“I was pleased that there were three with four expatriate Greek Americans in the Oval Office,” said Ukumenian Patriarch
THE Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew met on Monday in Washington with the President of the United States, Donald Trump. During the meeting, issues related to the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the situation in Ukraine, the promotion of the religious dialogue and the protection of Christian minorities in the Middle East were examined.
Tuesday’s program includes a wreath laying at the unknown soldier’s monument at the Arlington National Cemetery. In the evening, the Patriarch will be honored with an official dinner organized by US Deputy Foreign Minister Mike Rigas of Greek descent. Early on the morning of the same day, breakfast is scheduled for the Turkish ambassador’s residence, and at noon the Greek Embassy will have a lunch in honor of the Patriarch at the historic Dumbarton Oaks.
After meeting at the White House, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew described the climate of the conversation with the US president as “warm”. He also referred to Pope Leo’s forthcoming visit to Fanari, the need to safeguard the rights of Christian minorities, the reopening of the Halki Theological School, and the issue of the self -centeredness of the Ukraine Church.
Visit Pope to Lantern
“The theological dialogue with Rome is particularly successful. Next year we will once again have the General Assembly of the International Mixed Theological Committee of the dialogue between the two churches, but at the same time in this theological dialogue, we are cultivating and promoting the dialogue of love, which began on my blessed predecessor Athinagoras.
Many meetings, joint events and mutual visits have been held since then. Let me remind you that from Pope Paul VI and all the Pope, Pope John Paul II, Benedict, Francis, officially visited the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and now we are preparing to welcome the new Pope. Then he will come to Fanari to pay an official visit to the Ecumenical Throne and pray with us on the feast of the Apostle Andrew of the Protocol, which is the throne of the Ecumenical Patriarchate, “said Ecumenical Patriarch.
Warm climate in meeting with President Trump
“I will not avoid telling you that it was a very warm atmosphere, which prevailed during our meeting. He welcomed us with alertness and with respect I would say, in particular the vice -president, who was attended by our meeting. I conveyed to him the greeting and wishes of the Church of Constantinople and I condensed him for the unmistakable assassination of his friend Charlie Kerk. And I thanked him for the nice gift he sent me here to the hotel. And we brought him a symbolic gift, a ceramic from Nice. I wished him his grandchildren. I had some crosses and other amulets in my pocket that I sent to his grandchildren. He asked us if we want coffee, we said no. I was pleased and felt proud that at the Oval Office at the time this official meeting was held, there were three to four expatriate Greek Americans, who went up so high that they were in the White House. I boasted on their face the American homogeneity. The vice -president, as we all know, faithful Catholic showed particular interest to the issue of the Patriarchate, on ecclesiastical issues, and at some point told President Trump that Rome and Constantinople are the two great Christian centers, the two great centers.
State of Christian communities in Turkey
“We said that we are very few remaining Christians. Not only we Greeks Orthodox, but all the Christians living in Turkey. It is perhaps about 1% of the population of the country, which is about 84 million. We are a drop in the ocean. I said the difficulties we went through and that despite these difficulties with the grace of God, we exist. We exist, we continue our tradition, our history and the Christian testimony we give to the country we live in, that we have been there for 1,700 years and that we hope to be in perpetuity, ”he added.
Ukraine
“I thanked him for his interest in peace in Ukraine and explained to him that our Patriarchate is of particular interest in the situation in Ukraine, both politics and ecclesiastical. And I mentioned that we gave the autocephalous about six years ago to the Church of Ukraine. We were repeatedly asked for it. We were convinced that it was their right to have this ecclesiastical independence from Moscow, which we all know has proven to be an enemy of the Ukrainian people and we were allowed to live independently of the center of Moscow, which has been oppressed for decades. Moscow in one word is an enemy of Ukraine and we see that this hostility culminated in the war that erupted in February 2022 and unfortunately continues to this day, with thousands of victims on either side. “
Christians – Middle East
“I also mentioned the sad state of Christians in the Middle East, that the population of Christians is less likely, where it was once the cradle of Christianity in the Middle East and in the Holy Land. Years ago I was in Jerusalem and I visited, among other things, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, who told me, citing the state of Christianity in the Holy Lands, that if this exit continues and in the coming years, in the end, all the pilgrims would not exist Christianity. So I mentioned the case of Christianity in the Middle East and begged him to show his affection and interest, ”he said.
Halki Theological School
“For the Halki Theological School and its reopening, it seems to have known the problem. For our part, we said that from last year at the initiative of President Erdogan, a dialogue began between the Patriarchate and the Turkish Government. President Erdogan commissioned the Minister of Education to visit Halki and meet the Patriarchate’s authorities there, so a dialogue began, which we want to expedite as much as we can, so that in September 2026 we could accept the first students.