JERUSALEM — If anyone gets credit for bringing Pope Francis I, leader of the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics to Israel this week, it is All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, spiritual leader of over 300 million Orthodox Christian faithful worldwide.
It all started when Patriarch Bartholomew attended Pope Francis’ investiture last March — the first time that a spiritual head of the Orthodox Christians has attended such a papal inaugural Mass since the "Great Schism" in 1054. Seeing as the moment was historic, Patriarch Bartholomew went one further, suggesting a joint religious road trip of sorts to Jerusalem — to mark and celebrate the reconciliation between the two churches 50 years ago.
And so it came to pass that — following in the 1964 footsteps of their predecessors Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras and Pope Paul VI — Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew touched down in Israel this week, two very senior pilgrims on a joint mission of peace.
The two leaders are scheduled to meet no less than four times on Sunday and Monday: in private meetings, at a joint service of thanksgiving — together with the Armenian Patriarch — at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher and again on the Mount of Olives, where they will end the two-day pilgrimage Monday evening with a fraternal exchange.
On Sunday, just a few hours before Pope Francis’ helicopter arrived at Ben-Gurion Airport, a diverse group of religious leaders gathered, under the auspices of the American Jewish Committee, to officially welcome Patriarch Bartholomew, who arrived from his home in Istanbul two days earlier, together with a 68-person-strong delegation.
Rabbis of all shapes and stripes filtered into the banquet room at the King David Hotel in Jerusalem, to be welcomed by AJC’s International Director of Interreligious Affairs David Rosen: From Chief Rabbi David Lau to Europe’s Chief Rabbi Emeritus Rene Sirat to Rabbi Levi Weiman-Kelman, the spiritual leader of Jerusalem progressive Judaism congregation Kol Haneshama and former Knesset Member Michael Melchior, the Chief Rabbi of Norway.
Bishop Nektarios and Bishop Dimitros from the Greek orthodox patriarchy in Jerusalem were on hand, all in black, chatting away with British-based Sikh leader, Bhai Sahib Mohinder Singh, all in white — and with Shaykh Abd al-Wahid Pallavicini, president of CO.RE.IS. (Islamic Religious Community) in Italy, leaning in so as not to miss out.
Among that delegation itself, noted Michael Karloutsos, the Patriarchal trip director, were not only prominent Greek Orthodox and other Orthodox church members, but also Catholics, Muslims and Jews from around the world — a symbol and sign of Patriarch Bartholomew’s open-minded and inclusive style and vision. Patriarch Bartholomew’s almost 25-year tenure has been characterized by both inter-Christian and inter-religious dialogue, as well as efforts to promote human rights and religious freedom.
And indeed, Patriarch’s Bartholomew’s delegation seemed just as diverse and colorful as the roomful of religious leaders welcoming them, running the gamut from Archbishop Demetrios of America, the current archbishop of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, to well-known New Orleans businessmen and Greek Orthodox philanthropist John Georges to Muhtar Kent, a Turkish-American Muslim who is chairman and chief executive officer of the Coca-Cola Company and a supporter of Patriarch Bartholomew.
Addressing the crowd, Patriarch Bartholomew indicated he had high hopes for the visit. “In 1964, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch Athenagoras, two men with open hearts and a vision for unity, met on the Mount of Olives. Something wonderful between Catholic and Orthodox Christians happened then,” said Patriarch Bartholomew, “... and something greater could happen now.”
“This week could be the beginning of a consultation, or a dialogue, or even an understanding that is greater than ourselves and our shared history. We could learn from one another, and recalibrate our relationships to transform the future.”
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