Arabiske katolikker er viktige for dialogen

Greek-Melkite Exarch of Jerusalem Comments on Pontiff's Visit

JERUSALEM, MAR 21 (ZENIT.org).- «We are Arabs but not Muslims. Orientals but not Orthodox. Catholics but not Roman. We are open to the West but we are not part of it. This is the reason we have all the cards to develop a special 'mission' of dialogue, especially between the Orthodox Church and Rome,» Archbishop Lufti Laham said to the Italian newspaper «Avvenire.»

Archbishop Lufti Laham, 67, Catholic Greek-Melkite Patriarchal Exarch in Jerusalem, represents Patriarch Maximus V Haxim, Patriarch of Antioch, Alexandria and Jerusalem of the Greek Melkites. He is an interesting personality in the Holy Land from the ecumenical standpoint. This rather singular Eastern Church has a total of 50,000 faithful in the Holy Land; many of them live in Galilee.

The Pope is in a part of the world in which Christian Churches have survived uninterruptedly for 2000 years, in the midst of grave difficulties. «This adds to the importance of his spiritual pilgrimage. Perhaps, in the West, the blood of our martyrs is forgotten, the price that these Churches have paid to preserve the faith,» the Archbishop explained.

Among the reasons the Pope asked for forgiveness was the division of Christians. Archbishop Leham says that the Christians of the East felt somewhat left out by the Euro-centrism of that prayer for forgiveness. «I will be sincere with you. Here Christians have lived with a bit of unease and upset by the instrumentalization they have suffered. We ask ourselves: What responsibility do we have for the Crusades and the Shoah, which are the domain of the European Churches?»

«The Pope's merit is in inviting everyone, with the strength of his example, to an act of repentance in order to express renewed will to serve God,» the Archbishop continued. «The Church is certain of her dogmas, but she also wants to be self-critical, to give an example to all and come close to the Father.»

The Archbishop says this visit will help to bring about a lasting peace in the Holy Land and will help the Christian minority. It will be «a further contribution on the road toward true peace, which will confirm our dream: to preserve the Christian presence in the Holy Land. In order to do this, the local Church must be ever more rooted, especially investing in youth.»

«As a concrete gesture in memory of this visit, our Church will create a credit bank to support the new families who want to construct their home here, so that the Christian presence in Jerusalem will be reinforced, and in cities like Nablus where we are few. But this isn't the only thing. As a Greek Catholic Church, we have worked on a document on the delicate question of the Primacy, which we will to give the Pope within the next few months,» Archbishop Laham continued.

This topic is very dear to John Paul II. «So much so, that he spoke to us, the Catholic patriarchs of the East, back in 1989. I believe we must insist on this, encouraging meetings not only at the highest levels, but favoring and appreciating dialogue experiences in the local churches,» explained the Exarch. «The Council of Catholic Patriarchs is working on this. I am convinced that we all must return to 'Orientale Lumen,' which is somewhat forgotten. And to Catholics of the Latin rite I say: do not fear the contribution of your eastern brothers.»

Zenit - The World Seen From Rome