H H Karekin's Visit to Vatican - Report & Snaps
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His Holiness Karekin II Visits His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin, Information Services May 13, 2008 6:14 AM
May 12, San Lazzaro – His Holiness Karekin II, Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians, today concludes his one week fraternal visit to the Bishop of Rome and Pope of the Catholic Church, His Holiness Benedict XVI.
Accompanying His Holiness throughout the duration of the visit were His Eminence Archbishop Nourhan Manoogian, Grand Sacristan of the Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem; His Grace Bishop Aram Ateshian, Grand Sacristan of the Armenian Patriarchate of Constantinople; and approximately 20 additional archbishops and bishops of the Armenian Church – primates of Armenian Dioceses in North and South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.
On Tuesday, May 6, the Pontiff of All Armenians and his delegation arrived at Ciampino Airport in Rome. Also joining His Holiness were more than 75 devoted laymen of the Armenian Church from throughout the world who were invited by the Catholicos to participate in this historic visit to the Holy See and Italy. This was His Holiness’ third visit to the Vatican since his election as Catholicos of All Armenians in 1999.
The visit to Italy was composed of three parts: a four-day visit to the Vatican, a one-day visit to the Armenian community of Milan and a two-day visit to the Mekhitarian Congregation on the Island of San Lazzaro in Venice.
On Wednesday morning, His Holiness Karekin II and the Armenian bishops visited the tomb of Pope John Paul II of blessed memory, in the crypt below Saint Peter’s Basilica, and offered a solemn prayer for the repose of his soul. The Catholicos and the Armenian delegation also visited the newly named St. Gregory the Illuminator plaza inside St. Peter’s courtyard and viewed the statue of the patron saint of the Armenian Church, placed there during the pontificate of John Paul II. Immediately afterwards, the Armenian delegation of clergy and laity participated in the general audience in St. Peter’s Square, jointly held by Pope Benedict XVI and Catholicos Karekin II. The two church heads exchanged messages of greeting, a fraternal embrace and kiss of peace on the platform in front of the mother cathedral of the Roman Catholic Church, before a crowd of more than 35,000 faithful.
In his message to the Pope and the faithful, the Catholicos stated in part, "Dear Brother in Christ, today, on the threshold of the Feast of Pentecost, when we unite our prayers to those of Your Holiness and of your faithful sons and daughters, we praise and glorify the Holy Spirit, Who is the fountainhead of unity and transforms our steps on the paths of brotherhood with grace – steps which are for the glory of God and are born from the love of Christ, for the sake of establishing peace in the world and a blessed life for mankind. In spite of different historical experiences and paths we have traversed; in spite of dogmatic and cultural divergences, we are all children of the one God, and we are all brothers and sisters in His Holy love. For in our diversity, it is our unity of love that is the genuine testimony that we are children of God.
"Intolerance and confrontation must not be allowed within the brotherhood and love of Christ. Mankind has suffered much as a result. Today as well, the creation of God – the world that surrounds us – is imperiled through interfaith disagreements, through wars and terrorism, through the effects of poverty and neglect. Our brothers and sisters are in distress in the Middle East and many other regions of the world; where women and children, the elderly and disabled are endangered by the blows of disagreement and division, unjust competition and enmity. This is not the Will of God. This is not our calling. We aspire to live a life in peace, of creation and creativity, to use the graces given to us by the Holy Spirit, to serve the establishment of unity and solidarity with the love of Jesus Christ and the message of the Gospel, since ‘for those that love God, all things work together unto good.’ (Romans 8:28)
"We Armenians are a people who have survived genocide, and we know well the value of love, brotherhood, friendship, peace and a secure life. Today, many countries of the world recognize and condemn the Genocide committed against the Armenian people by Ottoman Turkey, as did the Holy See, by His Holiness Pope John Paul II of blessed memory during our fraternal visit to Rome in 2000. Offering prayers to his luminous memory, we as Pontiff of the Armenians, appeal to all nations and lands to universally condemn all genocides that have occurred throughout history and those that continue through the present day, so that those who yield power and authority realize their responsibilities and results of those crimes which have been and continue to be committed against the creation of God, and that the denial of these crimes is an injustice that equals the commission of the same."
