Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, in his Patriarchal Message for Holy Pascha 2026, extends his heartfelt wishes to his spiritual children throughout the world.
He emphasizes that the Resurrection of the Lord is a foretaste of the “common resurrection” of humanity and the renewal of all creation, opening for the faithful the path to deification by grace.
Holy Pascha, he notes, constitutes the entirety of our spiritual culture, the core of our piety and an experience that permeates the liturgical life and every act and expression of the Church, reflected in love, solidarity, and in the “certainty that evil does not have the final word in history.” He further underlines that war stands in opposition to fundamental Christian principles, as it produces suffering and death, hatred and injustice.
“Christ is Risen,” he stresses, is a rejection and condemnation of violence and fear, and an invitation to a life of peace.
He affirms that, in the light of the Resurrection, he prays to the Lord for the victims of war, for orphans, for mothers who have lost their children, and for all those who suffer due to human cruelty and indifference.
Through the Patriarch, the Church proclaims the sacredness of every human being and the obligation of absolute respect for it throughout the world.
