On the occasion of the visit of Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis, to Greece as a guest of the President of the Hellenic Republic, Mrs. Katerina Sakellaropoulou, on 4, 5 and 6 December 2021, a Press Conference was held in the hall of the Library “Dimitris I. Pournaras” of the Journalists’ Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (Ε.Σ.Η.Ε.Α.) by the Archbishop of Athens, Fr. Theodoros Kontidis, a member of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Greece.
Fr. Georgios Dagas, the parish priest of the Catholic Cathedral of St. Dionysius Areopagite, head of the Organizing Committee for the visit of the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church to our country, and Fr. Markos Foscolos, the parish priest of the Catholic Parish of St. Nicholas in Tinos, a theologian and historian, were also present and spoke during the Press Conference.
Coordination was made by journalist Helen Carabott, Communication Officer of the Press Office for the Holy Father’s visit to Greece.
Pope Francis’ apostolic journey takes place five years after his first historic visit to Lesvos, in April 2016, where he had a historic meeting with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew and Archbishop of Athens and All Greece Hieronymos, and twenty years since the first visit of a Pontiff to Greece after the Schism of 1054. In May 2001, at the invitation of the then President of the Hellenic Republic, Kostis Stephanopoulos, and as part of the Pilgrimage in the footsteps of the Apostle Paul, Saint Pope John Paul II, came to Athens, where he met with the Archbishop of Athens and all Greece Christodoulos.
The visit of the Holy Father coincides with the completion of forty-one years of diplomatic relations between Greece and the Holy See.
This is the Pontiff’s 35th apostolic journey since his election in 2013 and marks his return to Lesvos, the emblematic island of the immigration crisis. His meeting with refugees is of major symbolic importance.
The Catholic Archbishop of Athens, Fr. Theodore Kontidis, explained the importance of the Holy Father’s visit for the Catholics in Greece, as in our country Catholics are a diverse community with believers from many nationalities and languages. Thus, the presence of the Pope will rekindle their faith and will reanimate their unity, which is its foundation, what constitutes them in the body of Christ. The presence of the Supreme Pontiff of the Universal Church will also be an invitation for the faithful of the local Church to believe more deeply to Christ and the Gospel. Even for those who are far from the Church or whose relationship with God has weakened or whose relationship with the parish communities has cooled, the presence of the Holy Father is considered an invitation and a call to rediscover love and salvation of Christ; an invitation to the fraternal relationship we must have as members of the Church.
Especially for young people, Pope Francis’ visit is a call to faith, an invitation to discover the gift of the Gospel and the new life in Christ. The encounter of Pope Francis with a group of young people can show, in a festive and joyful way, the unity that Christ brings to people, the victory of the Cross over the wickedness and selfishness of the world, the “good news” of love and the wonderful works that God accomplishes to attract all his scattered children near him.
Furthermore, the Pope’s visit will reinvigorate relations between the Orthodox and Catholic Churches, as well as relations between the two countries, Greece and the Vatican, and will mark his return to Lesvos, the emblematic island of the migration crisis, and his meeting with refugees.
As stressed, “this journey of the Successor of the Prince of the Apostles to the country where Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles, preached ‘the preaching of the Resurrection’, fills us with spiritual joy”.
Since his election as Bishop of Rome, Pope Francis, has wanted to become a modern Apostle of the Nations, which is why he has not stopped calling us faithful to “go to the peripheries” to meet our brothers and sisters.
In the person of this distinguished visitor, the citizens of Athens, as well as those from other regions who will be in the Greek capital these days, and the residents of Lesvos, will see the man who seeks cooperation among nations, reconciliation among peoples, unity among Christians; the man who, through his words and deeds, calls us to return to the roots of the Gospel, supporting all those who have faced the harsh reality of life as needy, as patients, as refugees.
Hoping that this journey will be a testimony of peace and love, a new step of unity among us, we will welcome the Holy Father in Athens, the cradle of this great civilization, where Paul, the Apostle of the Gentiles, preached the message of unity of the human race, love of God and salvation through Christ.
The parish priest of the Catholic Cathedral of St. Dionysius Areopagite, Fr. George Dagas, as the head of the Organizing Committee, spoke about the organization of the visit of the Holy Father to our country.
The parish priest of the Catholic Parish of St. Nicholas of Tinos, theologian and historian, Fr. Markos Foscolos referred to the contribution of the Catholic Church to the relief of the Greek nation during the difficult moments of its history in the last two centuries.
Finally, the communication officer of the Press Office for the Holy Father’s visit, journalist Eleni Carabott, presented the charitable work of the Catholic Church in our country, emphasizing that “the local Catholic Church is a small Church, but with an enormous work”!
