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published by the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, November 9,
2005
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of
Constantinople: A Ministry of Universal
Reconciliation - Address of Archbishop
Demetrios
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Speech
by His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios of America
In a Special Academic Convocation
At the Sacred Heart University, Fairfield,
Connecticut
On the occasion of receiving an Honorary
Doctor's Degree in Humanities
November 9, 2005
Most Reverend Bishop Lori,
Esteemed President of Sacred Heart University
Dr. Anthony Cernera,
Distinguished Members of the Board of Trustees,
Honorable Deans, Faculty and Members of the
Administration,
Reverend Fathers,
Dear Students, Guests, Ladies and Gentlemen,
I am deeply thankful to God and to you for the
honor that you as Sacred Heart University have
graciously bestowed upon me by giving me an
Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree today.
But I am even more thankful for the opportunity
simply to be with you today because it affords
us all an occasion to contemplate together our
common heritage as Christians. Indeed, I see
this afternoon as a type of ecumenical
encounter, not a formal one by any means, but,
nonetheless, a significant encounter whereby we
may come and look into one another's eyes to try
to understand the complexities of our human
condition, our shared Christian heritage, and
the effects of two millennia of history upon it.
This warm and inviting phrase, Come and look
into one another's eyes, was used by the late
Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras throughout his
ministry in the arena of rapprochement between
the Christian churches, especially between
Orthodox and Roman Catholic. It is a phrase that
suggests a great potential for dialogue, healing
and reconciliation.
And it is fitting that we begin with this phrase
because it alludes to the important and historic
encounter that we should all remember between
Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras and Pope Paul
VI in 1964, an encounter that resulted in the
so-termed lifting of the anathemas that had
painfully divided the Churches of the East and
West since 1054. Though in many respects
life-changing, this episode between Pope Paul VI
and Patriarch Athenagoras must not be viewed in
isolation, as an encounter emerging out of
happenstance. Rather, it was the result of
intensive ecumenical labors for centuries by
Christians of varying denominations and places
in history, and which, through the power of the
Holy Spirit, found expression in a visible,
unifying, and palpable way. Today, I wish to
talk about these and other labors which are
particularly related to the multi-faceted
ministry of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of
Constantinople in the modern world.
The ministry of the Ecumenical Patriarchate may
be aptly termed a ministry of reconciliation
with three areas of focus: a) the ecumenical
dialogue among Christians, b) the
inter-religious dialogue among Jews, Christians,
and Muslims, and c) the universal call to all
human beings for reconciliation with our natural
environment. I am concentrating particularly on
the reconciliatory ministry of the Ecumenical
Patriarchate because I have plenty of relevant
data available. In several cases, I presuppose,
of course, the concomitant involvement to
dialogue of the late Popes Paul VI and John Paul
II.
Part A: The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the
Ministry of Reconciliation
Area 1. The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the
Dialogue among Christians
As I mentioned, the history of Christian
ecumenical dialogue has long-standing origins.
The Ecumenical Patriarchate has been a part of
the so called “ecumenical movement” since
its beginnings. Its resolute and firm commitment
to ecumenical dialogue is the result of its
living out its beliefs in real action. It seeks
to live and breathe the prayerful petition of
the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom: For
the peace of the whole world, for the stability
of the holy churches of God, and for the u n i o
n of all, let us pray to the Lord. An even more
expressive example is to be found in the Divine
Liturgy of St. Basil the Great, which includes
the petition, Visit us with your goodness, Lord.
Put an end to the schisms of the churches.
The Ecumenical Patriarchate's involvement with
ecumenical dialogue dates back as early as the
16th century with the so-called
“Augsburg-Constantinople” encounter. This
encounter consisted of a series of short
exchanges between the Lutheran theologians of Tübingen
and Ecumenical Patriarch Jeremiah II. These
exchanges were of considerable interest in terms
of the theological doctrinal differences and
similarities posed between the Lutheran
reformers and the Orthodox theologians. Though
we cannot call those exchanges “dialogues”
in the formal sense of the term, they were,
nonetheless, cordial exchanges that were
indicative of greater things to come in the
history of ecumenism.
