[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 78 (Thursday, May 22, 2014)]
[House]
[Pages H4816-H4817]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        HISTORIC PRAYER SERVICE

  (Mr. BILIRAKIS asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BILIRAKIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to celebrate the inspiring 
prayer service between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch 
Bartholomew this Sunday at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in 
Jerusalem.
  These two spiritual leaders of 1.5 billion Christians worldwide are 
celebrating the 50th anniversary of the first historic meeting in 
Jerusalem between their predecessors: Pope Paul VI and Ecumenical 
Patriarch Athenagoras in 1964.

[[Page H4817]]

  Sunday's meeting in the Holy Land serves to recognize mutual respect 
and admiration between the two churches that was reignited 50 years 
ago. It is fitting that it takes place at the birthplace of 
Christianity: Jerusalem.
  I commend the leadership of Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch 
Bartholomew, who both glorify God and demonstrate that Christianity is 
characterized by love, peace, and compassion.

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