MESSAGE
OF HIS BEATITUDE, ARCHBISHOP CHRISTODOULOS OF ATHENS AND ALL GREECE
TO THE MEMBERS OF THE ST. IRENAEUS JOINT ORTHODOX-CATHOLIC WORKING GROUP



It is a great pleasure for me to greet you, the distinguished members of the Saint Irenaeus Orthodox-Catholic Working Group, as you gather together, here in the City of Athens. As Bishop of the local Church and as Primate of the Church of Greece, I extend to you my most heartfelt welcome to our City and to our Country, as well as my warmest prayers and wishes for all success in your deliberations.

Your are meeting at a time when, after several years of stagnation, the Official Joint Doctrinal Discussions between the Orthodox and the Roman Catholic Church are about to commence once again. This is an encouraging development indeed. More than ever, the need to re-establish that unity in truth and love, which for more than one thousand years characterised our two Churches, becomes an urgent priority. Of course this unity is a gift of God and, as all good and perfect gifts, “cometh down from above, from the Father of lights”. Yet, much depends upon us as well, for we are called to collaborate and deliberate in such a way that we may contribute to the realisation of our Lord’s hieratic prayer “that all might be one, just as He and the Father are one”.

We are encouraged in our prayers towards this end by the recent election of Pope Benedict XVI as the new spiritual Leader of the Roman Catholic Church. His deep theological erudition and devout commitment to Ecclesiastical Tradition, in conjunction with his excellent knowledge of history and the many other charismata with which God has endowed him, constitute assurances not only for a successful Pontificate but also for closer unity and collaboration between our Churches.

Moreover, it is our belief that the coinciding of his election with the 40th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council and the issuance of the significant text Unitatis redintegratio, by which it made known its intention to set Christian unity and the improvement of Christian relations as one of its leading priorities, is not a chance occurrence. Rather, it signals the beginning of a new period in the relations between the Churches of East and West. We wholeheartedly pray that during this period the Theological Dialogue, which is beginning once again, will overcome all existing obstacles, so that, God willing, it will end in complete and perfect unity in love and truth.

Until such time, we are called to relate to one another in equality, with absolute respect and honour, labouring to increase mutual understanding and collaboration in all matters.

It is in this spirit then, that we greet you, the distinguished representatives of your Churches and participants in the sacred task of furthering the theological dialogue between our Churches. May your deliberations be fruitful and may they be crowned with all success. May they contribute to the further promotion of theological and ecclesiastical unity and understanding.

May God bless each and every one of you as you labour to overcome the obstacles that have for so long hindered the reunion of our two Churches, so that one day we may all be able to rejoice in the unity of the faith and the communion of the Holy Spirit.