The modern ecumenical movement proper may be
viewed as being formally facilitated by the 1930
Lambeth Conference of Anglican Bishops in
Canterbury. Though there had been several
informal exchanges in the 19th century between
the Anglican communion and the Orthodox, the
1930 Lambeth Conference represents a significant
period in the activity of the Ecumenical
Patriarchate in terms of sustained ecumenical
dialogue, and also as showing the role of the
Ecumenical Patriarch as primus inter pares, or
first among equals, in organizing the efforts of
the other autocephalous Orthodox Patriarchates
in ecumenical activity. At the 1930 Lambeth
conference, the Ecumenical Patriarch Photios II
arranged for a delegation of the Orthodox Church
to be sent to Canterbury under the leadership of
the Patriarch of Alexandria. Here, Resolution 33
of the 1930 Lambeth Conference is particularly
demonstrative. This resolution, in part, reads:
“The Conference heartily thanks the
Oecumenical Patriarch for arranging in
co-operation with the other patriarchs and the
autocephalous Churches for the sending of an
important delegation of the Eastern Orthodox
Church under the leadership of the Patriarch of
Alexandria, and expresses its grateful
appreciation of the help given to its Committee
by the delegation, as well as its sense of the
value of the advance made through the joint
meetings in the relations of the Orthodox Church
with the Anglican Communion.” Report of the
Lambeth Conference, 1930
But this was certainly not the beginning of
ecumenical activity with the Ecumenical
Patriarchate as it concerned dialogue with other
Christians. We may look to a rather prominent
encyclical issued in 1920 by the Ecumenical
Patriarchate addressed “Unto the Churches of
Christ Everywhere”, an unprecedented
encyclical of global scope urging all Christian
churches to take concrete actions to come closer
together in their common faith. This encyclical
reads, in part:
“We consider… that above all, love should be
rekindled and strengthened among the churches,
so that they should no more consider one another
as strangers and foreigners, but as relatives,
and as being a part of the household of Christ
and 'fellow heirs, members of the same body and
partakers of the promise of God in Christ'
(Ephesians 3:6).”
Since the issuance of that encyclical in 1920,
followed by the 1930 Lambeth Conference, the
Ecumenical Patriarchate has continued an active
role in ecumenical dialogue among Christians.
Significantly, we may note its role as a
founding member of the World Council of Churches
in 1948, in which it is still very active,
maintaining offices today at its Geneva
headquarters.
In addition to these numerous inroads to
dialogue that the Ecumenical Patriarchate has
made with Protestant Churches, its continuing
dialogue with the Roman Catholic Church since
the 20th century has resulted in a rapprochement
that continues to grow with the passing of every
year. The highly visible and historic meeting of
Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras with Pope Paul
VI in 1964, resulted in some very tangible
expressions of dialogue and reconciliation.
First, it led to the establishment of local
dialogues and exchanges between theologians in
various countries throughout the world. Just one
year later in 1965, the North American
Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation was
established. This represents one of the longest,
continuously running dialogues between Orthodox
Christians and Roman Catholic Christians in the
Western Hemisphere. The North American
Consultation has consistently produced joint
theological statements elaborating upon
significant doctrinal aspects of the Christian
faith that have done much to nurture the bonds
of unity between our two churches. Recent
examples are the agreed statement of the
Consultation issued in 1999 entitled “Baptism
and 'Sacramental Economy,'” and the agreed
statement issued in 2003 entitled “The
Filioque - A Church Dividing Issue?”
Further examples of what can be characterized as
the dialogue of love between the Churches of
Rome and Constantinople include, among others,
two very tangible expressions. The first is the
exchange of visiting delegations on the patronal
feasts of the churches, the Feast of Sts. Peter
and Paul on June 29, for Rome, and the Feast of
St. Andrew on November 30, for Constantinople,
respectively. On some occasions, these exchanges
have included visits from the Pope or the
Patriarch himself. A second expression of the
ongoing dialogue of love between the two
churches was marked by the very historic
occasion of the return in November of 2004 from
Rome to Constantinople of the Holy Relics of two
Archbishops of Constantinople, St. Gregory the
Theologian and St. John Chrysostom. This return
was made possible by Pope John Paul II's
gracious granting of a request made by
Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to return the
relics of his predecessors to Constantinople
after having been in Rome for over 800 years.
