In historic meeting Pope, Russian Patriarch decry abortion, defend traditional marriage
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| English: Patriarch Kirill I of Moscow Русский: Кирилл (Патриарх Московский) Беларуская: Кірыл, Патрыярх Маскоўскі (Photo credit: Wikipedia) |
A joint declaration signed by both Pope Francis and
Patriarch Kirill, head of the Orthodox Church of Moscow and All Russia, issued
today after their historic meeting in the Havana Cuba airport issues a strong
call for the defense of life and family.
The declaration commenced with a wish to
reestablish Christian unity, stating a “determination to undertake all that is
necessary to overcome the historical divergences we have inherited.”
The religious leaders expressed the wish to combine
the efforts of Orthodox and Catholics “to give witness to the Gospel of Christ
and to the shared heritage of the Church of the first millennium, responding
together to the challenges of the contemporary world” since “human civilization
has entered into a period of epochal change.”
"We regret that
other forms of cohabitation have been placed on the same level as this union,
while the concept, consecrated in the biblical tradition, of paternity and
maternity as the distinct vocation of man and woman in marriage is being
banished from the public conscience."
After discussing the violent Christian persecution
underway in the Middle East and North Africa, the Pope and Patriarch turned
their attention to the West. “At the same time, we are concerned about the
situation in many countries in which Christians are increasingly confronted by
restrictions to religious freedom, to the right to witness to one’s convictions
and to live in conformity with them.”
“In particular, we observe that the transformation
of some countries into secularized societies, estranged from all reference to
God and to His truth, constitutes a grave threat to religious freedom,” they
said. “It is a source of concern for us that there is a current curtailment of
the rights of Christians, if not their outright discrimination, when certain
political forces, guided by an often very aggressive secularist ideology, seek
to relegate them to the margins of public life.”
The declaration expresses concern about the “crisis
in the family in many countries” and notes “Orthodox and Catholics share the
same conception of the family.”
“The family is based on marriage, an act of freely
given and faithful love between a man and a woman,” it says. “We regret that
other forms of cohabitation have been placed on the same level as this union,
while the concept, consecrated in the biblical tradition, of paternity and
maternity as the distinct vocation of man and woman in marriage is being
banished from the public conscience.”
Marriage, they said, “is a path of holiness,
testifying to the faithfulness of the spouses in their mutual interaction, to
their openness to the procreation and rearing of their children, to solidarity
between the generations and to respect for the weakest.” It is “a school of
love and faithfulness.” Love, says the declaration, seals the union of the
husband and wife “and teaches them to accept one another as a gift.”
The Pope and Patriarch called for an end to
abortion. “We call on all to respect the inalienable right to life,” said the
declaration. “Millions are denied the very right to be born into the world. The
blood of the unborn cries out to God (cf. Gen 4:10).”
The declaration also condemned euthanasia and
immoral reproductive technologies, which would include IVF and destructive
research on human embryos.
The emergence of so-called euthanasia leads elderly people and the
disabled begin to feel that they are a burden on their families and on society
in general. We are also concerned about the development of biomedical
reproduction technology, as the manipulation of human life represents an attack
on the foundations of human existence, created in the image of God. We believe
that it is our duty to recall the immutability of Christian moral principles,
based on respect for the dignity of the individual called into being according
to the Creator’s plan.
The declaration decries the persecution of
Christians, particularly in the Middle East and North Africa, where “whole
families, villages and cities of our brothers and sisters in Christ are being
completely exterminated.”
They called on the international community to act
urgently since “churches are being barbarously ravaged and looted, their sacred
objects profaned, their monuments destroyed.” With “pain” they called to
mind “the massive exodus of Christians from the land in which our faith was
first disseminated and in which they have lived since the time of the Apostles,
together with other religious communities.”
They specifically called on all Christians to pray
that may “not permit a new world war.”
The complete text of the joint
declaration follows:
“The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ
and the love of God the Father and the fellowship of the holy Spirit be with
all of you” (2 Cor 13:13).
1. By God the Father’s will, from which all gifts
come, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with the help of the Holy
Spirit Consolator, we, Pope Francis and Kirill, Patriarch of Moscow and All
Russia, have met today in Havana. We give thanks to God, glorified in the
Trinity, for this meeting, the first in history.
It is with joy that we have met like brothers in
the Christian faith who encounter one another “to speak face to face”
(2 Jn 12), from heart to heart, to discuss the mutual relations
between the Churches, the crucial problems of our faithful, and the
outlook for the progress of human civilization.
2. Our fraternal meeting has taken place in Cuba,
at the crossroads of North and South, East and West. It is from this island,
the symbol of the hopes of the “New World” and the dramatic events of the
history of the twentieth century, that we address our words to all the peoples
of Latin America and of the other continents.
