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Photo: Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I embrace.
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The theme of the Great Synod, according to Patriarch Lubomyr, the head of the UGCC, will be the strategy of evangelization in the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. Therefore the Permanent Synod is also preparing for this theme. Another task of the Permanent Synod is to compile a report on the preparation for the Patriarch's Synod, which will take place in Brazil in 2011 and will be devoted to the theme of consecrated life.
During their visit to Great Britain, the bishops, the members of Permanent Synod, congratulated Bishop Hlib (Lonchyna), Apostolic Administrator of Exarchate for the Ukrainian Catholics in Great Britain, for his entrance into the government. (Bishop Hlib was appointed the Apostolic Administrator of the Apostolic Exarchate for Ukrainians of the Byzantium rite in Great Britain
The program of the Permanent Synod included meetings with the local priests, laity, and youth. The purpose of those meetings, according to Patriarch Lubomyr, was "to get to know better the position of our Church in this country." Exactly for this reason, five years ago it was decided to conduct one of the meetings that take place during the year outside the borders of Ukraine. In addition, the members of the Permanent Synod had a meeting with the Roman Catholic Archbishop of Westminster Vincent Gerard Nichols.
Background information
The Permanent Synod consists of five people: from the government to this organ is the head of the UGCC, who is the head of Permanent Synod. Three bishops, the members of Permanent Synod, elect the Patriarch's Synod, and one is appointed by the Major Archbishop. The members of this Synod are elected every five years. Besides this, deputies are elected in case someone from the members of the Permanent Synod will not be able to participate in his work. During a year there are four meetings of the Permanent Synod, one of which takes place right after the completion of the Patriarch's Synod.
During the Synod of Bishops of the UGCC, which took place in Philadelphia (USA) from September 27 to October 6, 2007, the following new members of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the UGCC were chosen: Archbishop Ihor (Voznyak), Bishop Pavlo (Khomnytskyj), Bishop Davyd (Motyuk), and Bishop Vasyl' (Semenyuk). The composition of the deputies of the members of the Permanent Synod of Bishops of the UGCC: Bishop Vasyl' (Ivasyuk), Bishop Yaroslav (Pryriz), Bishop Volodymyr (Yuschak), and Bishop Volodymyr (Kovbych).
Information Department of the UGCC
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CWNews.com - The leader of the Church in the eastern European nation of Belarus has welcomed media reports that Pope Benedict may meet Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the Russian Orthodox Church. Media speculation that such a meeting might take place followed Pope Benedict’s recent meeting with Archbishop Hilarion, the leading Russian Orthodox ecumenical official.
“The message about a possible visit between Benedict XVI and the Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia Kirill gladdened my heart,” said Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz of Minsk-Mohilev. “I always prayed for such event when I was in Moscow and I am doing it now in Belarus. Such a meeting would open a new page in our relations-- in the relations between the Roman Catholic and the Orthodox Church.”
Archbishop Kondrusiewicz, who was the leading Catholic prelate in Russia from 1991 to 2007, added, “We need that new page in our relations, because challenges of the present, challenges of the secularized time are very hazardous. It is obvious that we need to answer these problems jointly … It would be a good orchestra, a Catholic-Orthodox or an Orthodox-Catholic, a Christian orchestra, which would protect Christian roots of Europe and Christian values. That’s why we need to pray and ask God to make this visit and the meeting a reality.”
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CWNews.com - Archbishop Hilarion of Volokolamsk, the leading Russian Orthodox ecumenical official, celebrate the Divine Liturgy in the catacombs and rued divisions among Christians, including the Protestant abandonment of fundamental principles. “We should clearly understand, that division is sin, tearing apart body of Church and weakening the power of Christian witness in secular world,” he said.
In doing so, Archbishop Hilarion returned to a theme he emphasized in his recent meeting with Pope Benedict, in which he noted the similarity between Catholic and Orthodox teaching on marriage and family life, as opposed to “Protestant communities which had pursued the liberalization of the Christian teaching,” in the words of the Russian news service Interfax.
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- Archbishop Hilarion urges to overcome disputes Orthodox and Catholics had for thousand years (Interfax)
- Archbishop Hilarion shares with Pope his concern about Orthodox dioceses in Ukraine destroyed by the Uniates (Interfax)
- Vatican official sees huge strides in relation with Russian Orthodox (CWN, Sept 18)
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VATICAN CITY, 19 SEP 2009 (VIS) - This morning in Castelgandolfo Benedict XVI received Catholic patriarchs and major archbishops from the Oriental Churches, in response to a request the prelates had made on various occasions in the past.
Participating in the meeting were Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. and Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, prefect of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches, alongside the "Heads and Fathers" of all the Eastern Catholic Churches in communion with the Bishop of Rome.