That such a request could be made and granted is
a testimony to the genuine sincerity of the
dialogues between the Ecumenical Patriarchate
and the Roman Catholic Church, which we pray
will continue under the ministry of Pope
Benedict XVI. It is also a testimony to the
active presence of the Holy Spirit in the
reconciliation process of Christendom.
Area 2: The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the
Inter-religious Dialogue among Jews, Christians,
and Muslims
In addition to the tremendous work that has been
accomplished, by the grace of God, in the area
of ecumenical dialogue among Christians, the
Ecumenical Patriarchate's constant attention
toward inter-religious dialogue is equally
worthy of mention. As a citizen of Turkey, His
All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew
has developed a natural sensitivity to the need
for dialogue with Islam. This sensitivity arises
not only from his many personal friendships with
local people of Turkey, but also from his
ideological background as a Greek Orthodox
Christian living in the position of an ethnic
and religious minority within a predominantly
Muslim society. His commitment to dialogue with
Islam is sophisticated, grounded in his Orthodox
faith, and initiated with the conviction that
such dialogue is necessary for the promotion of
peace, justice, and tolerance in our world. It
was in this spirit that Patriarch Bartholomew
visited such Islamic countries as Bahrain
(2000), Iran, Qatar, Azerbaijan and Libya
(2002-2003). Yet, his activities have gone
beyond Islam and included vibrant dialogues with
Judaism as well.
He organized several dialogues among Jews,
Christians, and Muslims that have been of major
significance in the arena of peace and
tolerance. The first of these was the historic
Conference on Peace and Tolerance in
Constantinople in 1994, co-sponsored by the
“Appeal of Conscience Foundation.” This
Conference produced the oft-cited “Bosphorus
Declaration,” which affirmed the Berne
Declaration of 1992 that “a crime committed in
the name of religion is a crime against
religion.”
Since that meeting in 1994, Patriarch
Bartholomew has been at the forefront of
organizing international inter-religious
conferences to confront the evils of religious
fanaticism and intolerance. He was among the
first of the major world religious personalities
to organize a meeting of religious leaders from
the Jewish, Christian, and Muslim faiths very
soon after the tragic events of September 11,
2001. This meeting convened in Brussels,
Belgium, on December 19-20, 2001, producing the
“Brussels Declaration,” in which it was
stated: "We unanimously reject the notion
that religion leads to an inevitable conflict of
civilizations. To the contrary, we propagate the
constructive and educational role of religion in
the dialogue between civilizations."
In addition to these inter-religious gatherings,
the Ecumenical Patriarchate has extended its
dialogue activity to political, governmental,
and economic organizations. The Patriarch
initiated a particularly constructive dialogue
nearly 10 years ago with the European People's
Party Christian Democrats Group of the European
Parliament. Since 1996, this dialogue has grown
in significance and in the numbers of its
participants. Today, it may accurately be
regarded as one of the European Parliament's
most active, continuous, international, and
inter-religious dialogues. The last meeting of
this dialogue, the ninth thus far, took place in
Constantinople last month. I had the honor of
participating in it. The topics were “A Free
Society Founded on Truth - Truth Making People
Free,” and “Religious Freedom - A
Life-Giving European Value.” I cannot begin to
tell you how much this dialogue has grown in
terms of the composition of its makeup on
inter-religious levels as well as by the number
of highest level governmental representatives
from various European nations who were in
attendance as active participants. It is just
another example of how dialogues, initiated by
the Church, dominated by the quest for truth,
and fostered by love and honesty, can become
creative contributions to reconciliation and
peace.
Area 3: The Ecumenical Patriarchate and the
Reconciliation of Human Beings with the Natural
Environment
A third major focus of the Ecumenical
Patriarchate's ministry in the modern world as a
ministry for global cooperation and
reconciliation is the natural environment.
