Persecution

AP - 'Finally': Pope meets Russian Orthodox leader
The AP reports: "With an exclamation of 'Finally,' Pope Francis embraced Patriarch Kirill on Friday in the first meeting between a pontiff and the head of the Russian Orthodox Church, a brief but historic encounter held during a stopover in Cuba before the pope flew on to Mexico. [...] Francis and Kirill also called for political leaders to act on the single most important issue of shared concern between the Catholic and Orthodox churches today: the plight of Christians in Iraq and Syria who are being killed and driven from their homes by the Islamic State group."

Comment: While I doubt this meeting will lead to a real ecumenical movement between the Catholic and Orthodox branches of Christianity, the two leaders are shining an important light on the persecution of Christians in the Middle East.