey on which the Lord has guided us since that blessed day of fifty years ago.
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The historic meeting between Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras in Jerusalem in January 1964 was a joyful occasion that swept aside centuries of division and has born good fruit, said Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz of Louisville, Kentucky, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Archbishop Demetrios, primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in America and chairman of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, in a joint statement, May 15.

The statement anticipated the May 25 meeting of Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem.

Archbishop Kurtz and Archbishop Demetrios said the growing closeness between Catholic and Orthodox Christians over the last 50 years has allowed them “to speak with one voice” on issues facing society.

“We commit ourselves to increased cooperation in these areas, including social, economic, and ethical dilemmas, and we call our people to pray for the success of the upcoming meeting between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem for the glory of God and the promotion of Christianity in our wounded world,” the statement said.
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The motto and logo of Pope Francis’ visit to the Holy Land

Ut unum sint is the motto chosen for Pope Francis’ visit to the Holy Land. The website theholylandreview.net announced this following the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land which was held in Tiberias on 11-12 March. There the heads of the Catholic communities in Israel, Palestine, Jordan and Cyprus presented the logo and motto for the Pope’s pilgrimage scheduled for 24-26 May.

The motto of the pilgrimage, according to the website, “is at the very core of his trip to the Holy Land”. Francis and Bartolomaios are scheduled to meet in the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre to commemorate and renew the desire and longing for unity among Christians, expressed by Pope Paul VI and Orthodox Patriarch Athenagoras 50 years ago in Jerusalem. In addition, the logo depicts the embrace between the two brothers, Apostles Peter and Andrew: the first two disciples called by Jesus in Galilee, patrons respectively of the Church of Rome and the Church of Constantinople.
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Almost a year after Francis’ election and with the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity at an end, it is now possible to give a first overview of the Pope’s initiatives to promote ecumenism. “For me ecumenism is a priority” Francis told Vatican Insider and Italian newspaper La Stampa in last December’s interview.

Some of the choices he made even at the very start of his pontificate had a very positive impact of ecumenism.
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There are many reasons to be hopeful about the direction of Catholic-Orthodox dialogue but it is threatened by tensions emerging within the Orthodox Church. As the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity gets under way today, a leading ecumenist gives his assessment.

In 1923, a schoolteacher priest of Lyons started devoting his spare time to helping the 10,000 refugees from Bolshevism camped and lodged around the city and its suburbs. It was his first encounter with a Christianity that was not Roman Catholic. Thus he learned the friendship of receiving as well as giving, finding great respect for the Orthodox clergy and people in their moment of destitution, as his heart opened to their faith and the beauty of their worship. He was astonished to find Catholics from the old Russian Empire who were not Latins, but Eastern Christians who maintained their unity with the Bishop of Rome with roots to before the Great Schism. Over the next decade, Paul Couturier became convinced of the need for Christian unity, and in 1935 he took hold of the Catholic Church Unity Octave, founded in 1908, and developed it into a “Universal Week of Prayer for the Unity of Christians in the charity and truth of Christ”. Inspired by the holiness of the Orthodox, beyond this world he imagined an “invisible monastery”, in which all could unite in prayer to God in Heaven, in the hope of seeing the same union realised in the Church here. He took for his motto the saying of Metropolitan Platon Gorodetsky of Kiev: “The walls of separation do not rise as far as Heaven.”
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The Archbishop of Canterbury affirmed his commitment to the reconciliation of Eastern and Western churches during a meeting with His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew yesterday.

The Most Revd Justin Welby was meeting with Patriarch Bartholomew during a two-day visit to Istanbul.

During their meeting Archbishop Justin said that Patriarch Bartholomew had been “an example of peace and reconciliation, politically, with the natural world, and in your historic visit to the installation of His Holiness Pope Francis I.

“Such reconciliation [is] very dear to my heart and is one of my key priorities. It is the call of Christ that all may be one so that the world may see. I will therefore be taking back with me the warmth of your hospitality and also, after our discussions today and tomorrow, a renewed and refreshed focus for greater unity and closer fellowship. We want to carry the cross of our divisions, but be filled with the hope and joy that comes from the grace and the love of Jesus.”
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The Ecumenical Patriarch said today he hoped for a continuing exchange of Orthodox and Anglican students to aid the two Churches’ relationship.