Patriarch Bartholomew's commitment to the
sanctity of the Creation as a gift from God to
be protected is reflected in his many and
continuous pertinent efforts.
Starting in 1995, he began to host a series of
seafaring environmental symposia, aimed at
bringing together experts in religion and
science, as well as political representatives,
to focus attention on critical areas of
environmental concern. The first symposium, for
one week, took place on a boat in the Aegean
Sea. Since 1995, four similar environmental
symposia have followed on board vessels in the
following areas of heavy environmental damage:
the Black Sea (1997), the River Danube (1999),
the Adriatic Sea (2002), and the Baltic Sea
(2003). Additional environmental symposia are
currently being planned for the Amazon River in
July, 2006, and for the Caspian Sea in July,
2007, respectively.
What is significant, if not unparalleled, about
these environmental symposia is the level of
dialogue that takes place: There is the general
dialogue between religion and science, then, the
dialogue among the representatives and leaders
of the monotheistic religions that are
participants, the dialogue among the scientists
themselves, and the dialogue among the various
governmental representatives who are invited to
embark upon the vessel at each port of call.
Perhaps what is most significant about the level
of this kind of dialogue is its universal and
ultimate call to reconciliation, namely, the
reconciliation between humankind and the natural
environment itself. This act of reconciliation
extends to all human beings in the world at all
times, truly aiming toward what may best be
described as an ultimate rapprochement.
Part B: The Difficult Conditions of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate under which it Exercises
its Ministry of Reconciliation
Perhaps the most extraordinary aspect concerning
all efforts toward reconciliation and the union
of all that the Ecumenical Patriarchate
continuously undertakes, is the fact that the
Ecumenical Patriarchate has been living under
very heavy and oppressive political conditions.
Sadly, and especially in the last 5 years, the
Turkish government has intensified its efforts
to restrict the free exercise of the religious
activity of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. It has
subjected the Ecumenical Patriarchate to even
tighter regulations concerning its properties
and to closer monitoring of its religious
activities than perhaps ever before in its
history. Let me be more specific on this issue,
which deals in essence with serious deprivations
of basic religious rights.
1. The deprivation referring to the
Ecumenical Patriarchate's title “Ecumenical”
The first such deprivation is the consistent
denial by the Turkish government of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate's use of the title
“Ecumenical.” This title was granted to the
Ecumenical Patriarch in the sixth century in
recognition of his occupying the See of
Constantinople, which was the center of the
Empire, or oikumene. This title has been used by
every other foreign government in the world to
refer to the Ecumenical Patriarch, and it is
universally used by the other Christian Churches
to refer to the Ecumenical Patriarchate just the
same.
Despite this wide recognition of the Ecumenical
Patriarch's status as leader of the world's 300
million Orthodox Christians, the Turkish
government's official position is that the
Patriarch is not Ecumenical Patriarch, but
simply and only the religious leader of the
Greek Orthodox minority population of Turkey,
which though once numbered in the hundreds of
thousands, today stands at a population of
approximately 2,000-3,000. This policy has led
to some rather embarrassing situations for the
Turkish government. An example of such a
situation occurred in 2003, when the Apostolic
Nuncius in Ankara, Turkey, used the title
“Ecumenical” to refer to the Ecumenical
Patriarch in a special invitation letter. The
invitation was issued for a lecture by the
Ecumenical Patriarch in honor of Pope John Paul
II on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of
his papacy. In this instance, the Turkish
government responded to the invitation by
prohibiting any of its personnel from attending
the event because the invitation letter used the
title “Ecumenical” for Patriarch
Bartholomew.
2. The Deprivation Relevant to the Ecumenical
Patriarchate's Legal Status
Related to the refusal of the Turkish government
to recognize the title of the Ecumenical
Patriarch, but significantly more damaging, is
the refusal of the Turkish government to give
legal status to the Ecumenical Patriarchate. As
with all non-Muslim religious minority
institutions in Turkey, the Ecumenical
Patriarchate is recognized as a Turkish
institution, subject to the policies and
restrictions of the Turkish Office of Religious
Affairs. As such, the Ecumenical Patriarchate
does not enjoy a legal status as an independent
entity. This affects its ability to petition the
Turkish government for adequate redress. It also
affects its ability to press its claims,
objectively recognized as legitimate, I might
add, in international courts as “The
Ecumenical Patriarchate.” Instead, the
individual person of the Ecumenical Patriarch
must bear the burden of relying on his personal
legal status to represent the Ecumenical
Patriarchate. The Ecumenical Patriarchate, as
such, does not enjoy legal personality.
