Director of the Press Office of Ecumenical Patriarchate: the Council is still "Pan-Orthodox", the decision to convene it was unanimous

The Council is still Pan-Orthodox, and the authority of its decisions cannot be diminished, said John Chryssavgis, Director of the Press Office for the Holy and Great Council.

Fr. John said that the Cathedral in Crete can be held with the absence of some local Churches. "Nowhere in the Rules does it say that the absence of a church affects the convening of the Council. It is important to cite the official documents precisely. According to the rules, Holy and Great Council may be convened by His Holiness Patriarch Bartholomew, with the consent of all the local Churches, which is exactly what happened in Geneva in January," said the cleric.

"The Rules say nothing about the invalidity of the Council and its decisions, if any church is not able to take part in it. I believe that the Council can still be called "Pan-Orthodox", since the decision to convene it was pan-Orthodox, all the Churches unanimously agreed to participate in it," explained the Director of the Press Office.

Fr. John believes that because of the refusal of some churches to arrive in Crete "the authority of the Council and its decisions cannot be diminished. But the view, that Synod decisions are invalid because some churches are not present lacks ecclesiological, theological and even basic logic."

The cleric expressed regret that some churches "chose to change their minds though they had given their word earlier to participate in the Council."

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