Your Beatitudes, dearly beloved brothers in the Lord,
We offer glory and gratitude to our God in Trinity, for He has deemed us worthy to assemble in the same place and in His name, so that “we may with one mouth and one heart” declare the love that binds us and the most holy Churches that we lead in these times of trouble and temptation for all humanity, especially for those who live in the geographical region of our Churches.
We welcome you with much profound love to the seat of this historic and martyric Throne, even as we thank you wholeheartedly for your willing response to our Modesty’s invitation for this Synaxis. We deeply appreciate your fraternal readiness and labor in undertaking this journey and we pray that your stay in this historic City will prove in every way a pleasant experience, while your cooperation will prove fruitful in the service of unity as well as for the benefit of the mission of our most holy Churches and of the most holy Orthodox Church universally.
Since the Church of Christ is “in the world” but not “of the world” (John 17.14), it must not “conform to this age” (Rom. 12.2) because it knows and believes that “this world and its desire pass away” (1 John 2.17). Thus, there is nothing stable or permanent in history, but rather everything is subjected to change, often unexpected and sudden. This is why our most holy Orthodox Church follows its ancient tradition and ecclesiology, always abstaining from any interference in the politics and conflicts of any kind of earthly powers.
This stance of the Orthodox Church before worldly and historical events by no means implies indifference or apathy in the face of these. For occurrences in the world and in history deeply influence the life of the Church’s members, often posing very serious problems for their peaceful existence. This is especially the case in cases of bloody divisions resulting in the destruction of the peaceful and cultural achievements as well as the loss of human lives and creation of human misfortune. In such circumstances, even people’s faith is challenged, while the very foundations of the Church are threatened inasmuch as it is hurled into the whirlwind of uncertainty with regard to what the future will bring.
In such cases, the responsibility of those entrusted by God with the pastoral leadership of the local Churches is particularly mandatory. We are called to support, to comfort and to guide the troubled people of God, while at the same time to assume every necessary measure before secular leaders with a view to protecting both the flock assigned to us but also the sacred institution of the Church in our geographical region.
It is impossible for us to fulfil this immense responsibility without mutual support and solidarity. As St. Paul emphasizes when he refers to the Church of Christ: “If one member suffers, every member suffers.” (1 Cor. 12.26) The local Churches comprise one body and, despite our organization into “autocephalous” Churches, we do not cease to comprise one Church, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ. Consequently, it is our obligation to assemble together in order to exchange opinions and resolve in common the various serious problems that arise from time to time in the life of the Church. Embracing this obligation in its responsibility for the unity of our Orthodox Church, the Ecumenical Patriarchate also assumed the initiative of the present Synaxis in order to respond to an urgent and timely issue.
Indeed, dearly beloved and venerable brothers in the Lord, recent events in the region of the Middle East create much concern and even anxiety for an area where vast turmoil prevails with unforeseeable consequences for the peace and prosperity of those living there. These regional occurrences influence not only the life of the Orthodox faithful there, but also the very survival of the Christian Churches, which have long unfortunately faced unwarranted hostile treatment from a group of faithful of another religious persuasion. Thus, the fluid and unforeseen nature of political developments in this region also intensifies the concern in that region about the future of the Orthodox Churches, which have existed there for centuries, a matter which renders imperative the judicious stance on the part of us all before such developments, in order to protect the flock of our Churches and preserve their stability in this region.
For this reason, then, we have gathered here as Heads of the ancient Patriarchates of Alexandria and Jerusalem, as those immediately affected by the current events in the Middle East, together with our brother, the Head of the most holy Church of Cyprus, who lives in close proximity to these events, in order to evaluate with our Modesty the present situation in this region with regard to the presence and life primarily of the Orthodox Christians, but also of all Christian Churches, so as to support one another and our faithful by addressing them with words of edification and consolation. (1 Cor. 14.3)
This is the principal reason for our Synaxis. Nevertheless, it would be an omission on our part if we did not take advantage of this blessed opportunity also to exchange opinions about the broader place of the Orthodox Church in the contemporary world and the fulfillment of its mission in this world. Of course, the more general issues of our Orthodox Church concern all the Orthodox Churches of the world. This is why the Ecumenical Patriarchate, in its canonical responsibility as coordinator of Orthodox affairs, with the unanimous will and decision of all the most holy Orthodox Churches, has convened pan-Orthodox and inter-Orthodox encounters in order to secure the uniform position of the Orthodox Church on matters that concern it, while at the same time undertaking in the past and continuing to undertake in the present every possible effort for the realization of the Holy and Great Synod of the Orthodox Church, which was decided a long time ago. Thus, our present Synaxis in no way interferes with our broader inter-Orthodox cooperation, but rather serves as its further enhancement through the contribution of the ancient Orthodox Churches to the advancement of the Orthodox witness in the world.
The equitable participation of all the most holy Orthodox Churches in pan-Orthodox and inter-Orthodox gatherings always remains respected and valid. Yet, it does not annul the special honor attributed from ancient times to the older Patriarchates, which, like the Church of Cyprus, have their autocephaly ratified by Ecumenical Councils. In other words, as already stated, our present Synaxis could contribute the ancient experience of the early Churches it represents in order to promote Orthodox affairs in the contemporary world, thereby facilitating the work of the pan-Orthodox and inter-Orthodox committees and consultations.
