May 23, 2007

The World Council of Churches (WCC) has received with "deep concern" the recent withdrawal of Jordan's recognition of Patriarch Theophilos III as the head of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem and requested the decision to be reconsidered.

In a 18 May letter to the Jordanian Prime Minister Dr Marouf Suleiman al-Bakhit, the WCC general secretary Rev. Dr Samuel Kobia expressed "fear that such a decision might lead to a division among the Orthodox Christian community in Jordan and Palestine with negative ecclesial and socio-political consequences." Kobia also stressed that recognizing Theophilos III "is of utmost importance for the good governance of the institutions related to that patriarchate."

The election of the head of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem is customarily recognized by the Jordanian and Israeli governments as well as by the Palestinian Authority.

The full text of the WCC letter to the Jordanian government is available at: http://www.oikoumene.org/index.php?id=3585.

World Council of Churches