Pope to ROACO: May Eastern Churches Bear Witness Amid Pain of Conflict

VATICAN CITY – June 26, 2025: Pope Leo XIV on Thursday met with several members of the Reunion of Aid Agencies for the Oriental Churches (ROACO) during an audience held at the Vatican on Thursday, June 26. The members are currently in Rome to participate in the annual meeting of their organisation. 

In his address to the members during the meeting, the Pope praised their efforts to provide material and spiritual support for the faithful of Eastern-rite Catholic Churches, calling the organisation’s mission “a proclamation of joy”. He also thanked the charitable organisations and their benefactors for “sowing seeds of hope in the lands of the Christian East”, which he lamented have been devastated in recent years by wars and a “cloud of hatred”.

Pope Leo noted that oppression and misunderstanding have arisen historically even within the Catholic community, which at times has failed to appreciate the value of Eastern Christian traditions.

He expressed his desire for the Eastern rites to be better known within the Catholic Church, suggesting courses be held in seminaries and Catholic universities to inform Latin-rite Catholics about our Eastern brothers and sisters.

The Pope highlighted Eastern Christians’ “sense of the sacred, their deep faith confirmed by suffering, and their spirituality, redolent of the divine mysteries”.

He went on to recall the violence ravaging the Christian East with “diabolical intensity previously unknown”, noting that some ROACO members were unable to come to Rome for the annual meeting due to the conflict in the Middle East.

“Our hearts bleed when we think of Ukraine, the tragic and inhumane situation in Gaza, and the Middle East, ravaged by the spread of war,” he said.

"Every individual", Pope Leo added, "must examine the causes of these conflicts and seek to resolve them while rejecting explanations that are manipulative or false."

“It is truly distressing to see the principle of ‘might makes right’ prevailing in so many situations today,” he said.

The Pope mourned the deaths and suffering caused by war and terrorism and mentioned the recent suicide bombing at the Mar Elias Orthodox Church in Damascus, Syria.

Pope Leo XIV said humanity cannot hope to lay a solid foundation for the future on the basis of acts of war.

"Only through cooperation and a global vision inspired by the common good", he said, "can nations set out on a path to lasting peace."

“People are beginning to realise the amount of money that ends up in the pockets of merchants of death,” he said. “Money that could be used to build new hospitals and schools is instead being used to destroy those that already exist!”

Finally, Pope Leo praised the witness of the Christian East, saying our call is to “remain faithful to Jesus, without allowing ourselves to end up in the clutches of power.”

“Let us follow Christ, who freed hearts from hatred, and show by our example how to break free of the mindset of division and revenge.”

By Devin Watkins

Courtesy: Vatican News