Archbishop Elpidophoros of America stood today before His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, joining him as pilgrims on a sacred journey through the historic and spiritual heartlands of Christianity: Rome, Constantinople, and Nicaea.
“Today, we stood before His Holiness Pope Leo XIV as pilgrims,” said Archbishop Elpidophoros, “journeying together not only through the sacred sites of Rome, Constantinople, and Nicaea, but also along the spiritual path of healing and reconciliation.”
The meeting marks a significant moment in the ongoing dialogue and deepening relationship between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches. As a gesture of hope and a reaffirmation of commitment to full communion, Archbishop Elpidophoros invoked the powerful words of Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, spoken during his historic 1964 encounter with Pope Paul VI: “May this meeting be the dawn of that blessed and luminous day in which future generations, communing from the same chalice, may partake of the Holy Body and precious Blood of our Savior, and in love, peace, and unity, praise and glorify Him – the one Lord and Savior of the world.”
Read below the message of Archbishop Elpidohoros of America
Today, we stood before His Holiness Pope Leo XIV as pilgrims, journeying together not only through the sacred sites of Rome, Constantinople, and Nicaea, but also along the spiritual path of healing and reconciliation.
As a sign of our shared longing and commitment to the restoration of full communion, allow me to repeat the words of Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras during his historic 1964 meeting with Pope Paul VI: “May this meeting be the dawn of that blessed and luminous day in which future generations, communing from the same chalice, may partake of the Holy Body and precious Blood of our Savior, and in love, peace, and unity, praise and glorify Him – the one Lord and Savior of the world.”
Photos by Orthodox Observer/Brittainy Newman
