In 2001, Pope John Paul II made history by becoming the first leader of the Vatican to visit Greece in nearly 1,300 years.
This was a key step towards healing the centuries-old tensions between the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches, whose relationship has been traumatized by historic events of hatred and animosity.
The Pope’s visit began with some degree of uncertainty, as nobody knew the extent of reactions the opponents of this visit would show. The sentiment, back then, was not particularly positive towards the Roman Catholic leader in many parts of Greek society.
Even his usual ritual of kissing the ground was the subject of speculation until the final moment as the Vatican did not want to provoke the public sentiment of the Greek people.
The most important moment, however, was to be the one where the Pope would meet with Greek Orthodox Archbishop Christodoulos, the head of the Greek Orthodox Church, in Athens.
The meeting between the heads of the Vatican and the Church of Greece
During their official meeting, Archbishop Christodoulos was polite but adamant in what the Greek Orthodox Church believed about the Vatican.
”For the first time in history, the Pope of Rome visits Athens. We rejoice at this event. However, our joy is overshadowed by the fact of our division. Dogmatic and ecclesiological reasons, existing for over a millennium, poison the atmosphere and negate the necessary conditions under which Your visit could be fruitful and effective,” Archbishop Christodoulos noted.
”The anathemas have indeed been lifted, by the Grace of the Lord; however, the causes that provoked them have not yet been removed. Nevertheless, the Church of Greece wishes to address You through me with words of love and truth, far from conventional courtesies, because it believes that only by ‘speaking the truth in love’ (Ephesians 4:15) and confessing our errors can we rightfully hope to reach the unity of faith,” the Greek Orthodox leader stated.
The Greek Archbishop also issued a direct challenge to the Catholic Church, reading a list of “offences” committed against the Eastern Orthodox Church centuries ago. He particularly mentioned the destructive sacking of Constantinople during the Fourth Crusade in 1204, a collective trauma that Orthodox Christians haven’t forgotten. Christodoulos emphasized that no apology had ever been issued for these historical wrongs, so the Orthodox Church hadn’t had the chance to forgive their Christian brothers of the West.
”The Orthodox Greek people experience more intensely than other Orthodox peoples the traumatic experiences in both their ecclesiastical conscience and their national memory, because the wounds inflicted upon their flourishing body—well known to all—by the destructive fury of the Crusaders and the Frankokratia, as well as by the illicit actions of the Latin Unia, remain still open. And yet, not even a single word of apology has been heard until now!” Christodoulos told the Pope.
In his historic response, Pope John Paul II issued a broad apology that surprised many by its scope and sincerity. Few expected an official apology from the Catholic Church, whose authority has remained strong. The Pope begged pardon for the “sins of action and omission” committed by Catholics against Orthodox Christians and expressed “profound regret” for the sacking of Constantinople in 1204.
”We are burdened by past and present controversies and by enduring misunderstandings. But in a spirit of mutual charity these can and must be overcome, for that is what the Lord asks of us. Clearly, there is a need for a liberating process of purification of memory. For the occasions past and present, when sons and daughters of the Catholic Church have sinned by action or omission against their Orthodox brothers and sisters, may the Lord grant us the forgiveness we beg of him,” Pope John Paul II stated.
The Leader of the Vatican added that ”Some memories are especially painful, and some events of the distant past have left deep wounds in the minds and hearts of people to this day.”
”I am thinking of the disastrous sack of the imperial city of Constantinople, which was for so long the bastion of Christianity in the East. It is tragic that the assailants, who had set out to secure free access for Christians to the Holy Land, turned against their own brothers in the faith,” the Pope noted.
”The fact that they were Latin Christians fills Catholics with deep regret. How can we fail to see here the mysterium iniquitatis at work in the human heart? To God alone belongs judgement, and therefore we entrust the heavy burden of the past to his endless mercy, imploring him to heal the wounds which still cause suffering to the spirit of the Greek people. Together we must work for this healing if the Europe now emerging is to be true to its identity, which is inseparable from the Christian humanism shared by East and West,” John Paul II said.
His statements were especially meaningful since they addressed one of the most difficult moments in the relationship between the two churches, an event that set the countdown for the fall of the Byzantine Empire to the Ottomans, approximately two centuries later.
In a gesture of goodwill and unity, the Pope completed his initial speech by saying that ”the Catholic Church is irrevocably committed to the path of unity with all the Churches. Only in this way will the one People of God shine forth in the world as the sign and instrument of intimate union with God and of the unity of the entire human race.”
The first step towards reconciliation
The Greek Orthodox archbishop Christodoulos didn’t miss the opportunity to correct a centuries-old wrong. He responded positively to the Pope’s apologies, applauding his gesture and his generosity and honest spirit. The two Christian holy leaders then strolled side by side through the ancient Areopagus, where Saint Paul preached in 51 AD.
In a moving moment, Christodoulos held the elderly pontiff’s arm in a gesture that demonstrated to the world that despite their differences, Christians should remain united in Jesus’ name.
The visit of the Pope to Greece concluded in a significant joint proclamation in which both leaders condemned “violence, proselytism and fanaticism in the name of religion.” They also pledged to preserve Europe’s Christian roots and soul, exhibiting a spirit of collaboration between the two denominations of Christianity.
While some Orthodox bishops in Greece remained mute throughout the apology, demonstrating the strong nature of the residual tensions, the visit marked a truly historic moment in Catholic-Orthodox relations that would characterise the future relations of the two historic wings of global Christianity.
The significance of this apology was heightened in 2004 when Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I formally accepted it, declaring that “the spirit of reconciliation is stronger than hatred.”
The apology of Pope John Paul II, addressed significant historical scars that go back to the Fourth Crusade when Western Christian crusaders destroyed Constantinople, the heart of Eastern Christianity and the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire.
This tragedy sparked a deep psychological and dogmatic schism between the Eastern and Western churches, making reunification an unattainable dream for generations to come.
The visit of Pope John Paul II to Greece was not simply a diplomatic gesture, as it was an important step towards resolving historical collective trauma while encouraging dialogue between these two great Christian traditions.
The Pope’s apology to Greece and the Orthodox Church in Athens showed the world that there is potential for humility and reconciliation between these two Christian Churches to repair their historic differences, even if a complete union is still a work in progress.
Related: Patriarch Bartholomew Pushes for Shared Orthodox-Catholic Easter Date
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