3. The Restrictions on Property Ownership and
Use
The third deprivation of basic religious rights
is the restriction on property ownership and
use. In 1936, Turkey's Law on Foundations No.
2762, placed Orthodox Christian property under
the administration of a General Directorate of
Foundations (Vakifs), which exists to this day.
The Directorate of Foundations has the power to
dissolve foundations, seize foundation property,
dismiss foundation boards of trustees without
judicial decisions, and intervene in the
management of foundation assets and accounts.(1)
In addition, according to a 1974 ruling of
Turkey's highest court, the government of Turkey
forbids the buying or selling of real estate
acquired by minority foundations after 1936.
Property belonging to these foundations and
acquired since that time has reverted to the
State without remuneration.(2)
To date, a total of 136 properties belonging to
one important Patriarchal entity, namely, the
Baloukli hospital, have been forced to cede to
the state in accordance with this ruling. The
Baloukli hospital is a private hospital of the
Ecumenical Patriarchate that administers care
without discrimination to all Turkish citizens,
with a quite advanced center for the treatment
of alcoholism and drug abuse. To make matters
worse, the government recently imposed an
unbearable retroactive tax upon the very same
Baloukli hospital, leading it to unavoidable
bankruptcy.
Recently, the highest court of Turkey ruled that
the government could confiscate a very large and
historic orphanage belonging to the Greek
Orthodox community on the island of Pringhipo on
the grounds that it had fallen into disuse. In
reality, the government had repeatedly refused
over the course of decades to issue the
necessary permits for the maintenance and repair
of the structure.
Needless to say that in addition to the Baloukli
and the Pringhipo confiscations, hundreds of
other Patriarchal properties have been
arbitrarily confiscated in the recent years by
the Turkish government.
4. The Deprivation of the Right to Education
and Training of Clergy
I am concluding with one more deprivation of
fundamental religious rights. This is the
continuing closure of the Patriarchal
Theological School of Halki, the sole seminary
for the training of the Greek Orthodox clergy of
the Patriarchate. This closure was the result of
a law passed in 1971 by Turkey, and it
represents more than an interference by the
State in matters of education. It constitutes a
direct violation of the basic right of a
religious community to prepare its clergy and
its spiritual leaders.
At present, there are some promising inroads
that are being made toward reopening the School,
but there have also been unkept promises by the
government and shifting political interests that
have prevented this from occurring.
Concluding Remarks
In spite of overwhelming difficulties and
burdens from internal governmental conflicts,
the Ecumenical Patriarchate stands today as a
witness of Christian martyrdom and hope. Its
achievements, efforts, and genuine desire to
reconcile all human beings with one another in a
spirit of love, even though it operates from a
position of what the world may consider weakness
is an iconic reflection of the power of the Holy
Spirit. Its agonies and joys capture what St.
Paul was trying to express as he was reflecting
upon the Lord's encouraging example, My grace is
sufficient for you: for my power is made perfect
in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). The Ecumenical
Patriarchate is a modern, eloquent example of
power made perfect in weakness.
For us, however, the Ecumenical Patriarchate is
an example of the reconciliation and love to
which we are commonly called as Christians, who
through coming together and looking in each
other's eyes might find a common resolve to work
toward the unity that has been the fervent
prayer of the Lord Jesus Christ when He asked
His Father that those who believe in Him…may
all be one (John 17:20-21).
I thank you for your kind attention this
afternoon, and I express to you once again my
gratitude for this great academic honor that you
have bestowed upon me.
(1) 2004 E.U. Regular Report on Turkey's
Progress Towards Accession, COM (2004) 656 final
at 43-44.
(2) 2000 European Commission against Racism and
Intolerance, Second Report, note 15, para. 26
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