In an interview with the French media outlet Le Figaro, Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon explains the high stakes of Pope Leo’s visit to Nicaea for the celebration of the 1700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council.
The official, who is responsible for the Ecumenical Patriarchate’s international relations and is one of Patriarch Bartholomew’s closest collaborators, tells the French newspaper that this first journey of the Pope fulfills his desire to meet the Ecumenical Patriarch.
He also notes that the Pope’s visits to the Great School of the Nation and the Sultan Ahmed Mosque in Constantinople highlight the city’s intercultural character and its potential to serve as a bridge between East and West, promoting dialogue between religions and cultures.
“What matters,” he explains, “is the heartfelt intention for unity. This shared pursuit of the Pope and the Patriarch is decisive for the future of Christianity.”
Regarding the joint prayers and ceremonies that will take place in Nicaea and Constantinople, the Elder Metropolitan of Chalcedon emphasizes that a joint declaration will be signed at the Phanar, confirming the collective commitment to the ecumenical path toward unity.
“Our desire to celebrate Easter on a shared date symbolizes the unity of the Church as an image of the Holy Trinity. Since then, this approach has been demanded by the truth of the faith,” he notes.
Regarding the feasibility of establishing a common date for Easter, Mr. Emmanuel expresses optimism. He believes that both the Pope and the Ecumenical Patriarch want Christians to celebrate the Resurrection on the same day.
However, he clarifies that this is not merely a matter of studying calendar data. Rather, it is a question of ecclesiology and spirituality. “We are on a shared journey, and together, we will discover the path we must follow.”
The Elder Metropolitan of Chalcedon was also asked about the Pope’s text on Nicaea, which sparked reactions. According to Mr. Emmanuel, the Pope did not intend to provoke the academic community or revise historical facts. In fact, he emphasized the central importance of the First Council, particularly the affirmation of the Creed, the confession of the divinity of the Word, and the incarnation of God. The Fathers did not establish a new truth; they proclaimed the existing truth.
Elder Metropolitan Emmanuel also spoke about unity in the Orthodox Church and the new alignments created by the Russian Church’s stance.
He emphasized that the tragic period of the Soviet regime presented a major temptation for the Russian Church. After 1989, a strong national identity emerged.
However, the rupture since 2022 over recognition of Ukraine’s autocephaly and Patriarch Bartholomew’s recent criticism of the Russian Church have demonstrated that ethnonationalism is incompatible with the Gospel.
The Patriarch has long warned of this danger. As early as 1872, the Phanar condemned racialism.
Today, when Church and Nation are conflated, a “modern heresy” emerges.
In response to criticisms that the Orthodox Church lacks a central missionary role or represents a theology of the past, the Elder of Chalcedon answers that the Orthodox Church does not operate as a state or administrative body. It does not seek power; it seeks truth.
“Tradition is not a dead relic; it is alive. Having endured persecution, the Church of the Phanar knows how to bear witness to what is most essential in its weakness: the freedom of the human person—a gift from God that no regime can abolish.”
Translated by Ioanna Georgakopoulou
