NAT da Polis

The prelate, who co-chairs the Joint Catholic-Orthodox Commission, said during Mass that we must free our minds from the bonds, which uselessly hold us to the past, and turn instead to the future. The greatest wisdom in the history of humanity comes from these lands and is contained in a single word, charity.

German Chancellor in Turkey today after her no to Ankara’s membership of Europe Union, which has complicated Erdogan’s plans. The Turkish premier, who had made EU membership the focus point of his policies, reacts with harsh tones and returns to issue of schools for Turkish migrants.

Brutal warning by Turkish premier in an interview. The answer to the Armenian Diaspora’s curbing of negotiations, and the United States and Sweden that have recognized the genocide. History repeats itself?

A ruling of the European Commission for Democracy says in fact that the title "ecumenical" Patriarchate of Constantinople is universally recognized and it does not understand the insistence of Turkish authorities in denying a historically established fact. Europe’s warning useful to Erdogan's in his battle to reform the constitution.

The Beyloz affair involves high ranking figures of the army, held responsible along with members of the judiciary and bureaucracy of the non-democratic drift in the country. With the support of some sections of the armed forces, Erdogan seems to want to change the constitution in a more democratic direction. He seeks the support of the EU.

The Patriarch’s aim, it is rumoured, is the recognition of the right to reopen the theological school, the fundamental battle for freedom of religion. For the current government a Strasbourg ruling would be useful to help undermine bureaucratic resistance of the establishment to any reform project

For the first time a demonstration of Turkish in solidarity with the Ecumenical Patriarchate, which is becoming a point of reference for those who want a positive evolution of society. In their favour the latent conflict between the old Kemalist establishment and the new middle class created by AKP.

A statement by Bartholomew about the difficulties Turkish authorities create for the Christian Orthodox community provokes an irate response from Turkey’s foreign minister. Turkey continues to subordinate the reopening of the Orthodox Theological Seminary in Halki to the opening of a mosque in Athens, Greece.

The new headquarters of the Secretariat for entry into the European Union is an old school of the minority Orthodox in Ortakoy, seized in '90. Embarrassment of Erdogan government and Europe.

On the agenda the autonomy of the Churches born after the collapse of the USSR and the new churches of the Diaspora. Many of them want independence from Moscow. Bartholomew defends dialogue with Rome responding to entrenchment of dialogue, which leads only to "a dead end." Erdogan may give citizenship to the metropolitans of the Turkish Diaspora.

The talks in Cyprus between Catholics and Orthodox, the first phase of post-Ravenna, were centred on the search for what unites and therefore on the examination of declarations made by Church figures of the first millennium, when the Church was united. The interdependence between collegiality and primacy.

The second meeting for dialogue between Catholics and Orthodox, taking place in Cyprus, sees strong protest and progress at a standstill for fear of "subjugating the Orthodox to the Pope in Rome." Even among Catholics there is dogmatic resistance. A call to all from Johannes Zizoulas, Metropolitan of Pergamon, tenacious advocate of the value of dialogue.