JOINT INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION FOR THEOLOGICAL DIALOGUE
BETWEEN THE CATHOLIC CHURCH AND THE ASSYRIAN CHURCH OF THE EAST
COMMUNIQUÉ
Rome, 27–28 October 2025
The seventeenth plenary session of the Joint International Commission for Theological Dialogue between the Catholic Church and the Assyrian Church of the East took place on 27–28 October 2025 at the Domus Sanctae Marthae in the Vatican, hosted by the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity (DPCU). It was the seventh session of the third phase, on ecclesiology, started in 2017. In line with the theme discussed since 2023, this year’s plenary meeting was dedicated to the topic: “Liturgy in the life of the Church: A comparative study of the Latin and the Church of the East’s liturgical traditions,” with a particular focus on the liturgy of the hours in both traditions.
The members presented and discussed papers on: “The Service of Vespertine in the East Syriac Rite,” by Archdeacon William Toma; “The General Instruction on the Liturgy of the Hours,” by Bishop Johan Bonny; “The history of the Roman Liturgy of the Hours,” by Revd Prof. Dominik Jurczac, OP, invited expert; and “The Order and Theology of the Contents of the Sundays and Ferias Morning Service (Sapra)”, by Archdeacon George Toma. Bishop Antoine Audo, SJ, also offered a reflection on the theme from a Chaldean perspective, noting the importance of the link between liturgy and ecclesial identity. During the discussion, the members were pleased to note the fundamental similarities between the two liturgical traditions, even though they had evolved in different historical and cultural settings.
The meeting of the Commission coincided with the first official visit of His Holiness Mar Awa III to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, elected Bishop of Rome on 8 May 2025. On Monday 27 October, Pope Leo XIV received His Holiness Mar Awa III and the members of the Commission at the Apostolic Palace. In his address, recalling the commemoration of the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, Catholicos Patriarch Mar Awa III pointed out that “we are greatly encouraged […] in the shared faith which we already enjoy, namely, our profession of the Creed of the Council of Nicaea. […] This profession of faith already unites us in the essential doctrines concerning the Holy Trinity and the dual natures of the divinity and humanity of the one Lord Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God.”
In his response, Pope Leo, with reference to the current phase of the dialogue, noted that “the principal challenge lies in jointly developing a model of full communion, inspired by the first millennium, while thoughtfully responding to the challenges of our time […] such a model should not involve absorption or domination; rather, it should promote the exchange of gifts between our Churches, received from the Holy Spirit for the building up of the Body of Christ (cf. Eph 4:12).” Also referring to the anniversary of the Council of Nicaea, Pope Leo quoted Pope Francis’s words during Catholicos Patriarch Mar Awa III’s 2022 visit: “The journey of synodality undertaken by the Catholic Church is and must be ecumenical, just as the ecumenical journey is synodal.”
On Tuesday, 28 October, His Holiness Mar Awa III and His Eminence Cardinal Kurt Koch greeted the members of the Commission and took part in the discussion concerning the agenda for the next session. The meeting was an opportunity to remember two former members of the Commission who passed away in 2025, namely, Most Reverend Sarhad Jammo, former Bishop of the Chaldean Catholic Eparchy of St. Peter the Apostle of San Diego, USA, and His Beatitude Mar Aprem Mooken, former Metropolitan of India and the Southern Gulf Countries of the Assyrian Church of the East, and former Co-chair of the dialogue.
The study and discussion of the Commission will continue at the next meeting, which will be hosted by the Assyrian Church of the East in Erbil, from 23 until 28 November 2026.
The Assyrian delegation included His Beatitude Mar Meelis Zaia, Metropolitan of Australia, New Zealand and Lebanon (Co-chair); His Beatitude Mar Awgin Kuriakose, Metropolitan of the Archdiocese of India and Southern Gulf; His Grace Mar Abris Youkhanna, Bishop of Duhok and Nineveh; His Grace Mar Elia Isaac, Bishop of Baghdad; Archdeacon George Toma; and Archdeacon William Toma, Under-Secretary of the Synod (Co-Secretary).
The Catholic delegation included the Most Reverend Johan Bonny, Bishop of Antwerp (Co-chair); Most Reverend Antoine Audo, SJ, Bishop of Aleppo for the Chaldeans; Most Reverend Francis Kalabat, Bishop of the Chaldean Eparchy of St. Thomas the Apostle, USA; Professor Dr. Theresia Hainthaler, Honorary Professor of Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology, Frankfurt, Germany; Reverend Father Željko Paša, SJ, Dean of the Faculty of Eastern Christian Studies at the Pontifical Oriental Institute; Reverend Father Jijimon Puthuveettilkalam, SJ, Gregorian University; and Reverend Father Hyacinthe Destivelle, OP, Official of the DPCU (Co-Secretary).