Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew Begins Major Visit to Italy

On 15 September 2019, His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew departs from Athens, where he attended a baptism, for Rome and the start of a five-day visit.On 16 September, he will deliver the keynote address at the 24th International Congress of the Society for the Law of the Eastern Churches, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary.Patriarch Bartholomew will speak on the theme "Society for the Law of the Eastern Churches 50 years later and the Ecumenical Movement". Following his address, he will attend Vespers and a reception in his honour by the Holy Metropolis of Italy and Malta.
The Society says​ its organisational centre is the Department for Legal Philosophy,Law of Religion and Culture (former Institute for Canon Law) of the Viennese Faculty of Law.Its purpose is the promotion of better international and inter-confessional scholarly collaboration among specialists of the Law of the Eastern Churches and of the Civil Law on Churches insofar as it concerns the Eastern Churches.His All-Holiness is a founding member of the Society.*
On 17 September, Patriarch Bartholomew will meet with His Holiness Pope Francis in the Vatican.From 18-20 September, Patriarch Bartholomew will conduct an official visit to Calabria, Sicily on the occasion of the Centenary of the establishment of the Italo-Albanese Eparchy of Lungro, which is a Byzantine Rite diocese of the Catholic Church.The Eparchy was created in 1919 for emigrants from Albania and Epirus.
According to the Eparchy:
In a few days Calabria will witness an historic event of grace.On Wednesday 18 will land at Lemezia Terme Airport His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, Archbishop of Constantinople.He will arrive in Calabria after having met with Pope Francis, with whom he is working intensely in steps of rapprochement between the Catholic and Orthodox brothers, so that may resound as soon as possible in the universe,in a unified way, the glory that is appropriate to God.*
The Most Reverend Donato Oliverio is the Bishop of Lungro.*