Benedict XVI received in audience, on 29 June, the Delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, present in Rome for the feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul. The Delegation was led by Ioannis (Zizioulas), Metropolitan of Pergamon, co-chairman of the Mixed International Commission for theological dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox, and also composed of Kallistos (Timothy Ware), bishop of Diokleia, assistant of the archbishop of Thyateira and Great Britain, and Archimandrite Dionysius Papavasileiou. “The fact that the feast of Saints Peter and Paul is celebrated on the same day by both Catholics and Orthodox evokes our shared apostolic succession – said the Pope -. I am pleased to recall here how Byzantine hymnography attributes to Saint Peter a title charged with meaning, that of protocoryphaeus , the first in the choir who has the task of maintaining the harmony of the voices, for the glory of God and the service of his people. I am therefore grateful to you who have come to unite your prayer to ours, prompted by our common commitment to continue the journey that leads us step by step to eliminate all dissonance from the choir of the one Church of Christ”. The Pope then pointed out that “in the future there will be important opportunities for encounter and fraternal dialogue”, such as the plenary session of the Mixed International Commission for theological dialogue between Orthodox and Catholics, due to be held in Belgrade in September, thanks to the welcome extended by the Serbian Orthodox Patriarchate. “Dialogue thus resumes its path and enters a new phase”, added Benedict XVI, who also expressed his hope of being “able to undertake an apostolic pilgrimage to Turkey, a country of ancient and rich culture, a noble country where many holy Fathers of our ecclesial, theological and spiritual tradition spent their lives”, and thus to reciprocate “the welcome visits” that the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I “has been good enough to pay here in Rome”. “I am certain – concluded the Holy Father – that this mutual exchange will strengthen our ecclesial fraternity and facilitate collaboration in our common initiatives”.
