Holy Land Christians must work together, pope tells patriarch

October 26, 2017
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY – As minorities living in a troubled land, Christians in the Holy Land must forgive each other for past mistakes and work together for the future of their communities, Pope Francis told the Greek Orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem.

Patriarch Theophilos III made an official visit to the Vatican in late October, meeting Pope Francis Oct. 23 and praying with him for peace.

“How good it would be to say of Catholics and Orthodox living in Jerusalem what the Evangelist Luke said of the first Christian community: ‘All who believed were together ... one heart and soul,’” the pope told the patriarch.

Better cooperation is especially needed “in supporting Christian families and young people, so that they will not be forced to leave their land,” the pope said. “By working together in this delicate area, the faithful of different confessions will also be able to grow in mutual knowledge and fraternal relations.”