Ecumenical Patriarch Urges Four Autocephalous Churches to Revisit Council of Crete

Photo: orthodoxhistory.org

ISTANBUL — Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew used his homily on Holy Spirit Monday to renew a call for the four Orthodox Churches that did not participate in the 2016 Holy and Great Council of Crete to revisit and adopt the council’s decisions, emphasizing the importance of Orthodox unity a decade after the historic gathering.

Speaking at the Church of the Holy Trinity in Stavrodromi on June 1, the Patriarch reflected on the 10th anniversary of the council, whose preparatory work culminated in the assembly held in Crete under his presidency. He recalled that the council's guiding theme was the Pentecost-inspired phrase, “He has called all to unity.”

Patr. Bartholomew acknowledged that four autocephalous Orthodox Churches ultimately did not attend the council, but argued that its work remains a vital expression of pan-Orthodox cooperation. “This unity was established by the Synod in Crete, despite the absence, literally at the twelfth hour, of four Orthodox Autocephalous Churches,” he said.

The Ecumenical Patriarch then issued a direct appeal to those Churches and their primates. “We address an invitation to these Churches and their brother Primates to study anew the six texts — decisions of the Synod, as well as the Encyclical and its Message, and to proceed synodally to their adoption.”

Describing the council as a landmark achievement, Patr. Bartholomew said, “The Holy and Great Council, by divine grace and good will, has been realized and is already a historical event, for which we boast and glorify the benefactor God.”

The Patriarch's remarks came during celebrations for the Feast of the Holy Spirit, attended by hierarchs, diplomats, students, and faithful from Constantinople and abroad.

Previously, the UOJ reported that Patr. Bartholomew reflected on media and truth at a Greek broadcaster.

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