A Word from His Holiness Pope Shenouda III about Cardinal König, Head of the Austrian Church

Main Idea

The meeting discusses the efforts of dialogue between the Coptic Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, especially the theological dialogue concerning the nature of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Pope Shenouda III presents the fruits of the discussions that took place between the Oriental Orthodox Churches and the Catholics, which led to reaching a common formula expressing faith in Christ as God incarnate, complete in His divinity and complete in His humanity.
He emphasizes that this formula was accepted by both sides and contributed to removing a significant part of the old theological disagreements concerning the nature of Christ.

Spiritual Message

The Pope emphasizes that the pursuit of ecclesiastical unity should first be based on sound and steadfast faith, rather than merely giving up doctrine.
He also explains that genuine dialogue requires honesty and clarity, together with mutual love and respect between the parties.
He particularly stresses that reason alone cannot achieve the unity of the Church; rather, reason must work together with the heart and the spirit, while the Holy Spirit guides these efforts in a spirit of love, joy, and peace.

Educational Lesson

The meeting explains that serious theological dialogue takes place through studying each subject deeply, preparing research that clearly expresses the faith of each Church, and then presenting and discussing the different views with honesty and love.
It also shows that reaching agreement requires gradual progress, and that what is achieved through dialogue between two Churches can become a step toward a broader agreement among the different Oriental Orthodox and Catholic Churches.

Practical Application

The practical lesson is that disagreements are not resolved through anger or mutual rejection, but through understanding, love, respect, and prayer for God’s guidance.
The Pope expresses his hope that these efforts will lead to removing the historical disagreements between the Churches while preserving sound faith and without compromising it. He also asks that the Spirit of God be present in the dialogue meetings so that the Churches may reach beneficial and fruitful results.

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