Orthodox delegation of Constantinople to visit Rome

(June 23,2010) An Orthodox delegation from the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople will be in Rome for the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, patron saints of the city, the Vatican announced on Wed. In keeping with annual tradition, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomeo I of Constantinople, the spiritual head of the world’s Orthodox Christians, will send his delegation to Rome, just as the Holy Father sends his delegation to Istanbul, for the Feast of St. Andrew, the brother of Peter and Protector of the Church of Constantinople.
The exchange of delegations between Rome and Constantinople, began with the first visit in 1969 of Cardinal Johannes Willebrands, then President of Vatican’s Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity. The three-member delegation of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople will be led by Archbishop Gennadios of Sassima, Assistant Secretary of the Mixed International Commission for theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church.
The Ecumenical delegation will participate in the Vespers of Monday, 28 June, which will be presided over by Pope Benedict XVI in the Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls. On Tuesday, the Feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, the Ecumenical Delegation will also attend the ceremony in St. Peter’s Basilica, when the Pope gives the pallium to 38 archbishops. Later, the delegation will be received in private audience by Pope Benedict. As usual, it will also meet with the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.