Friday, February 12, 2016

Pope, patriarch meet in Cuba nearly 1,000 years after split 1(2 )Doug Stanglin, USA Today 2-2-2016






Doug Stanglin, USA Today 2-2-2016

Despite famine, religious wars, worldwide conflict and the spread of civilization, the heads of the Roman Catholic and the Russian Orthodox churches haven't spoken since the Great Schism of 1054 shattered Christendom, so they had a lot of catching up to do when they sat down for their historic meeting Friday afternoon in Cuba.
Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill embraced and kissed one another three times on the cheek as they met in the wood-paneled VIP room at Havana's José Martí International Airport. The two church leaders then proceeded to a pair of straight-backed chairs turned at angles.
After another round of handshakes for the cameras and greetings with members of their entourages, the two men sat and began talking. Clasping their hands in their laps, both occasionally gestured and nodded as they spoke. They held a two-hour "personal conversation" and then signed a joint declaration.
"We are brothers," Francis said as he embraced Kirill in the small, wood-paneled VIP room of Havana's airport, where the three-hour encounter took place.
"Now things are easier," Kirill agreed as he and the pope exchanged three kisses on the cheek. "This is the will of God," the pope said.
In the 30-point statement, the two leaders declared themselves ready to take all necessary measures to overcome their historical differences, saying "we are not competitors, but brothers."
Francis and Kirill also called for political leaders to act on the single most important issue of shared concern between the Catholic and Orthodox churches today: the plight of Christians in Iraq and Syria who are being killed and driven from their homes by the Islamic State group.
"In many countries of the Middle East and North Africa, entire families of our brothers and sisters in Christ are being exterminated, entire villages and cities," the declaration said.
The split between the two churches nearly 1,000 years ago has festered over issues such as the primacy of the pope and accusations by the Russian Orthodox Church that the Catholic Church tries to poach converts in Russia.
No pope has ever visited Russia. En route to the historic visit Friday, journalists asked Francis if a visit to the nation is on his papal bucket list. “China and Russia, I have them here,” Francis said, pointing to his heart. “Pray.”
Few people expect Friday's meeting — which took two years of secret planning to pull off — will wipe away centuries of distrust and suspicion in a few hours, but it will be a groundbreaking step toward Catholic-Orthodox relations.

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