In a personal letter to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, Pope Francis proposed celebrating the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea together with Orthodox leaders.
The letter, released by the Vatican on Saturday, was delivered by Cardinal Kurt Koch, who heads the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, during a visit to Istanbul, Turkey, for the patronal feast of the Orthodox Church.
“The now imminent 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea will be another opportunity to bear witness to the growing communion that already exists among all who are baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” Francis wrote in his November 30 message.
Reflecting on six decades of dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox and looking ahead to future possibilities for unity, the Pope acknowledged the progress made since the Second Vatican Council’s decree Unitatis redintegratio marked the official entry of the Catholic Church into the ecumenical movement 60 years ago.
The Swiss cardinal also highlighted what he called an “ecumenism of blood,” noting that “Christians are not persecuted because they are Catholic, Lutheran or Anglican, but because they are Christians.”
Celebrating the “renewed fraternity” achieved since the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis noted in his message that full communion, in particular sharing “the one Eucharistic chalice,” remains an unfulfilled goal.
In a keen observation of contemporary global tensions, the Pontiff linked ecumenical efforts with peace-building.
“The fraternity lived and the witness given by Christians will also be a message for our world plagued by war and violence,” he wrote, specifically mentioning Ukraine, Palestine, Israel and Lebanon.
The Pope also highlighted the recent participation of Orthodox representatives in the Synod on Synodality in October.