In this spirit, then, we fraternally propose that we also exchange opinions, among other things, about the evolution and preparation of the Holy and Great Council of the Orthodox Church, which has encountered certain difficulties but which remains close to its desired goal. All of us recognize the great significance of the convocation of the Holy and Great Council for the life of the Orthodox Church. And we are disappointed, if not ashamed that it has not yet been realized in spite of its announcement many decades ago. Therefore, it is time to remove from among ourselves every barrier preventing the realization of this sacred obligation, if necessary sacrificing seemingly narrow interests of our Churches for the sake of this supreme goal, whose realization will greatly benefit the Orthodox Church as a whole and, by extension, every Autocephalous Orthodox Church. For, in the final analysis, the interests of an individual Church lie in the unity and strength of the entire Orthodox Church.
Your Beatitudes, dear brothers,
This blessed Synaxis coincides with the celebration from Byzantine times at the Patriarchate of Constantinople of the annual feast of the beginning of the Indiction, namely the new ecclesiastical year. It is a special gift from the gracious God to our Patriarchate that, during this celebration of the beginning of the new ecclesiastical year and the celebration of the Divine Liturgy and Service for this occasion, your venerable and beloved Beatitudes are present with us in prayer and concelebration. This divine gift, perhaps for the first time in the history of our Throne, endows us with the hope and expectation that, with the grace of God, the new ecclesiastical year will ever increase and substantiate the love and fraternal cooperation that binds our Churches for the benefit of the entire Orthodox Church and the whole world.
In summarizing the essence of this feast of the Indiction, St. Nikodemus of the Holy Mountain emphasizes three points of significance: a) the celebration of the new ecclesiastical year; b) the recollection of the Lord’s visit to the Jewish synagogue, when He was given to read from the book of Isaiah the beginning of the 61st chapter: “The spirit of the Lord is upon me; for the Lord has anointed me;” and c) the invocation of God’s mercy for the new year. (Nikodemus of the Holy Mountain, Synaxaristes, Venice, 1819, volume 1, pp. 1-2) To these points, responding to the needs of our times, the Ecumenical Patriarchate added from 1989, during the tenure of our late successor Patriarch Dimitrios, with the decision of the Holy and Sacred Synod, yet another point of significance for this feast by dedicating it to the protection of the natural environment. In this regard, in response to a Patriarchal commission, a special sacred service was composed by the late athonite hymnographer Gerasimos of Little St. Anne, which is chanted annually with the sacred service of the Menaion for September 1st, while, during the Divine Liturgy of this day, an appropriate Patriarchal Message is issued for the protection of the natural environment.
The urgent and critical nature of the matter of the protection of the natural environment is today well known to all. The Ecumenical Patriarchate was the first among Christian Churches and Confessions to discern the seriousness of the issue, endeavoring through a series of initiatives and activities to raise the awareness first of all among leaders and faithful of the Church, but also among all people of good will, about the obligation of all humanity to respect and preserve God’s creation, which, according to the Apostle, “groans and labors with us” (Rom. 8.22), particularly in our time when unbridled pleasure and insatiable greed have prevailed, as a result leading our environment and planet to face the danger of complete catastrophe.
In the context of this vivid interest on the part of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for the protection of God’s creation, an interest which we are certain that you also, beloved brothers, share completely, we thought that it would be beneficial and essential to direct our attention to the region where our Churches have lived through the centuries from the establishment, namely basin of the Middle East, where the ecological conditions are increasingly deteriorating. Given that this region of the Middle East is inhabited, beyond our Orthodox Churches, by other Christian Churches and Confessions, but also by faithful of other religions, we thought it prudent to prepare and convoke an encounter of religious leaders in this region in order to agree upon and declare a form of ecological “Charter of the Middle East,” which would contain the relevant religious convictions and principles determining the protection of God’s creation from imminent human catastrophe.
We recognize that the issues that concern people in this region more immediately and more urgently are primarily political, economic and social in nature, while matters related to the protection of the natural environment are considered to be of secondary or lesser importance. Yet, this perception is both erroneous and perilous. As emphasized today by all serious scientists and as revealed by the phenomena of climate change as well as other man-made changes to the natural balance of our planet, ecological destruction can overwhelm and even overturn any apparent social or financial benefits resulting from any political change, which often comes at the cost of much human struggle and blood.
Moreover, the benefit derived for regional peace from such an encounter and exchange among religions of the area is particularly invaluable today. All of us know how much the religious factor markedly influences and defines the peaceful and cordial coexistence of people in the Middle East. The escalation of religious conflict in the region can prove extremely precarious for the very existence of the Orthodox and other Christian Churches. We urgently require a peaceful coexistence among religions in the region, where our Churches also exist. A common response to ecological issues, combined with the inter-religious dialogues already being carried out, can greatly contribute to the rapprochement and peaceful coexistence of the peoples living in this inflamed region of the Middle East.
Your Beatitudes, dear brothers,
These are some of the thoughts and proposals of our Modesty on our Synaxis, aimed at contributing to the better and beneficial conduct of our deliberations, while giving occasion to your wisdom to create something even wiser, in accordance with the saying of Solomon. Therefore, we eagerly and attentively anticipate your response inasmuch as you have direct experience of these occurrences and their impact on the life of our Churches, so that you might recommend ways of common action in the present circumstances. Our Synaxis takes place in difficult times for all humanity, and particularly for our geographical region. Our faithful, and many others as well, anxiously await from us a word of consolation and comfort, of support and solidarity. The mere convocation of this Synaxis will offer a message of unity and brotherly love, which are so critical today.
And now, brothers, we commit our Synaxis “to God and to the message of his grace, a message that is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all who are sanctified.” (Acts 20.32)
Welcome, beloved brothers.
May the Comforter, the Spirit of truth, be with us. Amen.
