Pope Leo XIV Meets Privately with Orthodox Patriarch Bartholomew I with Plans for Meeting for the 1700th Anniversary of Nicaea

The Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople received in audience this morning in the Apostolic Palace by Pope  Leo XIV. 
In the morning, of May 19th, in audience with Leo XIV for the first private dialogue, the exchange of gifts, the promise of a common commitment to peace and the environment and the desire to meet again in Nicaea for the 1700th anniversary of the Council. Then, in the afternoon at Santa Maria Maggiore to pay homage - with songs and prayers and a bouquet of white roses - to Pope Francis, the Pope always called "dear brother" with whom he shared journeys and important moments of their mutual ministry. The patriarch prayed at the tomb of the "dearest friend" Pope Francis: "I invoked his prayer from heaven for all of us and for his successor" The Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew I, is in Rome where, yesterday morning, he participated in the Mass for the beginning of the pontificate in St. Peter's Square of Pope Leo XIV. The Pontiff received him this morning in audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace.

A “cordial” meeting, as reported in a statement from the Ecumenical Patriarchate, during which Bartholomew “personally congratulated the new Pope on his election and in the conversation he underlined, among other things, the importance of continuing to promote and deepen the theological dialogue between the two Churches, Orthodox and Roman Catholic, as well as their cooperation on issues of social interest, such as the restoration and maintenance of peace in the world, support for our suffering fellow men and women and the protection of the natural environment”. A theme, this, from which Francis drew inspiration from the Orthodox Church for his teaching crystallized in Laudato Si' and for the celebration of the World Day of Creation.

And it was precisely "the fraternal communication and cooperation he had with the late Pope Francis" that Bartolomeo referred to in his conversation with Leone. There were over ten meetings with Pope Bergoglio, without forgetting the first trip together to the island of Lesbos in April 2016, together with Ieronymos, Archbishop of Athens and All Greece.
Dialogue and cooperation

For his part, Pope Leo XIV expressed gratitude to the Patriarch for his presence at yesterday's ceremony for the beginning of the Petrine ministry and - the note continues - "also underlined the importance of promoting dialogue and cooperation among Christians". The Pontiff, as he did in his first audience with representatives of the world press, "assured his strong desire to travel to Turkey, within the current year and on a date to be established, to commemorate together with the Patriarch the 1700th anniversary of the convocation of the first Ecumenical Council of Nicaea".

At the exchange of gifts, Patriarch Bartholomew offered Pope Leo an icon of the Virgin Mary Hodegetria, painted especially for the occasion on Mount Athos, incense prepared by Athonite monks, and his books. Leo XVI reciprocated with an artistic representation of the Baptism.

“I saw with great satisfaction that we can continue on the same path of our churches for the whole of Christianity, for peace in the world,” the ecumenical patriarch himself commented to the microphones of Tv2000 outside Santa Maria Maggiore, where he went in the afternoon to visit the tomb of Pope Francis. His successor Leo XIV, Bartholomew said, “assured me that he will want to come to Turkey for the anniversary of Nicaea,” or the 1700 years of the Council. A desire expressed many times by Francis who, despite the serious illness of recent times, has never lost hope of being able to make that important trip.
With Pope Leo "we have not set a concrete date, but certainly this year", said the Orthodox primate, indicating as a possible period that of November in which the feast of Saint Andrew is celebrated. "This is our desire, also our wish - he said - and it will be our honor to welcome His Holiness Pope Leo, perhaps on his first trip outside the Vatican. To Nicaea but also an official visit to the Church of Constantinople, to the Ecumenical Patriarchate"
Remembering the “dearest, respectful, friend Pope Francis, with whom we collaborated for the good of the Church and humanity during his pontificate,” Bartholomew I explained that he left roses “in his memory” and invoked “his prayer from heaven for all of us and for his successor with whom this morning we inaugurated a collaboration, a friendship and a brotherhood in the Lord, to whom we entrust all our vision for the future of the Church, all our hope and all our mutual fraternal affection.”
Source: Vatican News It