Romanians, face to face with Pope Leon (photo)

Several bishops in our country participated in the Jubilee of Oriental Churches, held in Rome, between May 12 and 14. About 5000 pilgrims were received in a jubilee audience in the Vatican Paul VI Aula on Wednesday, Pope Leon XIV saying to them: « I am glad to meet you here even on the occasion of the Jubilee of Hope, whose indestructible foundation is the resurrection of Jesus. Welcome to Rome! I am happy to meet you and to dedicate one of the first meetings of my pontificate to the oriental rite, » reports Vaticannews

From Romania, the jubilee audience participated: His Holiness Virgil Bercea, bishop Greek-Catholic of Oradea (photo); His Holiness Claudiu Lucian Pop, Bishop of the Diocese of Cluj-Gherla; His Holiness Mihai Frățilă, Greek-Catholic bishop of Bucharest; His Holiness Călin Ioan Bot, Greek-Catholic bishop of Lugoj and His Holiness Cristian Dumitru Crișan, bishop auxiliary of the Archdiocese of Alba Iulia and Fagaras. Also, at the meeting with the Pontiff was present Father Gabriel Buboi, the rector of the Pontic College « Pio Romeno », from Rome.

« You are precious »-Pope told them. « Looking at you, I think of the variety of your origins, the glorious history and the bitter sufferings that many of your communities have endured or endured. I would like to reiterate what Pope Francis said about the Eastern Churches: There are churches that must be loved: they keep unique spiritual and sapiental traditions and have so much to tell us about Christian life, synodality and liturgy; Think of the parents of the church, the concilia, the monasticism: invaluable treasures for the church (Speech to the participants in the Roaco Assembly, June 27, 2024).

Citing Pope Leon XIII, the first pontiff to dedicate a document specific to the dignity of the Eastern churches, the Holy Father highlighted their unique and privileged role, related to the original context of the Church from the beginning. However, the pontiff reiterated the concern of Pope Leon XIII from then, saying that « it is very relevant today, because nowadays so many brothers and sisters of oriental rite, including some of you, forced to escape their territories of origin because of war and persecution, instability and poverty, not only, religious.

« The Church needs you. How great is the contribution that the Christian East can offer us today! How much we need to recover the meaning of the mystery, so alive in your liturgies, which involves the human person as a whole, sings the beauty of salvation and arouses astonishment to the divine greatness!

And how important is the rediscovery, even in the Christian West, of the feeling of the primacy of God, of the value of the mytagogy, of the incessant intercession, of the penance, the post, the crying for one’s own sins and for those of the whole humanity (Penthos), so typical of oriental spirituality!

Therefore, it is essential to cherish your traditions without diluting them, perhaps out of comfort and comfort, so that they are not corrupt by a consumer and utilitist type. ”

Pope Leon XIV recalled that some oriental churches suffer in war contexts, reiterating that people want peace. « War is never inevitable, weapons can and must be silenced, because they do not solve problems, but increase them; because peace makers enter history not those who resemble death. At the same time, the pontiff urged the rejection of the visions typical to the violent narratives, which divide the world.

« The church will not get tired of repeating: Make the weapons shut up! » -said the pontiff, thanking those who, by silence, by prayer, by daily offering suffering, persevere and resist in their lands, especially in the Middle East.

« Christians must be offered not only words, but the chance to stay in their lands, with all the rights necessary for a safe existence, » said Leon XIV, asking to make efforts to become reality.

Highlighting that today, more than ever, the splendor of the Christian East demands the release of any dependence on the worldly and any tendency against communion, to be faithful in the listening and testimony of the Gospel, Pope Leon XIV said, at the end of the speech addressed to the participants in the Jubilee of the Churches, I thank you, Church and raise your strong intercession prayers for my ministry.