Yesterday in Rome, the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE) and the Conference of European Churches (CEC) signed the new 'Charta Oecumenica' updating the 2001 version. This revision was initiated to "reflect the evolving realities of European society" and assess its effectiveness. Leo XIV attended an audience with CCEE and CEC representatives saying that he will be in Nicaea to tell the peoples of Europe that Jesus is the path to follow.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) – Unity, dialogue, and cooperation characterise the shared journey of Europe’s Churches, who signed the updated version of the Charta Oecumenica, first promulgated in 2001.

Described as a "milestone of European ecumenical cooperation,” the document was signed by the Joint Committee of the Council of European Bishops' Conferences (CCEE) and the Conference of European Churches (CEC), whose representatives were received in audience today by Pope Leo XIV at the Vatican Apostolic Palace.

“The challenges Christians face on the ecumenical journey are constantly evolving," Pope Leo XIV told them. In light of these challenges, the process of revision started in 2022.

In today’s continental, national, and local context, there are "new generations and newly arrived peoples with highly varied histories and cultural expressions," Leo explained, with "new voices to be heard and stories to be welcomed”.

The meeting was accompanied by the “urgency of promoting dialogue, concord, and fraternity amidst the din of violence and war”.

In this context, "the grace, mercy, and peace of the Lord are indeed vital," the pontiff said. The Charter, therefore, represents “the willingness of the Churches in Europe to look at our history through the eyes of Christ”.

Echoing the words of his predecessor Francis, he also stressed that in the Catholic Church, "the synodal path is ecumenical, just as the ecumenical path is synodal."

One of the results of the review was “to take a shared vision on contemporary challenges and draw up priorities for the future of the continent,” he added.

“It also my desire, in this Jubilee Year, to proclaim to all the people of Europe that ‘Jesus Christ is our Hope’, for he is both the path we are to follow, and the ultimate destination of our spiritual journey,” Leo said, a reference to his upcoming trip to the site of the Council of Nicaea (AD 325), the first ecumenical council in Christian history.

As noted, the updated Charta Oecumenica is the result of work that began in 2022 by the Joint Committee of the CCEE and CEC, and completed in their meeting in Rome on 4-6 November 2025.

CCEE President Archbishop Gintaras Grušas and CEC President Archbishop Nikitas Lulias signed the new version, drafted so as to take into account the new needs that have emerged since the first one was elaborated.

“The revised version seeks to address contemporary challenges and reflect the evolving realities of European society and Christianity," the two say.

The result is "a document that promotes unity, peace, and cooperation among European Churches," as was the intention of the work undertaken at the beginning of the millennium.

In particular, the revision focused on the document's reception, from both a European and pastoral perspective, which encountered several obstacles after the enthusiasm that accompanied the initial signing.

The new Charta Oecumenica was signed yesterday in the Church of the Martyrdom of Saint Paul, at the Abbey of Tre Fontane in Rome. An important ecumenical prayer was shared before the signing.

On 22 April 2001, the "Guidelines for the Growing Cooperation among the Churches in Europe" were promulgated. The Catholic, Orthodox, and Protestant traditions converged 24 years ago in Strasbourg, France, a key venue for the European Union and a place of cultural fusion.

That year, Easter was celebrated a few days earlier, on 15 April, and fell on the same day for all Christian churches; an event repeated only this year. The signing took place in the Lutheran Cathedral of Saint Thomas.

The urgency that inspired the Charter was the admission that the Churches lack credibility, compounded by a lack of unity, in proclaiming the Gospel, especially when considering the issues of modern times like justice, peace, and the protection of Creation.

Two ecumenical meetings preceded that of 22 April 2001: the assemblies on "Peace in Justice" in Basel in 1989, and on "Reconciliation, Gift of God" in Graz in 1997.

The latter led to the drafting of the Charta Oecumenica, as it highlighted the need “to foster an ecumenical culture of living and working together, and to create a firm basis for it.”

In Strasbourg, 250 people worked on it, half of them official representatives of the Churches and the other half young people under 30. In Graz, the emphasis was on involving young people and entrusting them with the ecumenical vision of the future.

Thus, from the meeting and shared commitment of CCEE and KEK, a minimal vocabulary emerged, accessible to everyone and useful for nourishing the common hope founded in Christ. In short, it was a text for all.

The structure of the Charta Oecumenica promulgated in 2001 includes three sections: the theology underlying ecumenical commitment, the steps to be taken to foster unity among Christians, and the fundamental contributions that the Churches are called to make to Europe.

The document does not impose any dogmatic or legal constraints: rather, it is intended as a pastoral, highly practical text.

The resulting obligation for the signatories stems from the responsibility undertaken "together", an adverb that occurs about 20 times, by Europe’s Christian Churches. This is expressed in the idea: "We commit ourselves”.

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