[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 145 (Friday, October 24, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2091]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  A WELCOME TO HIS ALL HOLINESS BARTHOLOMEW, ECUMENICAL PATRIARCH OF 
                             CONSTANTINOPLE

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. GEORGE RADANOVICH

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 24, 1997

  Mr. RADANOVICH. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to welcome His All Holiness 
Bartholomew, ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople as he comes to 
visit the United States. His service as a religious leader has provided 
a great deal of inspiration and spiritual leadership to millions of 
Orthodox Christians.
  Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is the current Archbishop of 
Constantinople of the 2,000-year-old Orthodox Christian Church. The 
title of ``ecumenical'' means that Patriarch Bartholomew is the 
worldwide father and spiritual leader of nearly 300 million Orthodox 
Christians. It is the role of Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew to 
coordinate the work of the Orthodox Church, to convene councils and to 
facilitate inter-Church and inter-faith dialogs.
  The ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople emerged as the world 
center of the Orthodox Church during the Great Schism in 1054. It was 
at this time that ecumenical was recognized by other Orthodox 
hierarchies as the principal patriarch of the faith. This position, 
although influential and significant, also represents the lives and 
sacrifices of the persecuted Orthodox Christians of the 20th century. 
Specifically, the ecumenical works in memory of the 700,000 Orthodox 
Serbians killed by Hitler and the thousands of Orthodox Christians 
repressed in the former Soviet satellites.
  As the new millennium approaches, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew is 
striving for religious reconciliation and toleration. Evidence of this 
is the Ecumenical's establishment of an Orthodox archdiocese in China 
during a landmark visit to Hong Kong in 1996. Similarly, his commitment 
to bring harmony between the Christian, Jewish, and Islamic religions 
led to cosponsorship of the Peace and Tolerance Conference in Istanbul 
in 1994. The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew's most current 
undertaking is facilitating peace and unity among the Catholic, Muslim, 
and Orthodox communities of the former Yugoslavia.
  Mr. Speaker, it is with great honor that I welcome His All Holiness 
Bartholomew, ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople in his visit to the 
United States. His character and wisdom are symbolic of his outstanding 
service as a religious leader and human being. I ask my colleagues to 
join me in wishing Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew continued happiness 
and inspirational religious leadership.

                          ____________________