(18 Jan 10 - RV) This morning in the Vatican, Pope Benedict XVI received an ecumenical
delegation from Finland for the occasion of the Feast of St. Henry, patron saint of
that country, which falls tomorrow. Addressing the
group in English, the Pope recalled how this year marks the twenty-fifth anniversary
of the delegation's annual visit to Rome. "The Churches of East and West, both
of whose traditions are present in your country, share a real, if still imperfect,
communion. This is a motive to regret the troubles of the past, but it is surely also
a motive which spurs us to ever greater efforts at understanding and reconciliation,
so that our brotherly friendship and dialogue may yet blossom into a perfect, visible
unity in Christ Jesus", he said. The Pope also mentioned the Joint Declaration
on the Doctrine of Justification, signed ten years old, describing it as "a concrete
sign of the brotherhood rediscovered between Lutherans and Catholics". Benedict
XVI likewise expressed his pleasure at "the recent work of the Nordic Lutheran-Catholic
dialogue in Finland and Sweden. ... It is greatly to be hoped", he concluded, "that
the text resulting from the dialogue will contribute positively to the path which
leads to the restoration of our lost unity".