It is a source of joy that the Christian faith is
growing here in a dynamic way. The powerful religious potential of Latin
America, its centuries–old Christian tradition, grounded in the personal
experience of millions of people, are the pledge of a great future for this
region.
3. By meeting far from the longstanding disputes of
the “Old World”, we experience with a particular sense of urgency the need for
the shared labour of Catholics and Orthodox, who are called, with gentleness
and respect, to give an explanation to the world of the hope in us
(cf. 1 Pet 3:15).
4. We thank God for the gifts received from the
coming into the world of His only Son. We share the same spiritual Tradition of
the first millennium of Christianity. The witnesses of this Tradition are the
Most Holy Mother of God, the Virgin Mary, and the saints we venerate.
Among them are innumerable martyrs who have given witness to their faithfulness
to Christ and have become the “seed of Christians”.
5. Notwithstanding this shared Tradition of the
first ten centuries, for nearly one thousand years Catholics and Orthodox have
been deprived of communion in the Eucharist. We have been divided by wounds
caused by old and recent conflicts, by differences inherited from our
ancestors, in the understanding and expression of our faith in God, one in
three Persons – Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We are pained by the loss of
unity, the outcome of human weakness and of sin, which has occurred despite the
priestly prayer of Christ the Saviour: “So that they may all be one, as you,
Father, are in me and I in you … so that they may be one, as we are one”
(Jn 17:21).
6. Mindful of the permanence of many obstacles, it
is our hope that our meeting may contribute to the re–establishment of this
unity willed by God, for which Christ prayed. May our meeting inspire
Christians throughout the world to pray to the Lord with renewed fervour for
the full unity of all His disciples. In a world which yearns not only for our
words but also for tangible gestures, may this meeting be a sign of hope for
all people of goodwill!
7. In our determination to undertake all that is
necessary to overcome the historical divergences we have inherited, we wish to
combine our efforts to give witness to the Gospel of Christ and to the shared
heritage of the Church of the first millennium, responding together to the
challenges of the contemporary world. Orthodox and Catholics must learn to give
unanimously witness in those spheres in which this is possible and necessary.
Human civilization has entered into a period of epochal change. Our Christian
conscience and our pastoral responsibility compel us not to remain passive in
the face of challenges requiring a shared response.
8. Our gaze must firstly turn to those regions of
the world where Christians are victims of persecution. In many countries of the
Middle East and North Africa whole families, villages and cities of our
brothers and sisters in Christ are being completely exterminated. Their
churches are being barbarously ravaged and looted, their sacred objects
profaned, their monuments destroyed. It is with pain that we call to mind the
situation in Syria, Iraq and other countries of the Middle East, and the
massive exodus of Christians from the land in which our faith was first
disseminated and in which they have lived since the time of the Apostles,
together with other religious communities.
9. We call upon the international community to act
urgently in order to prevent the further expulsion of Christians from the
Middle East. In raising our voice in defence of persecuted Christians, we wish
to express our compassion for the suffering experienced by the faithful of
other religious traditions who have also become victims of civil war, chaos and
terrorist violence.
10. Thousands of victims have already been claimed
in the violence in Syria and Iraq, which has left many other millions without a
home or means of sustenance. We urge the international community to seek an end
to the violence and terrorism and, at the same time, to contribute through
dialogue to a swift return to civil peace. Large–scale humanitarian aid must be
assured to the afflicted populations and to the many refugees seeking safety in
neighbouring lands.
We call upon all those whose influence can be
brought to bear upon the destiny of those kidnapped, including the
Metropolitans of Aleppo, Paul and John Ibrahim, who were taken in April 2013,
to make every effort to ensure their prompt liberation.
11. We lift our prayers to Christ, the Saviour of
the world, asking for the return of peace in the Middle East, “the fruit of
justice” (Is 32:17), so that fraternal co–existence among the various
populations, Churches and religions may be strengthened, enabling refugees to
return to their homes, wounds to be healed, and the souls of the slain innocent
to rest in peace.
We address, in a fervent appeal, all the parts that
may be involved in the conflicts to demonstrate good will and to take part in
the negotiating table. At the same time, the international community must
undertake every possible effort to end terrorism through common, joint and
coordinated action. We call on all the countries involved in the struggle
against terrorism to responsible and prudent action. We exhort all Christians
and all believers of God to pray fervently to the providential Creator of the
world to protect His creation from destruction and not permit a new world war.
In order to ensure a solid and enduring peace, specific efforts must be
undertaken to rediscover the common values uniting us, based on the Gospel of
our Lord Jesus Christ.
