VATICAN - The Holy Father Benedict XVI's Message to the 11th Inter-Christian Symposium: “Build together the City of God, where his children can live in peace and in fraternal charity, based on the truth of the common faith.”

Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) - “Hence, to know with historical objectivity and fraternal cordiality the doctrinal and spiritual riches that make up the patrimony of the Christian East and West, is indispensable not only to appreciate them, but also to promote better reciprocal appreciation among all Christians. Therefore, I express cordial wishes that your Symposium is fruitful in that it discovers doctrinal and spiritual convergences that are useful to build together the City of God, where his children can live in peace and in fraternal charity, based on the truth of the common faith.” These were the words of the Holy Father Benedict XVI in addressing participants in the 11th Inter-Christian Symposium, promoted by the Franciscan Institute of Spirituality of the Pontifical University Antonianum and the Orthodox Theology Department of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, which is taking place in Rome September 3-5, in his Message sent to the President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Cardinal Walter Kasper.
Benedict XVI sent “a warm and auspicious greeting to the organizers and participants,” taking delight in this initiative of “fraternal encounter and exchange on the common aspects of spirituality, which is beneficial for a closer relationship between Catholics and Orthodox.” Begun in 1992, the Symposium addresses “important and constructive topics for reciprocal understanding and unity of intention” the Pope recalled, highlighting that this year the Symposium is taking place in Rome, “a city that offers all Christians indelible testimonies of history, archaeology, iconography, hagiography and spirituality, strong stimulus to advance toward full communion and above all, the memory of the Apostles Peter and Paul, Protothroni, and of so many martyrs, ancient witnesses of the faith.”
Recalling the theme: “St. Augustine in the Western and Eastern Tradition,” Benedict XVI highlighted that it “is most interesting to reflect further on Christian theology and spirituality in the West and in the East, and its development. The Saint of Hippo, a great Father of the Latin Church, is, in fact, of fundamental importance for theology and for the West's very culture, whereas the reception of his thought in Orthodox theology has revealed itself to be rather problematic.” (SL) (Agenzia Fides 4/9/2009)