By Cindy Wooden
VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Two months after bishops of the
Melkite Catholic Church declared they had reconciled with each other and found
a way to move forward together, the Vatican announced Pope Francis had accepted
the resignation of Melkite Patriarch Gregoire III Laham.
In a letter released by the Vatican May 6, Pope Francis said
that in February, the 84-year-old Syrian-born patriarch “spontaneously
presented me with his renunciation of the patriarchal office, asking me to
decide the most favorable moment to accept it.”
“After praying and reflecting attentively, I consider
it opportune and necessary for the good of the Greek Melkite Church to accept
his resignation today,” said the letter addressed to Patriarch Laham and all the bishops of the Melkite Church.
Pope Francis thanked the patriarch for his service and,
especially, for his work to keep the suffering and the needs of the people of
Syria in the public eye.
Patriarch Laham had convoked a synod of the Melkite
bishops in June 2016, but the meeting was postponed because half the Melkite
bishops boycotted the gathering and called for the patriarch’s resignation. One
of the main issues of contention was the management of church property, but
also leadership styles.
At the time, the patriarch called the
bishops’ absence a “case of open rebellion.”
After eight months, the synod met in February at the
patriarchate in Rebweh, Lebanon. Afterward, the bishops issued a statement
thanking God “for the spirit of reconciliation and renewed commitment to
walk together in partnership to restore peace in the church.”
The bishops also scheduled another synod assembly for June.
Between the resignation of Patriarch Laham and the
election of a new patriarch by the synod, the church will be administered by
the member who has been a bishop the longest, in this case Melkite Archbishop Jean-Clement
Jeanbart of Aleppo, Syria, 74.
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