Representatives of European Churches and Roman Catholic Bishops’ Conferences of Europe meet in Rome

Meeting of the representatives of European Churches and the Roman Catholic Bishops’ Conferences of Europe was held in Rome on 24-27 January 2006. The meeting is the first stage of the 3^rd European Ecumenical Assembly. Among the participants were: Deputy Chairman of the Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate Archpriest Vsevolod Chaplin and Rev. Igor Vyzhanov, DECR secretary for Inter-Christian relations.

The 3^rd European Ecumenical Assembly is a Christian forum organized by the Conference of European Churches (CEC) and Catholic Council of European Bishops’ Conferences. It will be held on 4-9 September 2007 in Sibiu, Romania. Two previous assemblies took place in Basel, Switzerland, in 1989 and Graz, Austria, in 1997.

The theme of the coming assembly is ‘The light of Christ shines upon all. Hope for renewal and unity in Europe’. It will be preceded by a number of regional events and an Inter-Christian meeting in February 2007 in Vittenberg, Germany. The detailed information on the coming assembly is published in the assembly’s website – www.eea3.org

The participants in the meeting discussed various aspects of religious situation on the continent and adopted an address to the Christians of Europe in which they urged to bear common witness, following Christ, and open a new calling for Europe.

Pope Benedict XVI received the participants in the meeting in Rome.