SW News: Next year will be a special jubilee for the Melkite Greek Catholic Church which is celebrating the 300th anniversary of the restoration of full communion with Rome.

The jubilee announcement was made by Melkite Patriarch Yossef Absi while addressing the media at the Patriarchate in Lebanon’s Raboue on July 11. The proclamation was entitled "The Greek-Melkite Catholic Church: An ecumenical journey 1724-2024". His Beatitude said, "The Synod of our Church did not want this anniversary to pass without us reflecting on the past, present and future path of our Church and her mission".

On November 11, the jubilee year will open in the Syrian capital Damascus with a solemn Divine Liturgy in the Patriarchal Cathedral of Our Lady of the Dormition by Patriarch Absi. There will be liturgical celebrations, theological, historical and ecumenical studies, conferences and exhibitions showcasing the spiritual and artistic heritage of the Melkites in the Middle East.

Addressing the media, the patriarch recollected the lineage of the Melkite Church which owes its origin to the Church in Antioch. Founded by the Apostle Peter, the Church experienced painful divisions over the centuries. He said it was in the 17th century that missionaries from the West brought healing and reconciliation between the Antiochian Church and the Church of Rome.

He said this gradually paved the way for a reunification movement culminating in the formation of the sui iuris Melkite Church within the Catholic communion in 1724. However, another faction refused reunion and came to be known as the Antiochian Greek Orthodox Church. The patriarch said over the centuries, "the Churches of Antioch have fulfilled their mission of preserving the Christian faith and have overcome all the critical moments they have lived through".

And today, "thanks to Almighty God and the will of those responsible, the relationships between our church and sister churches continue to be one of mutual respect, brotherly love and collaboration in the service of the one gospel, while our faithful often have a privileged experience of gathering under the roof of the same house from different denominations to bear a clear testimony of their belonging to Chris,” he added.