On upcoming Orientale Lumen Conference

(RNS) - The Papal Nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Christophe Pierre, will attend the opening events of the 21st Orientale Lumen Conference scheduled for June 19-22, 2017 in Washington, DC. Other international ecumenical leaders who will be plenary speakers during the 4-day conference include Archbishop Job of Telmessos, Orthodox Co-Chair of the International Catholic-Orthodox Dialogue; Msgr. Paul McPartlan of The Catholic University of America and also a member of the international dialogue; Father Thomas FitzGerald, from Holy Cross Greek Orthodox Seminary and member of the North American Catholic-Orthodox Consultation; and Father Hyacinthe Destivelle, OP, from the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity at the Vatican. Video recorded lectures by Metropolitan Kallistos of Diokleia, of the Ecumenical Patriarchate and professor emeritus of Oxford University, will also be presented during the conference.

The theme for the conference will be “Chieti and Crete: Two Historical Events.” Speakers and participants will discuss the Chieti Agreed Statement of September 2016 in which the Orthodox-Catholic International Dialogue agreed on the role of the Bishop of Rome during the First Millennium. The second topic will be the Great and Holy Council of the Orthodox Church held on Crete in June 2016 which produced, among other documents, a statement on the ecumenical relationship of the Orthodox Church with other Christian Churches. The conference is a “grass roots” ecumenical movement open to the public that has been meeting annually for twenty years. It includes laity, clergy, theologians and hierarchs from the Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Eastern Catholic and Oriental Orthodox Churches.

Conference founder and annual chairman, Jack Figel, said, “we are very excited about the lineup of speakers we have for this year’s conference. Their participation shows the level of commitment to ecumenical dialogue from both the Orthodox and Catholic Churches.” Past conference speakers have included patriarchs, cardinals, metropolitans, archbishops, bishops, theologians, and lay persons. Themes have included a wide range of topics dealing with ecumenical relations as well as topics specific to the Eastern Christian Churches. Audio and video recordings of past conference are also available for purchase.