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Antelias: Chairman of the EKD Council Bishop Wolfgang Hubert visits

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  • Antelias: Chairman of the EKD Council Bishop Wolfgang Hubert visits

    Press Release
    Catholicosate of Cilicia
    Communication and Information Department
    Contact: V.Rev.Father Krikor Chiftjian, Communications Officer
    Tel: (04) 410001, 410003
    Fax: (04) 419724
    E-mail: [email protected]
    Web: http://www.cathcil.org/

    PO Box 70 317
    Antelias-Lebanon

    Armenian version: http://www.cathcil.org/v04/doc/Armenian.htm


    DURI NG A MEETING IN ANTELIAS

    BISHOP HUBERT EXPRESSES SUPPORT FOR THE ARMENIAN CAUSE AND ARAM I
    DEMANDS MORE FROM GERMANY IN THIS RESPECT

    The president of the EKD Council Bishop Wolfgang Hubert expressed his
    support for the Armenian Cause following a meeting with the Catholicos of
    Cilicia, His Holiness Aram I, in Antelias on October 14. The Bishop visited
    Antelias with an official delegation representing the German Churches and
    the Ambassador of Germany to Lebanon, Dr. Marius Haas.

    His Holiness and the Bishop, two long-time friends, made the focus of their
    discussions the recognition of the Armenian Genocide and in that context,
    the issue of Turkey's membership in the European Union.

    The two spiritual leaders also discussed various issues including the
    importance of Christian-Muslim dialogue in a new world situation as well as
    the necessity of strengthening Christianity in the Middle East.

    On the Lebanese front, Bishop Hubert talked about his impressions from his
    meeting with Prime Minister Fouad Siniora the same day.

    The Bishop considered his third visit to Antelias to be historical during a
    luncheon organized after the meeting in his honor. Bishop Kegham
    Khatcherian, Primate of the Diocese of Lebanon, members of the Cilician
    Brotherhood, ministers and Members of Parliament, representatives of
    Armenian political parties and organizations and members of ecumenical
    committee attended the luncheon.

    After welcoming his guests, the His Holiness Aram I commended the brave
    position adopted by the German churches in recognizing the Armenian
    Genocide. Addressing Bishop Hubert and the German Ambassador, however, His
    Holiness stressed that the Armenian nation demands more from Germany as a
    defender of human rights.

    The Pontiff presented to the German Bishop a copy of "Voices from Germany",
    a German book grouping the statements of about 50 German theologians,
    politicians, intellectuals, Genocide scholars and human rights activists.
    The book was published in Antelias on the occasion of the 90th anniversary
    of the Armenian Genocide.

    Speaking about the pursuit of the Armenian Cause, the German Spiritual
    leader assured that he feels with the Armenians their pain and their
    timeless pursuit of justice.

    The Bishop also talked about the strong leadership and the great
    contribution that His Holiness Aram I brought to the global ecumenical
    movement and to the World Council of Churches in particular. "In the field
    of ecumenical affairs, one should go thirty years back to trace the start of
    our friendship. His Holiness Aram I's seriousness towards the movement and
    its mission is worthy of praise," he said.

    Following an exchange of gifts between the two spiritual leaders, the German
    delegation visited the Memorial of the Armenian Genocide in the
    Catholicosate, where Bishop Hubert prayed for the souls of the one and a
    half million victims of the Armenian Genocide.

    The meeting also provided an opportunity to look into new prospects for
    cooperation between the Armenian and German nations, as well as with the
    Armenian and German protestant churches.

    ##
    View photos here: http://www.cathcil.org/v04/doc/Photos/Photos4.htm
    http://www.cathcil.org/v04/doc/Photos/Photos5.htm


    *****

    The Armenian Catholicosate of Cilicia is one of the two Catholicosates of
    the Armenian Orthodox Church. For detailed information about the Ecumenical
    activities of the Cilician Catholicosate, you may refer to the web page of
    the Catholicosate, http://www.cathcil.org/ The Cilician Catholicosate, the
    administrative center of the church is located in Antelias, Lebanon.
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