World Council of Churches interim general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca met with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew on 24 June 2020 at the Orthodox Center of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Chambésy, Geneva, to discuss preparations leading up to the WCC 11th Assembly, which will occur in 2022. They explored together how to strengthen relationships within the ecumenical movement, and augment the role of the Orthodox Churches.

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew convened greetings and blessings to Father Ioan Sauca, who is the first Orthodox serving in this leading role. They also discussed at the meeting ways to foster the next generation of the leaders in the ecumenical movement and the role of the Ecumenical Institute of Bossey.

Present at the meeting were Metropolitans Athenagoras of Belgium and Maximos of Switzerland, and the Permanent Representative of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to the WCC Archbishop Job of Telmessos. Between 23-25 June, the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate was convened in Chambésy for its regular meeting of the current month.

Between 23-25 June 2020, the Holy and Sacred Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate was convened for its regular meeting of the current month at the Orthodox Center of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Chambésy, Geneva. On the first day, the synodal members were engaged in their cooperative work with many of the Hierarchs of the Throne in Europe that were invited as well.

During this meeting, the Official Letters of Their Beatitiudes the Orthodox Primates that had been received thus far in response to the letter of the Ecumenical Patriarch to them of May 17th of this year, on the issue of the mode of distribution of Holy Communion that emerged after the appearance of the coronavirus pandemic, were read and discussed. It was satisfactorily determined that their opinion coincided with that of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. This consists of the following: Continue reading →

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew celebrated his name’s day on 11 June 2020 in an unusual way due to the extraordinary circumstances of the pandemic, “as a family”, surrounded by the hierarchs of the Ecumenical Throne, the members of the Patriarchal Court, the diplomatic representatives of Greece and Ukraine in Turkey, and by the small flock of the Queen City, as well as the numerous flock of the Great Church of Christ throughout the world, many of whom attended the service online.

The Ecumenical Patriarch stressed that “the power of God” is infinitely more powerful than the pandemic” in his address after the Divine Liturgy which he presided, surrounded by the clergy of the Patriarchal Court in the Patriarchal church at the Phanar for the feast of the Holy Apostles Bartholomew and Barnabas. “I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your presence and your wishes and prayers, and I entrust to you my patriarchal blessing full and undivided, always invoking the grace of the Holy Spirit, the celebrated Apostles and the 300 Chinese Orthodox under the leadership of Saint Mitrophanes who were martyred on this day 120 years ago for their holy faith in Christ”. The Ecumenical Patriarch reminded that on the same day the Church of Cyprus celebrates her Thronal feast, since Saint Barnabas is her patron and protector. He added that he sent a congratulatory message to her Primate, His Beatitude Archbishop Chrysostomos of Cyprus, wishing him long life and good health and stability and unity to his Church. Continue reading →

The United Nations celebrates World Oceans Day every year on 8 June. Many countries have celebrated this special day since 1992, following the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development, held in Rio de Janeiro. In 2008, the United Nations General Assembly decided that, as of 2009, 8 June would be designated by the United Nations as “World Oceans Day”. For this occasion, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew sent the following message: Continue reading →

The World Council of Churches executive committee met virtually on 1-3 June 2020 due to the pandemic of COVID-19. The WCC executive committee announced its interim staff leadership roles on 3 June. Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca was confirmed as interim WCC general secretary; Rev. Dr Odair Pedroso Mateus appointed interim WCC deputy general secretary for Unity and Mission; and Doug Chial appointed interim director of the WCC Office of the General Secretariat. They will hold their posts until the WCC central committee meets in June 2021. Pedroso Mateus will continue to serve also as director of Faith and Order and Chial as responsible for the IMD. Pedroso Mateus and Chial were appointed by the WCC executive committee at an online meeting held on 3 June, on the recommendation of the interim general secretary. They will hold their posts until the WCC central committee meets in June 2021.

The WCC Staff Leadership Group is led by the interim general secretary, and in addition consists of the two deputy general secretaries and the interim director of the WCC Office of the General Secretariat. Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri continues as deputy general secretary for Public Witness and Diakonia as before, as do the other previous members of the Staff Leadership Group, director of Finance Elaine Dykes, and director of Communication Marianne Ejdersten, in their present roles and mandates.

