King receives Orthodox primates participating in Amman gathering

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah, accompanied by HRH Crown Prince Hussein, received, at Al Husseiniya Palace on Wednesday, the primates of Orthodox churches participating in the Amman Gathering of the Orthodox Primates and Delegates on Dialogue and Unity.

During the meeting — attended by HRH Prince Ghazi, His Majesty’s chief adviser for religious and cultural affairs and personal envoy — the King stressed that Christians are an integral part of the region, and they have a key role in its present and future, according to a Royal Court statement. 

His Majesty underscored that Jordan will persist in upholding its historical responsibility to safeguard Islamic and Christian holy sites in Jerusalem, in line with the Hashemite Custodianship, and preserve the city’s historical and legal status quo.

For their part, the Orthodox primates reaffirmed their commitment to His Majesty’s Custodianship of Christian holy sites, stressing the importance of the Hashemite Custodianship in preserving the historical status quo in Jerusalem, the statement said.

Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, All Palestine, and Jordan Theophilos III, who also heads the Council of Church Leaders in Jordan and Jerusalem, said the King’s Custodianship of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Christ’s Tomb, and Orthodox churches, is an extension of the Pact of Omar, which was carried forward by all Muslim caliphs in protecting the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and preserving the Christian presence, Islamic-Christian coexistence, and the spirit of peace in Jerusalem since 1,400 ago.