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COMMON DECLARATION OF POPE
JOHN PAUL II AND CATHOLICOS ARAM I KESHISHIAN
At the end of their meeting on Saturday, 25 January, Pope
John Paul II and Catholicos Aram I Keshishian signed a Common Declaration. The
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity "recalls
the urgent need for full communion between Christians, for the sake of carrying
out their essential mission which is first and foremost the witness to Christ
who died and rose for humanity's salvation", they said in their joint statement, which was written in French.
Here is a translation.
At the end of their official meeting, His Holiness Pope John
Paul II and His Holiness Aram I, Catholicos of Cilicia, give thanks to God who
has enabled them to deepen their spiritual brotherhood in Jesus Christ and their
pastoral and evangelizing vocation in the world. It was a privileged occasion to
pray and reflect together, to renew their commitment to and their joint efforts
for Christian unity.
The meeting between the Catholicos of the Great House of
Cilicia and the Pope of the Catholic Church marks an important stage in their
relationship. These relations, which date to the beginning of Christianity in
Armenia, took on particular importance in Cilicia from the 11th to the 14th
centuries, and continued after the Catholicosate of Sis was exiled from its see
and established in 1930 in Antelias, Lebanon.
Pope John Paul II and Catholicos Aram I rejoice at their
meeting in the context of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. It recalls the
urgent need for full communion between Christians, for the sake of carrying out
their essential mission which is first and foremost the witness to Christ who
died and rose for humanity's salvation. For two millenniums, unity of faith in Jesus Christ,
God's gift, was maintained as essential, despite Christological and ecclesiological
controversies which were frequently based on historical, political, or
sociocultural factors. This communion of faith, already affirmed in recent
decades by their predecessors during their meetings, was solemnly reaffirmed
recently at the meeting of His Holiness John Paul II with His Holiness
Catholicos Karekin I. Today the Bishop of Rome, Successor of Peter, and the
Catholicos of Cilicia pray that their communion of faith in Jesus Christ may
progress because of the blood of the martyrs and the fidelity of the Fathers to
the Gospel and the apostolic Tradition, manifesting itself in the rich diversity
of their respective ecclesial traditions. Such a community of faith must be
concretely expressed in the life of the faithful and must lead us towards full
communion.
Thus the two spiritual leaders stress the vital importance of
sincere dialogue bearing on theological and pastoral areas, as well as on other
dimensions of the life and witness of believers. The relations already existing
are an experience that encourages direct and fruitful collaboration between
them. Their Holinesses are firmly convinced that in this century, when Christian
communities are more deeply engaged in ecumenical dialogue, a serious rapprochement
supported by mutual respect and understanding is the only sound and reliable
way to full communion.
The Catholic Church and the Catholicosate of Cilicia also
have an immense field of constructive cooperation before them. The contemporary
world, because of ideologies expressed in materialistic values and by reason of
the harm done by injustice and violence, represents a real risk to the integrity
and identity of the Christian faith. Now more than ever, Christ's Church must, by her fidelity to the Gospel, bring the world a message of hope
and charity and become the ardent herald of Gospel values; Active collaboration
must also be envisaged in the field of theological study and instruction,
religious education, the evaluation of pastoral situations where common action
is possible and the promotion of ethical values, furthermore, we must try to
face together various problems related to mission and to pastoral and spiritual
commitment to the renewal of Christian life and the transformation of society.
The Pope and the Catholicos urge their clergy and faithful to take an active
part in these efforts, which must be made and organized at all levels,
especially the local, where believers are together confronted with difficult
situations. The Christian faith is also an incentive to work together more
effectively to promote the dignity and rights of every human being, as well as
the right of all peoples to see their legitimate aspirations and cultural
identity recognized.
Today the Armenian Church faces living conditions and
challenges that are an invitation to give a more effective witness in Armenia,
Nagorno-Karabakh and the diaspora. Dispersed throughout the world, this Church's
faithful live in circumstances where dialogue is indispensable for her life and
witness.
In today's pluralistic society, marked by exchanges where cultures, religions and
civilizations are permanently relating and interacting with one another, the
Churches must promote dialogue. The another, the Churches must promote dialogue.
The Middle East context offers a source of mutual enrichment and a common
witness for Christians who, to a large extent, share with their Muslim
compatriots the same history, the same socio-economic problems and the same
political destiny. Moreover, the Churches are convinced of the importance of
dialogue with Muslims and this is one of the tasks where there is room for
mutual agreement. Within this framework moreover, dialogue does not remain
intellectual and theoretical but has a concrete effect on elements of daily
life.
In the Middle East, the active presence and dynamic witness
of Christians is particularly important, for they are engaged together in the
struggle for justice and peace. It is therefore indispensable that a new impetus
be given to the spiritual and social mission of the Churches in the countries of
the Middle East, where the establishment of a just, total and lasting peace and
an equitable and satisfactory solution to the problem of the Holy City of
Jerusalem are seen as priorities.
Lebanon, where the Catholic Church and the Catholicosate of
Cilicia have a tangible historical presence, is the particular context in which
they carry out their mission. The efforts of the Lebanese for reconciliation and
reconstruction of their country must not disregard the moral and religious
values that constitute the identity of the great Lebanese family itself. They
must also work to fully restore their country's identity, while respecting its freedom and pluralism, its unity, its sovereignty
and its specific vocation in this region and in the world!
At the close of the second Christian millennium and the
approach of the 17th centenary of the Armenian Church, His Holiness Pope John
Paul II and His Holiness Aram I thank and glorify the Holy Trinity who gives the
spiritual strength to adhere firmly to the imperatives of the apostolic faith
and the pastoral mission. They exhort their clergy and faithful to work ardently
for the love, reconciliation, justice and peace demanded by the Gospel in
anticipation of the coming of the kingdom of God.
Rome, 25 January 1997
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