Cardinal Vincent Nichols, President of the Bishops’ Conference and a President of Churches Together in England (CTE), has welcomed Pope Leo’s Apostolic Letter In unitate fidei on the 1,700th Anniversary of the Council of Nicaea – a letter that helps shape our ecumenical journey together.
It was released just days before his visit to Turkey, the first overseas visit of his pontificate.
Cardinal Nichols said:
“The letter issued by Pope Leo on 23 November, marking the 1,700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea and his visit, today, to Iznik, is essential reading for us all.
“Two points of the letter stand out for me. The first is paragraph 12 in which Pope Leo spells out the context and dynamic of our ecumenical journey together. He says that ‘truly, what unites us is much greater than what divides us’. He emphasises that, for the witness we are to give, we ‘must walk together’ and ‘the Nicene Creed can be the basis and reference point for this journey’. He speaks of ‘an ecumenism that looks to the future, that seeks reconciliation through dialogue as we share our gifts and spiritual heritage’. On this journey we can ‘rediscover the one universal community of Christ’s disciples throughout the world’ which ‘can be a sign of peace and an instrument of reconciliation, playing a decisive role in the global commitment to peace’.
“The second point which struck me sharply comes earlier in the letter. In paragraph eight, Pope Leo brings forward a quotation from St Hilary that ‘the ears of the people are holier that the hearts of the priests’. A footnote develops this point: St John Henry Newman ‘came to the conclusion that the Nicene Creed has been preserved above all by the sensus fidei of the people of God.’ Our attentiveness, therefore, should never be limited to fellow ministers and clerics, or to theologians and professors. As has been notably commented before, the gift of our unity will come when we are on our knees.
“I welcome so warmly the publication of this letter and pray earnestly for Pope Leo on this his first apostolic visit.”
Pope Leo today, 28 November, prayed with His Holiness Bartholomew I, Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople and spiritual leader of the world’s Orthodox Christians, at the site of the A.D. 325 gathering in Nicaea, thanking him for his “great wisdom and foresight” in calling for Church leaders to celebrate this important anniversary together. They were joined by around 27 other leaders of Christian Churches in modern-day Iznik, a district of Bursa Province in Turkey, to commemorate the 1,700th anniversary of the First Ecumenical Council in the Church’s history. The Holy Father invited all Christians to follow the paths of fraternal encounter, dialogue, and cooperation. Read more on Vatican News.
Pope Leo returns now to Istanbul where he will stay for two days of visits, prayer and Mass before departing on the second leg of his Apostolic Journey, on Sunday afternoon, to Beirut, Lebanon.
