Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew to meet Sunday in Jerusalem

“We wish to take the opportunity presented by the meeting between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem in May 2014 to reaffirm the dialogue of love initiated by Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras and to continue to strive to remove that which separates us. . . 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 for the glory of God and the promotion of Christianity in our wounded world.”

– From the joint statement issued on May 15 by Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, President of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and Archbishop Demetrios, Primate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America and Chairman of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops in the United States of America

Pope Francis of Rome and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople and New Rome (modern Istanbul) are set to meet this Sunday, May 25 at a historic “Apostolic Pilgrimage” in Jerusalem. As the spiritual leaders of the world’s two largest Christian communions, both the Pope and the Patriarch already collaborate closely on many issues, but this meeting will serve as both a symbolic “first” of the new millennium, a celebration of fifty years of ongoing ecumenical dialogue, and an opportunity for both Churches, through their two archpastors, to grow closer through mutual love, respect and deepening understanding. But what exactly can ordinary faithful, whether Catholic, Orthodox, or part of another Christian confession, expect from this high level meeting?

This excellent article by Orthodox priest Fr. Lawrence Farley realistically presents what we can and should expect from this coming Sunday’s highly anticipated meeting between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem. Hailed in public statements issued by many Roman Catholic and Orthodox archbishops as the “Apostolic Pilgrimage to Jerusalem“, the forthcoming meeting between the Roman Catholic Pope and the Eastern Orthodox Patriarch, who is the primus inter pares among Orthodox primates, will be a historical “first” of the new millennium, though Patriarch Bartholomew attended Francis’ Mass of installation as Pope last March.

As Fr. Lawrence notes in his article, symbolism is highly important to both the Christian East and West, and rather than effecting any concrete steps toward a restoration of sacramental communion (which neither Francis nor Bartholomew have the unique power or authority to realize), this important meeting between the earthly head of one communion and the first among equals of another will serve to realize a number of crucial historical symbols.

Fifty years after their respective predecessors Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras met in Jerusalem (the first such meeting in history), this symbolic venue will above all be a friendly meeting of the two archpastors, who have remained in regular contact since Pope Francis’ election and installment as Pope in March of last year. Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew will pray together in the ancient Church of the Holy Sepulchre, the basilica which is the holiest of Christian shrines as the site of Jesus Christ’s death, entombment and resurrection. It will be a meeting of fraternal love and mutual respect in a temple often marred by violence between the different confessions which share custody of it.

Most importantly, rather than any movement closer toward sacramental communion, we can expect the issuing of a common declaration from the two hierarchs with regard to many important global issues, especially the ongoing persecution of Christians in the Middle East and Africa, an area of enormous concern to both Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew.

It is this “ecumenism of blood”, as Pope Francis has described it, which both leaders hope will continue to grow stronger as Orthodox and Roman Catholics unite not yet sacramentally, but in a crucial common witness to the ongoing suffering of so many Christians worldwide. As the Orthodox and Catholic communions are the two largest Christian confessions in the world today, this meeting of their two senior hierarchs fifty years after their predecessors initiated the ecumenical dialogue will hopefully inspire a deepening in the ongoing theological discussions, an exhortation for members of both faiths to recommit themselves to a shared Christian witness in this suffering world, and a greater understanding of the differences that remain, as well as the beliefs and values common to both communions.