They are: His Beatitude Cardinal Nasrallah Pierre Sfeir, Patriarch of Antioch of the Maronites, Lebanon; Cardinal Emmanuel III Delly, Patriarch of Babylon of the Chaldeans, Iraq; Cardinal Lubomyr Husar, Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halyc, Ukraine; Cardinal Varkey Vithayathil C.SS.R., Major Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly of the Syro-Malabars, India; His Beatitude Antonios Naguib, Patriarch of Alexandria of the Copts, Egypt; His Beatitude Gregorios III Laham, Patriarch of Antioch of the Greek Melkites, Syria; His Beatitude Ignace Youssif III Younan, Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians, Lebanon; His Beatitude Nerses Bedros XIX, Patriarch of Cilicia of the Armenians, Lebanon; Archbishop Lucian Muresan of Fagaras and Alba Iulia of the Romanians, Romania; His Beatitude Baselios Moran Mor Cleemis Thottunkal, Major Archbishop of Trivandrum of the Syro-Malankars, India, and His Beatitude Fouad Twal, patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins.
According to a communique, the representatives of the Eastern Churches spoke to thank the Holy Father for his initiative and highlighted the two facets of the faithfulness that characterises them: "the bond with the Christian East and the bond with Peter's Successor, the universal Pastor, with his charism of unity in truth and in love". They also focused on "a number of more general themes, such as the phenomenon of migration ... and the ecumenical and inter- religious context in which their Churches live".
In his address to them the Holy Father recalled how, since the start of his pontificate in 2005, he had begun "an 'ideal' pilgrimage into the heart of the Christian East; another stage of this pilgrimage is today's meeting", he said, "and it is my intention to continue".
He then referred to the request made by the representatives of the Oriental Churches to have "more frequent contact with the Bishop of Rome in order to strengthen the communion of your Churches with Peter's Successor and together examine, as necessary, themes of particular importance".
"As for me, I feel a primary duty to promote that sinodality which is so dear to Eastern ecclesiology, and which was greeted with appreciation by Vatican Council II", the Pope said. He then went on to refer to the Apostolic Letter "Orientale lumen" in which John Paul II reiterated "the hope that the Eastern Catholic Churches may 'flourish' and with new apostolic vigour execute the task entrusted to them ... to promote the unity of all Christians, especially Eastern Christians, in keeping with the decree on ecumenism".
"The ecumenical question is often connected to the inter-religious question. In these two areas the Church as a whole needs that experience of coexistence which your Churches have matured since the first Christian millennium".
Recalling then how today's meeting would serve to examine the problems currently troubling the prelates, the Holy Father said: "In particular, I do not forget the appeal for peace you placed in my hands at the end of last October's assembly of the Synod of Bishops. And, on the subject of peace, our thoughts go out first and foremost to the regions of the Middle East".
Pope Benedict concluded: "I take, then, this opportunity to announce a Special Assembly of the Synod of Bishops for the Middle East, which I have called and will take place from 10 to 24 October 2010 on the theme: 'The Catholic Church in the Middle East: communion and witness: The whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul'". At the end of the meeting, the Holy Father lunched with the representatives of the Eastern Churches.
AC/EASTERN CHURCHES/...VIS 090921 (670)
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Rome - On 18 September, there was a preparatory meeting held in the Vatican Palace between the Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone and the Eastern Catholic Patriarchs and Major Archbishops of Ukraine, Romania and India (of Malankar and Malabar.) Present also were Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, Prefect of the Congregation for Eastern Churches, Archbishop Cyril Vasil S.J., Secretary of the Congregation, and Mgr. Maurizio Malvestiti, Undersecretary of the Congregation. The meeting lasted two hours: an opportunity for the Patriarchs and Archbishops to speak (for seven minutes each) about the problems and issues of their Churches and for them to hear the comments from both Cardinals.
Saturday, 19 the above-mentioned Cardinals, Patriarchs and Major Archbishops went by coach to Castelgandolfo, the papal summer residence. At 11:15a.m. His Holiness opened the meeting with a short prayer from the Syriac Liturgy, followed by a brief address of greeting. He said, "You have asked several times for a meeting, as a sign of collegiality of the Holy Father with you. You are always in my mind and prayers. In this beautiful, brotherly meeting, I am happy to announce officially my decision to hold a Synod for the Middle East from 10-24 October 2010." The Cardinals each spoke in an introductory way and there was then an opportunity for each of the participants to make a seven-minute presentation to the Holy Father.
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Year for Priests - 19 June 2009 - 19 June 2010
The Holy Synod in June 2009 studied the announcement from Pope Benedict XVI of a Year of the Priest 19 June 2009 to 19 June 2010. In order to commemorate the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the death of Jean-Marie Vianney (April 25 2009), patron of parish priests throughout the world, the Synod suggested some commemoratory activities: firstly, to address a letter in the name of the Patriarch and the Holy Synod to all priests; second, to present the Servant of God Beshara Abou Mrad, Salvatorian Father, as a model for parish priests; thirdly, to prepare a congress for all priests of the Melkite Church; fourthly, to publish some leaflets about the priestly vocation and fifthly, to organise meetings in the various congregations, schools, universities and parish movements so as to invite young people to consider the priesthood as a vocation.
A committee was appointed under the leadership of Archbishop Selim Ghazal to supervise the whole celebration of this year.
The Patriarch is preparing the letter, taking into consideration eventual suggestions from bishops.
The following presentation was given by His Beatitude to His Holiness at their meeting on 19 September 2009 in Castelgandolfo.