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who occupies the First Throne of the Orthodox Christian Church, was speaking today during his welcome of the Anglican Communion’s spiritual head Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby.

He said, “In the past, the rapprochement between our two Churches has been greatly assisted by the exchange of students, and we trust that this will continue. Our Theological School at Halki used to offer scholarships to Anglicans, and when it is reopened – as will happen in the near future (so it may be hoped) – we shall certainly wish to revive this tradition.

“These exchange students have frequently gone on to become leaders in their respective Churches, and their early inter-Church experience has enabled them to further the cause of Christian unity in highly constructive ways.”

Archbishop Welby is on what has been described as an ‘intensive two-day visit’ that will include official reception in the Chamber of the Throne, and a discussion with the Synodical Committee for Inter-Christian Affairs.
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Faith can be a powerful ally in addressing issues of social justice, said Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. He called faith a bearer of unique perspectives on eradicating poverty, balancing amidst globalization, combating fundamentalism, racism, and developing religious tolerance during conflicts.

Bartholomew I was interviewed for Independent Balkan News Agency on 1 July, speaking on behalf of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, a founding member of the World Council of Churches (WCC).

“It is precisely the role of religion to respond to the needs of the world’s poor as well as to vulnerable and marginalized people. In fact, it is a rare instance where a faith institution is not a defining marker of the space and character of a community,” he said.
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“Your presence is the sign of the profound bond that unites the Church of Constantinople with the Church of Rome in faith, in hope, and in charity,” Pope Francis said this morning on receiving the delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarch, which had arrived in Rome to celebrate the Solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul. The tradition of exchanging visits for the occasions of the respective patronal feasts dates back to 1969. The Pope emphasized that “fraternal gathering is an essential part of the journey towards unity.”

“The search for unity among Christians is an urgent task—you have said that ‘it is not a luxury, but an imperative’—from which, today more than ever, we cannot prescind. In our world that hungers and thirsts for truth, love, hope, peace, and unity, our witness demands that we should at last be able to proclaim, with one voice, the good news of the Gospel and celebrate together the Divine Mysteries of our new life in Christ. We are well aware that unity is primarily a gift from Gift that we must pray for unceasingly, but we all have the task of preparing the conditions, of cultivating the soil of the heart so that this extraordinary grace may be received.”
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Pope Francis’ reference to himself as the ‘Bishop of Rome’ was music to the ears of Orthodox leaders for whom the question of papal primacy has long been a problem for reunion. Their attendance at the new Pope’s inaugural Mass was a sign of their hopes for closer communion. A statement from the patriarchate explained Bartholomew’s decision to attend Pope Francis’ inauguration personally: the need for “a profoundly bold step … that could have lasting significance”. It is the first time the Bishop of Constantinople has attended the inauguration of the Bishop of Rome ever, let alone since the great schism of 1054. According to the patriarchate ­website: “after such a long division … authentic reunion will require courage, leadership and humility. Given Pope Francis’ well-­documented work for social justice and his insistence that globalisation is detrimental to the poor … the Orthodox and the Roman Catholic traditions have a renewed opportunity to work collectively on issues of mutual concern … But such work requires a first step and it would appear as though Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is willing to take such a step.” In one of those seemingly informal but resonant gestures that we are beginning to expect from Francis, the response was immediate and commensurate. The successor of Peter greeted the successor of the other Galilean fisherman as “my brother Andrew”.
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During the course of this morning’s ceremony in St. Peter’s Square for the opening of the Year of Faith, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I pronounced an address, extracts of which are given below.

