Promoting unity requires knowledge of Eastern Christianity, pope says

Published: 2007-12-06

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The universal breadth of the Catholic Church and efforts to promote Christian unity require knowledge of Eastern Christianity and concrete support for the Eastern Christian churches, Pope Benedict XVI said. "Drawing from the patrimony of wisdom of the Christian East enriches us all," the pope said Dec. 6 as he welcomed 280 staff and students, Catholic and Orthodox, from Rome's Pontifical Oriental Institute. The institute was founded in 1917 by Pope Benedict XV, "to whom I feel particularly tied," the pope told the students. As World War I raged and Pope Benedict XV insistently appealed for peace among the world powers, he also acted to ensure "peace within the church" by establishing the Congregation for Eastern Churches and the Pontifical Oriental Institute and by publishing the Code of Canon Law, all in 1917. Later, the Vatican collected and published specific codes of canon law governing the particular aspects of the life of the 22 Eastern Catholic churches.

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