125
edits
Changes
no edit summary
He also backed the validity of the Roman Catholic [[baptism]]s of the Poles, a suggestion that was approved. Patr. Macarius, however, criticized the atrocities committed by the Polish Catholics against followers of the Orthodox, using as an example the religious peace in the Turkish empire.
After his return to Damascus in 1659, Patr. Macarius was able to settle the debts of the patriarchate, after which he [[excommunication|excommunicated]] the acting [[patriarch]] Athanasius Ibn Amish, Metropolitan of Homs. In 1660, Macarius III blessed the Holy [[Chrism]] for all the patriarchate for the first time since 1594. He was reserved towards the Latin [[missionary|missionaries]] in Syria until 1661. After that his attitude changed. He frequently sent his greetings to the Roman pope and kept very good relations with the missionaries. Additionally, a Catholic source claims that Macarius III secretly sent off a profession of the Catholic faith to Rome while publicly appearing to be a confirmed Orthodox Christian.
In 1666, Tsar Alexis invited Patr. Macarius to Moscow to participate in the [[Moscow Sobor of 1666–1667|Synod of 1666]] that affirmed the revised religious and liturgical reforms of the Russian Church while anathematizing those of the [[Old Believers|Old Ritualists]] who opposed them and the old Russian books and rites. Macarius, was accompanied on the trip by Patr. [[Paisius of Alexandria]]. During the trip, Patr. Macarius asked the Polish king John Casimir to work for the union between the Eastern and Western Churches.