"A historical visit, the first one by an Orthodox archbishop from Cyprus to the Pope. We are happy because it means that the Cyprus Orthodox Church is also looking outside its borders, at Europe, at the Catholic Church, in the perspective of dialogue". With these words, Msgr. Giorgio Khoury, secretary of the Maronite Church of Cyprus, representing the most numerous group of local faithful believers, over 5 thousand, welcomes the visit to the Vatican, from tomorrow to 18 June, paid by the Orthodox archbishop of Cyprus, Chrysostomos II. "Through this journey, Chrysostomos’ intention said the Maronite to SIR is to approach Europe and ask for the support of the Pope, to make known the problems of Christian churches, Orthodox as well as Catholic churches, located in the Turkish Cypriot side, where so many monasteries were destroyed or even changed into mosques, or maybe destined to other uses. According to Chrysostomos, it is important to recover them to render them usable for believers. Chrysostomos knows well that an opening towards the Catholic Church would be positive. And he also knows that Benedict XVI would appreciate a move towards the Russian Orthodox Church. In this respect stated the Maronite secretary, it is possible to expect a mediation attempt with Alexis. It is difficult to say what the result will be, but Chrysostomos will make the attempt".
