Head of Phanar says that a “common chalice” with Catholics is inevitable
Patriarch Bartholomew admitted that the “road to the common chalice” with Catholics is still fraught with unforeseen circumstances and failures.
On October 15, 2023, during a joint ecumenical prayer with the Cardinal of Madrid, Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople acknowledged that the "common chalice" with the Roman Catholic Church (RCC) is a road with no return," as reported by fosfanariou.gr.
Discussing the "path to unity" between Orthodoxy and Catholicism, Patriarch Bartholomew admitted that the journey toward the "common chalice" is still fraught with unforeseen circumstances, setbacks, and sometimes even coldness and weariness. However, he emphasized that this is a "road with no return."
Patriarch Bartholomew stated, "Dialogue is absolutely necessary for our mutual understanding because dialogue takes nothing away from one's personality but enriches it with the experience of the other."
It was previously reported by the UOJ that, according to Patriarch Bartholomew, the Roman Catholic Church and the Ecumenical Patriarchate can "learn about each other."