That same afternoon, His Holiness Karekin II was presented with an Honoris Causa doctorate degree from the Pontifical Salesian University recognizing his fruitful work in Christian Education and Youth Instruction. Attending the ceremony representing His Holiness the Pope were His Eminence Tarcisio Cardinal Bertone, Vatican State Secretary and His Eminence Walter Cardinal Kasper, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
On Thursday, May 8, His Holiness Karekin II and his delegation visited the Pontifical Oriental Institute in Rome, and conveyed his blessings and warm greetings to the participants of a symposium dedicated to the study of the Armenian Divine Liturgy. The symposium was organized by Fr. Robert Taft and included presentations by Armenian and Catholic learned scholars from throughout Europe and North America. His Eminence Leonardo Cardinal Sandri, Prefect for the Vatican’s Council for Oriental Churches, also accompanied His Holiness to the symposium.
Friday morning, May 9, the delegation of 100 Armenian bishops and faithful went to the Apostolic Palace of the Holy See, for a private audience under the joint presidency of His Holiness Karekin II and His Holiness Benedict XVI. The two pontiffs again exchanged warm messages of greeting and brotherly love, embraced with a solemn kiss of peace and spoke of the strong ties and increasing collaboration between the Holy Armenian Apostolic Church and the Roman Catholic Church.
His Holiness Karekin II, addressing the head of the Catholic Church and the Armenian faithful gathered for the audience, stated in part, "We offer gratitude to the Almighty in heaven, as successor to Saints Thaddeus and Bartholomew, and the saint co-equal to the apostles, Gregory the Illuminator, that we are enjoying the light of this good day when we exchange the divinely ordained kiss of peace with Your Holiness, worthy successor to the See of Saint Peter, seven years after experiencing the joy of receiving your predecessor of blessed memory under the gaze of biblical Mount Ararat. It is even more joyous that this kiss of peace is exchanged on this day, the 9th of May, when we are celebrating Victory and Peace Day in our homeland – the day which commemorates the conclusion of World War II – the cause of great human tragedy and misery; as well as the triumph of our people in the national liberation struggle for Mountainous Karabagh.
"…Dear Brother in Christ, through the blessings of our Lord’s All-Provident Right Hand, we stand alongside one another today, to strengthen and testify to the fraternal love between our two Churches. Faithful to the holy Church fathers and their legacy, despite our differences and unique characteristics, we shall place greater importance on that which unites us. It is especially pleasing for us to confirm that the spirit of love and collaboration between the Armenian and Catholic Churches finds its tangible expressions in our time, confirming the words of the psalmist: "Behold how good and pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity!" Psalms 133:1.
"The love received from our Lord Jesus Christ bears much good fruit in the field of ecumenism today. We welcome the ongoing dialogue between the Catholic Church and the family of Ancient Oriental Orthodox Churches. In our present, fast-paced world where developments and changes rapidly occur, many environmental, social, political, economic, and moral issues urgently need attention, especially in the process of globalization, when true respect for life and man, and love for God, is diminishing. The greater consolidation of diligent efforts and partnership are an imperative for Christian Churches, because only through inclusive cooperation shall we be able to better serve the establishment of peace in the world and to better defend human rights, and the rights of nations, families, and those classes of society which are at-risk. The transfiguration of life through the values of the Gospel, shall be our path to the creation of a prosperous and virtuous world."
A short prayer service was held under the presidency of both church heads, following which, the faithful approached the Catholicos and the Pope to kiss their right hands and receive their blessings. At the conclusion of the audience, Catholicos Karekin II and Pope Benedict XVI met privately during lunch to discuss issues of importance to both Churches.
In the afternoon, His Holiness Karekin II, met with His Grace Archbishop Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, in the Vatican Guest House for a private meeting. The head of the Church of England and the Anglican Communion was coincidentally also in the Holy See this week, and the two fondly recalled the Archbishop’s fraternal visit to Holy Etchmiadzin in September 2007, as well as discussed the upcoming Lambeth Conference for the Anglican Communion and the current state of relations with sister Churches.
The final event at the Vatican was an Ecumenical Prayer Service, offered at the Basilica of Saint Paul Outside the Walls, where the grave of St. Paul the Apostle is located. His Holiness Karekin II presided during the service, which included the participation of Roman Catholic and Armenian Church bishops and clergy.
In addition to the official events throughout the course of the week, His Holiness and the church hierarchs also visited a number of Armenian and Catholic churches and shrines. His Holiness and the high-ranking clergymen departed Rome for Milan on Saturday morning.
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