Pope Francis meets the Catholicos-Patriarch Gewargis III

On Friday 9 November 2018, the Holy Father met His Holiness Gewargis III, Catholicos-Patriarch of the Assyrian Church of the East, and received in audience at the Apostolic Palace the Commission for theological dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East. Responding to the greeting of the Catholicos-Patriarch, Pope Francis in his speech affirmed that "certain differences in theological expression can be considered complementary rather than conflicting". After the audience, the Pope and the Catholicos-Patriarch co-presided over a common prayer in the Redemptoris Mater Chapel, imploring God for the gift of peace. They issued a Common Statement on the situation of Christians in the Middle East, affirming in particular that "the Middle East without Christians would no longer be the Middle East".