Delegation from the Ecumenical Patriarchate for the Feast of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul

As part of the traditional exchange of delegations for the respective feasts of the Patron Saints, the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul in Rome on 29 June and St. Andrew the Apostle in Istanbul on 30 November, a delegation from the Ecumenical Patriarchate visited Rome from 26 to 30 June 2024. The delegation was led by Metropolitan Emmanuel of Chalcedon, accompanied by Metropolitan Nathanael of Chicago and Deacon Oikoumenois Amanatidis.

On Friday, 28 June, the delegation of the Patriarchate was received in audience by Pope Francis. Following the reading of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew's message by Metropolitan Emmanuel, the Holy Father recalled the meeting between Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, held sixty years ago in Jerusalem, and his own pilgrimage to Jerusalem with Patriarch Bartholomew in May 2014. Mentioning the upcoming 1700th anniversary At the Synod of Nicaea at the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea, he expressed “the hope that the commemoration of this highly significant event will inspire all believers in Christ the Lord to testify together to their faith and their desire for greater communion”. The Pope further rejoiced “that the Ecumenical Patriarchate and the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity have begun to reflect on how to join in commemorating this anniversary”.

On Saturday, June 29, the Delegation of the Patriarchate attended the solemn Eucharistic celebration presided over by the Holy Father.