Ecumenical pilgrimage is a "grass-roots movement rooted in heaven"

(Vatican Radio) Patriarch Bartholomew described the Orientale Lumen Foundation’s ecumenical work as “a grassroots movement rooted in heaven”. The group, led by layman Jack Figel hosted an ecumenical pilgrimage to Rome and Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul) in commemoration of Saints John XXIII and John Paul II.

In Part Two of the interview, Metropolitan Kallistos, Fr. Loya, and Mr. Figel discussed different issues in Catholic-Orthodox dialogue, including the role of Eastern Catholic Churches and steps that still need to be taken toward Christian unity.

Listen to the report by Andrew Summerson:

“Very often, Orthodox will speak with considerable severity about Eastern Catholics…I do not share this approach,” Metropolitan Kallistos said. “I believe that Eastern Catholics can play a very important role in the reconciliation between the Orthodox East and the Roman Catholic West. We can be friends. Eastern Catholics, often because they are Eastern, have an understanding of Orthodox theology and spirituality, which many Latin Catholics would not have. So we Orthodox should look upon them not as our enemies but as our good friends.”

Fr. Loya suggested Eastern Catholics could contribute to Church unity by fully being themselves

Metropolitan Kallistos spoke about papal primacy as an issue that still divides Catholics and Orthodox, though remarked on how Pope Francis has opened new doors in ecumenical dialogue.

“The Pope in the total Christian world has a ministry of fostering unity and mutual love among Christians. I think that already in the few months of his papacy, Pope Francis has shown how the Pope can indeed can indeed exercise this ministry,” he said.

“Now we are a long way from total agreement about the primacy of the Pope,” he continued. “But the whole question is open today in a way that was not 50 years ago when Pope Paul and Patriarch Athenegoras met. So I have a kind of a modest but firm optimism.”

Two small icons of St. Peter embracing St. Andrew, figures representing the sees of Rome and Constantinople respectively, were given by the pilgrim group to Pope Francis and the other to Patriarch Bartholomew.