“Fifty years ago in this very square, a powerful and pivotal celebration captured the heart and mind of the Roman Catholic Church, transporting it across the centuries into the contemporary world. This transforming milestone, the opening of Vatican Council II, was inspired by the fundamental reality that the Son and incarnate Logos of God is ‘where two or three are gathered in his name’ and that the Spirit, Who proceeds from the Father, ‘will guide us into the whole truth’.
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En ces lieux, il y a cinquante ans, une cérémonie solennelle a conquis le cœur et l’esprit de l’Eglise catholique, la faisant entrer dans le monde contemporain. L’ouverture d’un concile fut inspiré par la réalité fondamentale que le Fils et Verbe de Dieu incarné se trouve là où deux ou trois sont réunis en son nom et que l’Esprit, qui procède du Père, nous guidera vers la vérité complète… Au cours des cinquante dernières années, les fruits de cette assemblée ont été variés, dont témoigne une série de constitutions importantes, de déclarations et de décrets. Nous avons vu le renouvellement de l’esprit et un retour aux sources dans la recherche liturgique, biblique et patristique.
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The Ecumenical Patriarchate expresses profound sorrow as the world has rushed into a confusing and volatile time of religious protests turning violent, and a grievous lack of consideration for religious differences. When we act disrespectfully and violently in the name of our religious prejudices or our religious beliefs we are undermining our own lives and faith, while creating an atmosphere of anger, hatred, and distrust which unravels the very thread that has woven humanity together since our creation. The Ecumenical Patriarchate issued last August a communiqué “On the resurgence of Violence spreading throughout the World” and called for all people engaged in violence to lay down their weapons. Given the events of the past weeks, this call for peaceful engagement and mutual respect for all humanity is even more critical. Holy Scripture teaches us in Proverbs 10.12 “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all sins.” Hence, let us love one another because we know that true love comes from God who created every living person, and He loves every individual in His Divine Providence. We who profess to know God must recognize the Divine miracle of life within each human being and respect that seed of Divine creation. We who name God as our sovereign must nurture human life and reach out with honour to that person with whom we disagree.
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The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I publicly reaffirmed the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s commitment to the vision and mission of the World Council of Churches (WCC) on 3 September. He was addressing participants of the WCC Central Committee meeting in Crete, Greece. “The commitment of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the vision and mission of the WCC – from the early formative and creative years through even the more difficult and contentious moments – has always been unwavering and paramount,” said Bartholomew I.
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Patriarchal and Synodal Encyclical On the Sunday of Orthodoxy (February 21, 2010)
+ BARTHOLOMEW By God’s Grace Archbishop of Constantinople-New Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch
To the Fullness of the Church, Grace and Peace From our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ

Our most holy Orthodox Church today commemorates its own feast day, and – from this historical and martyric See of the Ecumenical Patriarchate – the Mother Church of Constantinople directs its blessing, love and concern to all of its faithful and dedicated spiritual children throughout the world, inviting them to concelebrate in prayer.
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The Ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomeos I, a key leader for the world’s 300 million Orthodox Christians, has written a Lenten encyclical that stresses the need for greater unity for churches, and counters accusations from some of his bishops that ecumenism is heresy.
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Le patriarche œcuménique Bartholomée Ier, “premier parmi ses pairs” dans la hiérarchie de l’Eglise orthodoxe, a appelé de ses vœux la création d’une organisation rassemblant anglicans, orthodoxes, protestants et catholiques romains.
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Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomeos I, a spiritual leader who represents Eastern Orthodox Christianity, has called for the creation of a churches’ umbrella body in Europe to include Roman Catholics alongside Anglicans, Orthodox and Protestants.
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Address of His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch BARTHOLOMEW to the XIIth Ordinary General Assembly of Bishops of the Roman Catholic Church (The Vatican, 18 October 2008)
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At a time when the Orthodox Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople – today’s Istanbul – is facing growing hardships imposed by decisions of the Turkish judiciary, members of the worldwide ecumenical family have expressed support and solidarity to His All Holiness the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.
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ISTANBUL, Turkey (ELCA) — A 17-member delegation from the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA) met here March 17 with His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew. The Lutherans offered official greetings to the patriarch, suggesting he visit the ELCA churchwide office in Chicago, as he did with his predecessor, Patriarch Demetrios. The greeting was read
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Voici le texte intégral de la Déclaration commune signée par le pape Jean-Paul II et le patriarche œcuménique Bartholomaios Ier au terme de la visite de celui-ci au Vatican.
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Here is a translation of the Joint Declaration signed by John Paul II and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople and published today.
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We are gathered here today in the spirit of peace for the good of all human beings and for the care of creation. At this moment in history, at the beginning of the third millennium, we are saddened to see the daily suffering of a great number of people from violence, starvation, poverty and disease. We are also concerned about the negative consequences for humanity and for all creation resulting from the degradation of some basic natural resources such as water, air and land, brought about by an economic and technological progress which does not recognize and take into account its limits.
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