Somewhere, Mar Mena and The Reader_David are gnashing their teeth and composing imprecations
Quite the contrary, we pray for the conversion of the Pope of Rome and his concommitant abandonment of vain claims of infallibility, superiority to the Holy Ecumenical Councils, and the heretical triadology, ideas of created grace (including the purgatorial fires), and too-extreme notion of Original Sin which necessitated the invention of the "Immaculate Conception" of the Blessed Virgin Mary, which have long separated his communion from the Church.
I think the problem is that Catholics in general tend to greatly overemphasize events such as this one, which have little meaning when it comes to an actual reunion.
And we feel frustrated because there is so much you don't see about us and about our view of your church.
The bottom line here is that our church teaches us to love and treat kindly every single person in the world. And while those of us here on FR fail this quite often, our spiritual leaders, although sinners themselves, are extremely aware of their responsibility toward all of the Orthodox faithful around the world to set a good example. So when the cameras are out, you can bet our leaders are going to be gracious with a capital G. They are keenly aware that we are learning under them, and they give their allegiance toward being role models of Christ-like behavior for the rest of us. In our faith our leaders are burdened with the souls of those of us beneath them.
And we know this. Then we come on here and you guys are all talking like we're going to reunite tomorrow or something and it tends to make us feel defensive. I am just trying to explain this for everyone here. And from that defensive place, a place where we love our church so much it hurts, we tend to want to post all the reasons this reunion is very far from happening. I know I do.
Because what we also know is that our leaders are as committed to the truths of our faith as we are, and these acts are simply acts of gracious behavior and friendliness toward your pope. Like being hospitable toward a stranger. Like offering your coat to someone without one. Like making a sacrifice which does not compromise your values but pleases another. These are acts of spiritual discipline among us, ways to practise and exhibit God-pleasing behaviors.
It's very simple. We don't change. We think change is a bad word. It is a critical element in our faith - stay the same. It is a central doctrine for us because we see it as keeping us pure and true, for lack of a better way to explain it. It cannot be compromised without compromising our entire faith. This may be hard for you to understand as your church has changed with the times. But this is something, in truth, that many many Orthodox snicker about it in private or among themselves, although it is not God-pleasing behavior to do so.
And this is not said to offend anyone here, but I am just tired of the confusion and misunderstandings, so I hope this helps to stave off a fight, of which I am a *primary* guilty party in many instances, as you noted.
Somewhere, Mar Mena and The Reader_David are gnashing their teeth and composing imprecations.And the truth is, we are not gnashing our teeth or the least bit anxious about this. Your pope is old and getting older. He has expressed his desire to have better relations with us. Our Patriarch has made a gesture which no doubt, pleases your pope. For this action, our Patriarch becomes a better Christian. He has reached out to another person with a desire that he cannot fulfill, but he has found a way to do something that works for him and hopefully makes the pope happy too. It is an act of Christian love toward another. A sacrifice. A small step on the ladder.