Cardinal Koch visits Romania to deepen dialogue with Orthodox
(Vatican Radio) The head of the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity, Cardinal Kurt
Koch, concludes a visit to Romania on Saturday, aimed at deepening the ecumenical
dialogue with the Orthodox Church there. During the five day trip, the Cardinal
held talks with Romanian President Traian Basescu and other government officials in
the capital, Bucharest, before travelling on to towns in the centre and north west
of the former Soviet state. He celebrated Mass with leaders and faithful from both
the Greek Catholic and Latin rite communities which number around five percent of
the largely Orthodox nation. Among the highlights of the visit was a meeting on
Wednesday with the head of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Patriarch Daniel, during
which the two leaders were able to discuss recent progress in relations between their
two Churches. Also attending that encounter was Metropolitan Nifon of Targoviste,
who told us the visit has had a positive impact on the ecumenical dialogue:
Listen
to Marie Duhamel's interview with Metropolitan Nifon:
The Orthodox
leaders says the Cardinal's visit is something that "really consolidates our relationships"......he
explains that the main focus of discussions today is between the Western understanding
of primacy and the Eastern vision of sinodality or collegiality.....
Refering
to Pope Francis' intentions to bring greater collegiality into the running of the
Catholic Church, Metropolitian Nifon says "This is wonderful news for the Eastern
Orthodox Churches……