The executive committee, on behalf of the central committee of the World Council of Churches, has decided, in close consultation with the Evangelical Church in Germany and other host churches and local partners, to postpone the 11th assembly, originally planned for September 2021 in Karlsruhe, Germany, until 2022. The decision, announced on 3 June, was made because of the gravity and uncertainties related to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is hoped that an assembly in 2022 will provide a better opportunity to secure the full participation of the ecumenical fellowship. The location in Karlsruhe will remain the same. The Orthodox pre-assembly will also be postponed to 2021. Continue reading →

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, following the wish of the Mother Church of Constantinople to have coordination and, as far as possible, uniformity between the local Orthodox Churches on the extremely important question of the Divine Eucharist and of the way of distributing it to the faithful, sent the following letter on 17 May 2020 to all his brothers their Beatitudes the Primates of the local Orthodox Churches: Continue reading →

World Council of Churches (WCC) acting general secretary Rev. Prof. Dr Ioan Sauca invites all member Churches to observe a global prayer day on 14 May 2020. The joint initiative with the members of the Higher Committee of Human Fraternity, of which the WCC is part, is calling for “prayer and supplication” to God for an end to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In calling for worldwide prayer, the committee stated in the invitation: “Each one, from wherever they are and according to the teachings of their religion, or faith, should implore God to lift this pandemic off us and the entire world, to rescue us all from this adversity.” The committee’s call also emphasizes the importance of asking God “to inspire scientists to find a cure that can turn back this disease, and to save the whole world from the health, economic, and human repercussions of this serious pandemic.” The committee is suggesting a day “for fasting, works of mercy, prayers, and supplications for the good of all humanity.” The Higher Committee of Human Fraternity was established last year as a concrete response to the Document on Human Fraternity signed in Abu Dhabi,  February 2019. Continue reading →

An important donation to the Ecumenical Patriarchate was made by the Government of Hungary, which donated 10,000 face masks to meet the needs of the clergy and staff of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Turkey, as a precaution against coronavirus and to prevent its spread. This precious gift was brought to the headquarters of the patriarchate, at the Phanar, on 8 May 2020, by the Consul General of Hungary in Istanbul, Mr. Laszlo Keller, who was accompanied by his assistant, Mr. Tamas Torma.

During their meeting at the Patriarchal Office, which was held in a cordial atmosphere, His All-Holiness expressed his warm thanks to the Government of Hungary for its donation, but also for its generally harmonious cooperation with the Ecumenical Patriarchate. He handed over to the Consul General the Patriarchal Letters to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the country, in which he expresses his gratitude on behalf of the Ecumenical Patriarchate for this spontaneous and kind donation, especially useful under the current circumstances. The distribution of protective masks will take place through the eparchial bishops of the Ecumenical Patriarchate in Turkey, the bishops responsible for the various districts of the Most Holy Archdiocese of Constantinople, as well as by the Grand Chancellor. Continue reading →

His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew prayed for all those suffering and affected by COVID-19 on 3 May 2020 in the chapel of the miraculous holy source in the Holy Monastery of the Life-Giving Source of Baloukli. The text of the Prayer was written specifically for this purpose and was read after the Divine Liturgy, which was celebrated in the main church of the monastery by His Eminence Metropolitan Meliton of Philadelphia, while the Ecumenical Patriarch and Metropolitan Gennadios of Sassima, responsible for the Monastery, were present in the altar. According to an old tradition, every year, on the Sunday of the Myrrh Bearers, a Patriarchal and Synodal Divine Liturgy takes place in this historic monastery, which did not happen this year due to the pandemic. Continue reading →

This year marks the 50th anniversary of Earth Day, whose mission is to work with civil and faith communities for developing local solutions to global problems, including climate change, plastic pollution, and threats to biodiversity. Earth Day promotes programs ranging from low-impact actions to “a billion acts of green” to address the paramount challenge of our time.

Of course, every day is earth day! Every day is an opportunity to celebrate “the earth as the Lord’s and that all who dwell therein belong to the Lord” (Psalm 24.1). Every day is a reminder of our vulnerability and solidarity. In fact, today, more than ever, we are also reminded of our responsibility to the earth and each other in light of that interdependence between the earth and all its inhabitants. The ecological responsibility and the respect of the sacredness and the beauty of every human person, of the elderly and the disabled, the poor and the marginalized, the sick and the suffering, are today the universal categorical imperative for the whole humanity. Continue reading →