Orientales omnes ecclesias

The encyclical Orientales omnes ecclesias was published on December 23, 1945 by Pope Pius XII. published on the occasion of the 350th anniversary of the union of the Ruthenian Church with the Apostolic See . This resulted in the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church in 1595/96 . The Pope essentially describes the historical, theological and liturgical developments of the Eastern Catholic Churches, to which the Ruthenian Greek Catholic Church has belonged since 1595.

The focus of his encyclical is the historical account of the merger:

• Before the church union of Brest came about in Brest (Belarus) in 1596 , long and difficult negotiations were necessary. First was signed on 22 June 1595 by all the bishops of the Ruthenian Church a "letter of intent for the union," which in September 1595 by Cyril Terletski (Bishop of Lutsk ) and Hypatius Pociei (Bishop of Vladimir ) in a papal audience in Rome has been passed .

• Pope Clement VIII took over this document and gave it to the papal curia for examination. On December 23, 1595, the actual day of the unification, the bishops present presented their approval report and, on behalf of all bishops of the Ruthenian Church, their delegates took the oath of allegiance to the Pope. This event was set down and proclaimed in the Apostolic Constitution "Dominus et laudabilis nimis".

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Text of the encyclical