12. We bow before the martyrdom of those who, at
the cost of their own lives, have given witness to the truth of the Gospel,
preferring death to the denial of Christ. We believe that these martyrs of our
times, who belong to various Churches but who are united by their shared
suffering, are a pledge of the unity of Christians. It is to you who suffer for
Christ’s sake that the word of the Apostle is directed: “Beloved … rejoice to
the extent that you share in the sufferings of Christ, so that when his glory
is revealed you may also rejoice exultantly” (1 Pet 4:12–13).
13. Interreligious dialogue is indispensable in our
disturbing times. Differences in the understanding of religious truths must not
impede people of different faiths to live in peace and harmony. In our current
context, religious leaders have the particular responsibility to educate their
faithful in a spirit which is respectful of the convictions of those belonging
to other religious traditions. Attempts to justify criminal acts with religious
slogans are altogether unacceptable. No crime may be committed in God’s name,
“since God is not the God of disorder but of peace” (1 Cor 14:33).
14. In affirming the foremost value of religious
freedom, we give thanks to God for the current unprecedented renewal of the
Christian faith in Russia, as well as in many other countries of Eastern
Europe, formerly dominated for decades by atheist regimes. Today, the chains of
militant atheism have been broken and in many places Christians can now freely
confess their faith. Thousands of new churches have been built over the last
quarter of a century, as well as hundreds of monasteries and theological
institutions. Christian communities undertake notable works in the fields of
charitable aid and social development, providing diversified forms of
assistance to the needy. Orthodox and Catholics often work side by side. Giving
witness to the values of the Gospel they attest to the existence of the shared
spiritual foundations of human co–existence.
15. At the same time, we are concerned about the
situation in many countries in which Christians are increasingly confronted by
restrictions to religious freedom, to the right to witness to one’s convictions
and to live in conformity with them. In particular, we observe that the
transformation of some countries into secularized societies, estranged from all
reference to God and to His truth, constitutes a grave threat to religious
freedom. It is a source of concern for us that there is a current
curtailment of the rights of Christians, if not their outright discrimination,
when certain political forces, guided by an often very aggressive secularist
ideology, seek to relegate them to the margins of public life.
16. The process of European integration, which
began after centuries of blood–soaked conflicts, was welcomed by many with
hope, as a guarantee of peace and security. Nonetheless, we invite vigilance
against an integration that is devoid of respect for religious identities.
While remaining open to the contribution of other religions to our
civilization, it is our conviction that Europe must remain faithful to its
Christian roots. We call upon Christians of Eastern and Western Europe to unite
in their shared witness to Christ and the Gospel, so that Europe may preserve
its soul, shaped by two thousand years of Christian tradition.
17. Our gaze is also directed to those facing
serious difficulties, who live in extreme need and poverty while the material
wealth of humanity increases. We cannot remain indifferent to the destinies of
millions of migrants and refugees knocking on the doors of wealthy nations. The
unrelenting consumerism of some more developed countries is gradually depleting
the resources of our planet. The growing inequality in the distribution of
material goods increases the feeling of the injustice of the international
order that has emerged.
18. The Christian churches are called to defend the
demands of justice, the respect for peoples’ traditions, and an authentic
solidarity towards all those who suffer. We Christians cannot forget that “God
chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the lowly and
despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those
who are something, that no human being might boast before God” (1 Cor 1:27–29).
19. The family is the natural centre of human life
and society. We are concerned about the crisis in the family in many countries.
Orthodox and Catholics share the same conception of the family, and are called
to witness that it is a path of holiness, testifying to the faithfulness of the
spouses in their mutual interaction, to their openness to the procreation and
rearing of their children, to solidarity between the generations and to respect
for the weakest.
20. The family is based on marriage, an act of
freely given and faithful love between a man and a woman. It is love that seals
their union and teaches them to accept one another as a gift. Marriage is a
school of love and faithfulness. We regret that other forms of cohabitation
have been placed on the same level as this union, while the concept,
consecrated in the biblical tradition, of paternity and maternity as the
distinct vocation of man and woman in marriage is being banished from the
public conscience.
21. We call on all to respect the inalienable right
to life. Millions are denied the very right to be born into the world. The
blood of the unborn cries out to God (cf. Gen 4:10).
The emergence of so-called euthanasia leads elderly
people and the disabled begin to feel that they are a burden on their families
and on society in general.
We are also concerned about the development of
biomedical reproduction technology, as the manipulation of human life
represents an attack on the foundations of human existence, created in the
image of God. We believe that it is our duty to recall the immutability of
Christian moral principles, based on respect for the dignity of the individual
called into being according to the Creator’s plan.
