Patriarch Bartholomew met with US President Joe Biden and US Secretary Anthony Blinken on Monday to discuss a number of issues. Top of the agenda was the reoperation of the theological school of Chalki, the main school of theology of the Eastern Orthodox Church’s Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, until the Turkish Parliament enacted a law banning higher education institutions in 1971.
During the meeting at the State Department, Mr Blinken said that the reoperation of the school will continue to be a priority for the Biden government. Mr Blinken recalled his visit to Istanbul in 2011 when Mr Biden was US vice president. He reiterated the US government’s support of religious freedom.
I was honored to meet His All-Holiness, @EcuPatriarch Bartholomew to discuss the U.S. commitment to supporting global religious freedom. We value our partnership with the Orthodox Christian community worldwide and religious minorities in Turkey and the region. pic.twitter.com/2CWFCY5E4W
— Secretary Antony Blinken (@SecBlinken) October 25, 2021
The meeting between Mr Biden and the Patriarch was also held in a cordial climate.
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Deeply grateful to President @JoeBiden for our meeting in the Oval Office, where the Ecumenical Patriarch addressed the urgency of political leaders responding to the climate crisis, the distribution of Covid vaccines to developing nations, and the reopening of Halki Seminary. pic.twitter.com/PiZ5jCITsS
— Elpidophoros (@Elpidophoros) October 25, 2021
“We are grateful to the US administration for the continuous support for the Ecumenical Throne and its ideas and values which we try to protect, struggling at the same time to survive in our historic seat in Istanbul,” Patriarch Bartholomew said.
