In Wellington he attended the Eucharist held at the Assyrian Church of St George.

After the Eucharist there was a welcoming ceremony.

Those attending included the Attorney General Christopher Finlayson, His Eminence Amphilochios Metropolitan of the Greek Orthodox Church, Rev Richard Randerson, retired Anglican bishop, Rev Fr Aprem Pithyou of the Assyrian Church, and members of the clergy from from the Catholic, Coptic Orthodox, Serbian Orthodox and Russian Orthodox churches.

The Holy Father also visited Hamilton and Auckland.

In Auckland he visited the Church at 55 Keeling Road, Henderson where the Indian Orthodox Church owned its first property in New Zealand.

Children with lighted candles, youth throwing flowers on the walkway, ornamental umbrellas, firecrackers and illuminations added flavour to the event.

The Holy Father also celebrated the Eucharist at the newly built Church, which was consecrated early this year.

The Eucharist was followed with a public meeting attended by clergy and faithful from the Coptic, Syrian, Catholic & Marthoma churches.

The local MP Phil Twyford was also present.

Later, His Holiness consecrated the first cross shrine in the Pacific Region dedicated in the memory of The Holy Theotokos, in front of the Church.

The Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church, an Eastern rite independent church that counts around two million members, mostly in the Indian region of Kerala.

It dates its origin back to St Thomas the Apostle and was "rediscovered" by Europeans only when the Portuguese started setting up commercial bases in Southern India in the 15th century.

The Church is not in full communion with the Roman Catholic church.

When the met in 2012 Pope Francis and Metropolitan Baselios Marthoma Paulose II praised the progress of the ecumenical dialogue between the two churches in the past decades.

But they didn't shy away from mentioning past and present tensions.

Source

• indiannewslink.co.nz
• uncanews.com
• Image: indiannewslink.co.nz