In giving Pope Benedict XVI to the Catholic Church, God has also given a great gift to the Orthodox Church. Already in his short reign, His Holiness Pope Benedict has greatly advanced the cause of Orthodox/Catholic reunion. While some Orthodox would disagree, I think that a reconciliation of East and West would be of great advantage to both Churches.
While the Orthodox Church has profound spiritual riches to offer, we are parochial in our outlook and internally divided. Yes, certainly we have the same faith, the same liturgical tradition, but existentially we remain divided. The situation here in Pittsburgh, PA where I live is illustrative, we have separate celebrations of the Sunday of Orthodoxy. Some serve Vespers on Sunday evening, others an ecumenical doxology. Two services, at the same time, in different churches.
Any way, I recommend the interview with Bishop Agathangelos of the Church of Greece.
In Christ,
+Fr Gregory
Interview With Bishop Agathangelos of Fanarion
ROME, DEC. 17, 2006 (Zenit.org).- The theological dialogue between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches "can give witness of Christ," says a Greek Orthodox prelate.Bishop Agathangelos of Fanarion is director general of the Apostoliki Diaconia, which in the Greek Orthodox Church is in charge of the missions, the formation of seminarians and publishing.
Last spring Bishop Agathangelos came to visit Rome with a Greek-Orthodox delegation, to get to know better the tradition and culture of the Catholic Church.
According to the bishop, it is important to discover everything that united the two Churches in the first millennium, when they were not yet divided, to get to know and listen to each other. He shared his views in this interview.
Read More: Zenit News Agency - The World Seen From Rome
