Benedict XVI: The Church has an Eastern face

Since the beginning of Christianity, Antioch has been a place closely tied to the Church and the apostles Peter and Paul. Benedict XVI reaffirmed this in his address to the new Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians, His Holiness Ignace Joseph III Younan. Speaking to the Syrian Catholic Church, Benedict XVI restated that ecclesial communion should be an integral part of the visible bond of unity and charity between the Papacy and the Eastern Catholic Churches. The Pope further noted that the Eastern world, which often lives marginalized in the West, has an important role in reminding Latin Catholics that the Church lives in different traditions, which must come together in proclaiming Christ in the new context of the contemporary world.

Since the beginning of Christianity, Antioch has been a place closely tied to the Church and the apostles Peter and Paul. Benedict XVI reaffirmed this in his address to the new Patriarch of Antioch of the Syrians, His Holiness Ignace Joseph III Younan. Speaking to the Syrian Catholic Church, Benedict XVI restated that ecclesial communion should be an integral part of the visible bond of unity and charity between the Papacy and the Eastern Catholic Churches. The Pope further noted that the Eastern world, which often lives marginalized in the West, has an important role in reminding Latin Catholics that the Church lives in different traditions, which must come together in proclaiming Christ in the new context of the contemporary world.