22. Today, in a particular way, we address young
Christians. You, young people, have the task of not hiding your talent in the
ground (cf. Mt 25:25), but of using all the abilities God has given you to
confirm Christ’s truth in the world, incarnating in your own lives the
evangelical commandments of the love of God and of one’s neighbour. Do not be
afraid of going against the current, defending God’s truth, to which
contemporary secular norms are often far from conforming.
23. God loves each of you and expects you to be His
disciples and apostles. Be the light of the world so that those around you may
see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father (cf.
Mt 5:14, 16). Raise your children in the Christian faith,
transmitting to them the pearl of great price that is the faith (cf.
Mt 13:46) you have received from your parents and forbears. Remember that
“you have been purchased at a great price” (1 Cor 6:20), at the cost
of the death on the cross of the Man–God Jesus Christ.
24. Orthodox and Catholics are united not only by
the shared Tradition of the Church of the first millennium, but also by the
mission to preach the Gospel of Christ in the world today. This mission entails
mutual respect for members of the Christian communities and excludes any form
of proselytism.
We are not competitors but brothers, and this
concept must guide all our mutual actions as well as those directed to the
outside world. We urge Catholics and Orthodox in all countries to learn to live
together in peace and love, and to be “in harmony with one another”
(Rm 15:5). Consequently, it cannot be accepted that disloyal means be used
to incite believers to pass from one Church to another, denying them their
religious freedom and their traditions. We are called upon to put into practice
the precept of the apostle Paul: “Thus I aspire to proclaim the gospel not
where Christ has already been named, so that I do not build on another's
foundation” (Rm 15:20).
25. It is our hope that our meeting may also
contribute to reconciliation wherever tensions exist between Greek Catholics
and Orthodox. It is today clear that the past method of “uniatism”, understood
as the union of one community to the other, separating it from its Church, is
not the way to re–establish unity. Nonetheless, the ecclesial communities which
emerged in these historical circumstances have the right to exist and to
undertake all that is necessary to meet the spiritual needs of their faithful,
while seeking to live in peace with their neighbours. Orthodox and Greek
Catholics are in need of reconciliation and of mutually acceptable forms of co–existence.
26. We deplore the hostility in Ukraine that has
already caused many victims, inflicted innumerable wounds on peaceful
inhabitants and thrown society into a deep economic and humanitarian crisis. We
invite all the parts involved in the conflict to prudence, to social solidarity
and to action aimed at constructing peace. We invite our Churches in Ukraine to
work towards social harmony, to refrain from taking part in the confrontation,
and to not support any further development of the conflict.
27. It is our hope that the schism between the
Orthodox faithful in Ukraine may be overcome through existing canonical norms,
that all the Orthodox Christians of Ukraine may live in peace and harmony, and
that the Catholic communities in the country may contribute to this, in such a
way that our Christian brotherhood may become increasingly evident.
28. In the contemporary world, which is both
multiform yet united by a shared destiny, Catholics and Orthodox are called to
work together fraternally in proclaiming the Good News of salvation, to testify
together to the moral dignity and authentic freedom of the person, “so that the
world may believe” (Jn 17:21). This world, in which the spiritual pillars
of human existence are progressively disappearing, awaits from us a compelling
Christian witness in all spheres of personal and social life. Much of the
future of humanity will depend on our capacity to give shared witness to the
Spirit of truth in these difficult times.
29. May our bold witness to God’s truth and to the
Good News of salvation be sustained by the Man–God Jesus Christ, our Lord and
Saviour, who strengthens us with the unfailing promise: “Do not be afraid any
longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom”
(Lk 12:32)!
Christ is the well–spring of joy and hope. Faith in
Him transfigures human life, fills it with meaning. This is the conviction
borne of the experience of all those to whom Peter refers in his words: “Once
you were ‘no people’ but now you are God’s people; you ‘had not received mercy’
but now you have received mercy” (1 Pet 2:10).
30. With grace–filled gratitude for the gift of
mutual understanding manifested during our meeting, let us with hope turn to
the Most Holy Mother of God, invoking her with the words of this ancient
prayer: “We seek refuge under the protection of your mercy, Holy Mother of
God”. May the Blessed Virgin Mary, through her intercession, inspire fraternity
in all those who venerate her, so that they may be reunited, in God’s own time,
in the peace and harmony of the one people of God, for the glory of the Most
Holy and indivisible Trinity!
Francis Kirill
Bishop of Rome Patriarch of Moscow
Pope of the Catholic Church and all Russia
Francis Kirill
Bishop of Rome Patriarch of Moscow
Pope of the Catholic Church and all Russia
