Pope Francis has called heads of the Oriental Catholic Churches in
the Middle East to join him for a summit in Rome later this month to discuss
the "real possibilities for peace" in Syria, Iraq and the Holy Land.
The one-day meeting is to take place in Rome on 21 November.
The Vatican paper L'Osservatore Romano
said Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, Prefect of the Congregation for Eastern
Churches, announced the special gathering last Saturday, with all the
patriarchs and major archbishops of the Oriental Catholic Churches
invited.
They will already be in Rome for the congregation's 19-21
November plenary assembly.
L'Osservatore Romano said the summit would be an opportunity
to "raise a collegial prayer for Christians from those martyred
countries" in the Middle East.
It noted that Pope Benedict held a
similar meeting with Eastern Church leaders in 2009.