“This is the day that the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it!”
(Ps 117:24)
This fraternal encounter which brings us
together, Pope Benedict XVI of Rome and
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, is Godâs
work, and in a certain sense his gift. We give
thanks to the Author of all that is good, who
allows us once again, in prayer and in dialogue,
to express the joy we feel as brothers and to
renew our commitment to move towards full
communion. This commitment comes from the
Lordâs will and from our responsibility as
Pastors in the Church of Christ. May our meeting
be a sign and an encouragement to us to share the
same sentiments and the same attitudes of
fraternity, cooperation and communion in charity
and truth. The Holy Spirit will help us to
prepare the great day of the re-establishment of
full unity, whenever and however God wills it.
Then we shall truly be able to rejoice and be glad.
1. We have recalled with thankfulness the
meetings of our venerable predecessors, blessed
by the Lord, who showed the world the urgent need
for unity and traced sure paths for attaining it,
through dialogue, prayer and the daily life of
the Church. Pope Paul VI and Patriarch
Athenagoras I went as pilgrims to Jerusalem, to
the very place where Jesus Christ died and rose
again for the salvation of the world, and they
also met again, here in the Phanar and in Rome.
They left us a common declaration which retains
all its value; it emphasizes that true dialogue
in charity must sustain and inspire all relations
between individuals and between Churches, that it
âmust be rooted in a total fidelity to the one
Lord Jesus Christ and in mutual respect for their
own traditionsâ (Tomos Agapis, 195). Nor have
we forgotten the reciprocal visits of His
Holiness Pope John Paul II and His Holiness
Dimitrios I. It was during the visit of Pope John
Paul II, his first ecumenical visit, that the
creation of the Mixed Commission for theological
dialogue between the Roman Catholic Church and
the Orthodox Church was announced. This has
brought together our Churches in the declared aim
of re-establishing full communion.
As far as relations between the Church of Rome
and the Church of Constantinople are concerned,
we cannot fail to recall the solemn ecclesial act
effacing the memory of the ancient anathemas
which for centuries had a negative effect on our
Churches. We have not yet drawn from this act all
the positive consequences which can flow from it
in our progress towards full unity, to which the
mixed Commission is called to make an important
contribution. We exhort our faithful to take an
active part in this process, through prayer and through significant gestures.
2. At the time of the plenary session of the
mixed Commission for theological dialogue, which
was recently held in Belgrade through the
generous hospitality of the Serbian Orthodox
Church, we expressed our profound joy at the
resumption of the theological dialogue. This had
been interrupted for several years because of
various difficulties, but now the Commission was
able to work afresh in a spirit of friendship and
cooperation. In treating the topic
âConciliarity and Authority in the Churchâ at
local, regional and universal levels, the
Commission undertook a phase of study on the
ecclesiological and canonical consequences of the
sacramental nature of the Church. This will
permit us to address some of the principal
questions that are still unresolved. We are
committed to offer unceasing support, as in the
past, to the work entrusted to this Commission
and we accompany its members with our prayers.
3. As Pastors, we have first of all reflected on
the mission to proclaim the Gospel in todayâs
world. This mission, âGo, make disciples of all
nationsâ (Mt 28:19), is today more timely and
necessary than ever, even in traditionally
Christian countries. Moreover, we cannot ignore
the increase of secularization, relativism, even
nihilism, especially in the Western world. All
this calls for a renewed and powerful
proclamation of the Gospel, adapted to the
cultures of our time. Our traditions represent
for us a patrimony which must be continually
shared, proposed, and interpreted anew. This is
why we must strengthen our cooperation and our common witness before the world.
4. We have viewed positively the process that has
led to the formation of the European Union. Those
engaged in this great project shouldnot fail to
take into consideration all aspects affecting the
inalienable rights of the human person,
especially religious freedom, a witness and
guarantor of respect for all other freedoms. In
every step towards unification, minorities must
be protected, with their cultural traditions and
the distinguishing features of their religion. In
Europe, while remaining open to other religions
and to their cultural contributions, we must
unite our efforts to preserve Christian roots,
traditions and values, to ensure respect for
history, and thus to contribute to the European
culture of the future and to the quality of human
relations at every level. In this context, how
could we not evoke the very ancient witnesses and
the illustrious Christian heritage of the land in
which our meeting is taking place, beginning with
what the Acts of the Apostles tells us concerning
the figure of Saint Paul, Apostle of the
Gentiles? In this land, the Gospel message and
the ancient cultural tradition met. This link,
which has contributed so much to the Christian
heritage that we share, remains timely and will
bear more fruit in the future for evangelization and for our unity.
5. Our concern extends to those parts of
todayâs world where Christians live and to the
difficulties they have to face, particularly
poverty, wars and terrorism, but equally to
various forms of exploitation of the poor, of
migrants, women and children. We are called to
work together to promote respect for the rights
of every human being, created in the image and
likeness of God, and to foster economic, social
and cultural development. Our theological and
ethical traditions can offer a solid basis for a
united approach in preaching and action. Above
all, we wish to affirm that killing innocent
people in Godâs name is an offence against him
and against human dignity. We must all commit
ourselves to the renewed service of humanity and
the defence of human life, every human life.
We take profoundly to heart the cause of peace in
the Middle East, where our Lord lived, suffered,
died and rose again, and where a great multitude
of our Christian brethren have lived for
centuries. We fervently hope that peace will be
re-established in that region, that respectful
coexistence will be strengthened between the
different peoples that live there, between the
Churches and between the different religions
found there. To this end, we encourage the
establishment of closer relationships between
Christians, and of an authentic and honest
interreligious dialogue, with a view to combating
every form of violence and discrimination.
6. At present, in the face of the great threats
to the natural environment, we want to express
our concern at the negative consequences for
humanity and for the whole of creation which can
result from economic and technological progress
that does not know its limits. As religious
leaders, we consider it one of our duties to
encourage and to support all efforts made to
protect Godâs creation, and to bequeath to
future generations a world in which they will be able to live.
7. Finally, our thoughts turn towards all of you,
the faithful of our two Churches throughout the
world, Bishops, priests, deacons, men and women
religious, lay men and women engaged in ecclesial
service, and all the baptized. In Christ we greet
other Christians, assuring them of our prayers
and our openness to dialogue and cooperation. In
the words of the Apostle of the Gentiles, we
greet all of you: âGrace to you and peace from
God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christâ (2 Cor 1:2).
At the Phanar, 30 November 2006
Benedict
XVI Bartholomew I
