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POPE FRANCIS: HISTORY OF EMIGRATION, PERSECUTIONS AND MARTYRDOM HAS INFLICTED DEEPS WOUNDS ON HEARTS OF ALL ARMENIANS
18:03 05/06/2014 >> SOCIETY
His Holiness Pope Francis and His Holiness Aram I have met in the
Vatican, according to the Facebook page of the Catholicosate of the
Great House of Cilicia.
Following a private meeting between the two Pontiffs, Pope Francis I
met with Catholicos Aram I and the delegation accompanying him. In
his speech, the Catholicos noted that since 1997 he has had the
opportunity to meet Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and currently,
His Holiness Francis I.
Catholicos Aram I then spoke of the special relations between the
Roman Catholic Church and the Catholicosate of Cilicia both during
the time of the Kingdom of Cilicia and after the Genocide when it
settled in Antelias, Lebanon.
The Catholicos then expressed his appreciation of the Pope's effort to
take the church to the people, which he said is also at the heart of
the Armenian Orthodox Church and to which it is fully committed. He
then invited all churches to leave confessional differences aside
and face together the urgent challenges confronting humanity.
Speaking of the Middle East Aram I said that despite the current
violence in the region, Christians would continue to witness for their
faith, fulfill their duties and demand their rights as citizens of
their countries.
Addressing the 2015 Centenary of the Armenian Genocide, the Catholicos
thanked the Pope for his past positions towards the Armenian cause
and spoke of the one-and-a-half-million Armenians that had lost their
lives and of the churches, homes, sources of livelihood, spiritual and
cultural heritage that had been lost in the Genocide that had been
perpetrated upon the Armenians by the Ottoman Turks. The Catholicos
paid tribute to Pope Benedict XVth who denounced the Armenian Genocide
in a letter to Sultan Mehmet V in 1915. In his conclusion Catholicos
Aram I the asked Pope Francis I to continue advocating for the rights
of the Armenian People.
In his response, Pope Francis said that "Commitment to the cause of
Christian unity is known to all. You have been especially active in
the World Council of Churches and you continue to be most supportive of
the Middle East Council Churches, which plays such an important role in
assisting the Christian communities of that region as the face numerous
difficulties. Nor can I fail to mention the significant contribution
which Your Holiness and the representatives of the Catholicosate of
Cilicia have made to the Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue
between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. I
am convinced that on our journey towards full communion we share the
same hopes and a similar sense of responsibility as we strive to be
faithful to the will of the Lord Jesus Christ."
Referring to the Armenian Genocide, the Pope said that "the Armenian
people represent a part of the Christian world that is irrevocably
marked by a history of trials and sufferings courageously accepted
for the love of God. The Armenian Apostolic Church has had to become
a pilgrim people; it has experienced in a singular way what it means
to journey towards the Kingdom of God. The history of emigration,
persecutions and martyrdom experienced by so many of the faithful has
inflicted deeps wounds on the hearts of all Armenians. We must see
and venerate these as wounds inflicted on the very body of Christ,
and for this very reason a cause for unfailing hope and trust in the
provident mercy of the father."
At the end of formal speeches, the two Pontiffs and the delegation
accompanying Catholicos Aram I, coming from Europe, the Middle East,
North and South Americas, attended a special service. Following the
prayers, the delegates were formally introduced to the Pope.
At the end of the meeting, Catholicos Aram I and the accompanying
Armenian clergy were the guests of Pope Francis I for lunch.
http://www.panorama.am/en/current_topics/2014/06/05/aram-a-meeting-pape-rome/
18:03 05/06/2014 >> SOCIETY
His Holiness Pope Francis and His Holiness Aram I have met in the
Vatican, according to the Facebook page of the Catholicosate of the
Great House of Cilicia.
Following a private meeting between the two Pontiffs, Pope Francis I
met with Catholicos Aram I and the delegation accompanying him. In
his speech, the Catholicos noted that since 1997 he has had the
opportunity to meet Popes John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and currently,
His Holiness Francis I.
Catholicos Aram I then spoke of the special relations between the
Roman Catholic Church and the Catholicosate of Cilicia both during
the time of the Kingdom of Cilicia and after the Genocide when it
settled in Antelias, Lebanon.
The Catholicos then expressed his appreciation of the Pope's effort to
take the church to the people, which he said is also at the heart of
the Armenian Orthodox Church and to which it is fully committed. He
then invited all churches to leave confessional differences aside
and face together the urgent challenges confronting humanity.
Speaking of the Middle East Aram I said that despite the current
violence in the region, Christians would continue to witness for their
faith, fulfill their duties and demand their rights as citizens of
their countries.
Addressing the 2015 Centenary of the Armenian Genocide, the Catholicos
thanked the Pope for his past positions towards the Armenian cause
and spoke of the one-and-a-half-million Armenians that had lost their
lives and of the churches, homes, sources of livelihood, spiritual and
cultural heritage that had been lost in the Genocide that had been
perpetrated upon the Armenians by the Ottoman Turks. The Catholicos
paid tribute to Pope Benedict XVth who denounced the Armenian Genocide
in a letter to Sultan Mehmet V in 1915. In his conclusion Catholicos
Aram I the asked Pope Francis I to continue advocating for the rights
of the Armenian People.
In his response, Pope Francis said that "Commitment to the cause of
Christian unity is known to all. You have been especially active in
the World Council of Churches and you continue to be most supportive of
the Middle East Council Churches, which plays such an important role in
assisting the Christian communities of that region as the face numerous
difficulties. Nor can I fail to mention the significant contribution
which Your Holiness and the representatives of the Catholicosate of
Cilicia have made to the Joint Commission for Theological Dialogue
between the Catholic Church and the Oriental Orthodox Churches. I
am convinced that on our journey towards full communion we share the
same hopes and a similar sense of responsibility as we strive to be
faithful to the will of the Lord Jesus Christ."
Referring to the Armenian Genocide, the Pope said that "the Armenian
people represent a part of the Christian world that is irrevocably
marked by a history of trials and sufferings courageously accepted
for the love of God. The Armenian Apostolic Church has had to become
a pilgrim people; it has experienced in a singular way what it means
to journey towards the Kingdom of God. The history of emigration,
persecutions and martyrdom experienced by so many of the faithful has
inflicted deeps wounds on the hearts of all Armenians. We must see
and venerate these as wounds inflicted on the very body of Christ,
and for this very reason a cause for unfailing hope and trust in the
provident mercy of the father."
At the end of formal speeches, the two Pontiffs and the delegation
accompanying Catholicos Aram I, coming from Europe, the Middle East,
North and South Americas, attended a special service. Following the
prayers, the delegates were formally introduced to the Pope.
At the end of the meeting, Catholicos Aram I and the accompanying
Armenian clergy were the guests of Pope Francis I for lunch.
http://www.panorama.am/en/current_topics/2014/06/05/aram-a-meeting-pape-rome/