Second Vatican Council Decree on the Eastern Catholic Churches, *Orientalium Ecclesiarum*, November 21, 1964.
“The Catholic Church holds in high esteem the institutions, liturgical rites, ecclesial traditions, and the discipline of Christian life of the Eastern Churches. Indeed, because of the venerable antiquity with which these Churches are honored, the tradition that comes from the Apostles through the Fathers—which is part of the undivided heritage of the entire Church and revealed by God—shines forth in them. In its concern for the Eastern Churches, which are living witnesses to this tradition, the Ecumenical Council desires that they flourish and carry out the mission entrusted to them with renewed apostolic vigor.”
“Diversity in the Church, far from undermining its unity, enhances it. Indeed, it is the Catholic Church’s purpose to preserve the traditions of each particular Church or rite in their entirety.”
Statement by the Eastern Patriarchs for the Feast of Pentecost, May 20, 2018, 11th Pastoral Letter.
Letter to the bishops, priests, deacons, men and women religious, the faithful, our fellow citizens in the East of all faiths, and political leaders in the East and West.
“[…] We know how difficult it is to find the right words for our faithful who have endured many trials, mourned the death of loved ones, or been scattered across the world. In the face of so much suffering, the most eloquent response is silence. Silence, too, before the mystery of God and His love for all His creatures—a mystery we cannot fully comprehend, given all the evil that surrounds us.
[…] We see the earth filled with suffering. We see the cruelty of people toward one another—and toward us. […] In the face of this, we turn to God’s goodness; we ask Him for the strength and power to receive His grace. We ask Him to be with us in the hour of martyrdom when it comes. We ask Him to be with us, whether we remain in our homes, whether our churches are destroyed, or whether we are scattered throughout the world.
We ask Him for the strength to remain steadfast in our faith and in our trust in His goodness. Despite the threat of death, we believe that God continues to send us out into our countries and throughout the world, carrying within us a portion of His divine goodness, His strength, and His love for the whole world.
[…] In the East, there will always be Christians who proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ, bearing witness to His Resurrection, even if we remain only a small number. We will remain “salt, light, and leaven” (cf. Mt 5:13–14; 13:33), as the Lord Jesus Christ has told us. We remain bearers of a message, here and on the roads of the world. Here, we contribute to the building of our societies, and on the roads of the world, wherever we go, we carry the Gospel of Jesus Christ. […] Be believers strengthened by your love, and builders of your homelands alongside all your fellow citizens, sharing in their sufferings and sacrifices to ensure prosperity and life there. Be the heart of your countries, shaping their history no matter how cruel the times or the people may be. […]
We are a Church of martyrs. […] Our martyrs call on us to renew our prayer, so that it may be both worship of God and love for our neighbor—love for those closest to us as well as for those farthest away, love for all our communities and all our societies. This also implies a renewal of our traditions, our liturgies, and our devotions, so that they may become nourishment that transforms our daily lives and helps us carry out our mission in the world.
[…] We need a new Middle East—one shaped not by others but by ourselves—and one that does not involve changing or shifting borders or peoples, but rather renewing hearts.
In this project, Christians contribute to the new creation—a new world—in which goodness, reason, love, and collaboration abound among all citizens and with the nations of the world. […] The mission of our Churches, and of all our faithful […] is to restore life to a generation of the dead, to restore sight to those who have lost it and have become unable to see the love of God and of God’s children. […] For this we pray: “Lord, send your Spirit and renew the face of the earth” (cf. Ps 104:30), and change the hearts of humankind.
