BENEDICT XVI: NEWS, PAPAL TEXTS, PHOTOS AND COMMENTARY

See preceding page for earlier entries today.






Pope and Cyprus Orthodox Primate
meet for the third time

March 28, 2011



The head of the Orthodox Church in Cyprus, Chrysostomos II, met with Pope Benedict in the Vatican on Monday to discuss relations between the two Churches and the difficulties facing Christians across the Middle East.

A brief statement from the Vatican press office after the private meeting said the two leaders also discussed the question of religious freedom on the Mediterranean island, which has been divided since Turkish troops invaded the north following a coup by the Greek Cypriot national guard in 1974.

Pope Benedict was welcomed by the Orthodox Archbishop during his pastoral visit to the island last June and the archbishop also came to the Vatican for the signing of a joint declaration in 2007, less than a year after his enthronement in November 2006.

During this three-day trip to Rome, the Archbishop is also holding talks with top Vatican officials and visiting a number of projects run by the Sant'Egidio lay community.