His All-Holiness received the following message from Pope Francis, which was conveyed by the Apostolic Nunciature in Ankara:

“His Holiness Bartholomaios
Archbishop of Constantinople
Ecumenical Patriarch

It was a source of great joy for me during our recent meeting in Assisi to be able to express personally to Your Holiness my congratulations on the twenty-fifth anniversary of your election as Archbishop of Constantinople and Ecumenical Patriarch. I assure you, beloved Brother in Christ, of my spiritual closeness on this significant anniversary, as I join you in a prayer of thanksgiving to God the Father, source of all good, for the abundant blessings he has bestowed upon your life and ministry and, through you, upon the Church. In expressing my heartfelt best wishes for your health and spiritual joy, I renew to Your Holiness the sentiments of my steadfast esteem and friendship, and I willingly exchange with you a fraternal embrace in the Lord.

October 19, 2016
FRANCISCUS PP.”