Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople is not claiming to be holier than Pope Benedict XVI.
'All-Holiness' has been and still remains a commonly used form of address in the East for the Ecumenical Patriarch - just as judges have always been addressed as 'Your Honour', royalty as 'Your Highness', the Queen as 'Your Majesty', etc.
It is not pretentious, neither is it a show of superiority over the Pope. As mentioned before, should East and West reunite, the position of primacy will willingly be ceded to the Pope.
Would you then consider the full title of the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria ostentatious? Among others, he is also addressed as: - the Pillar of the Faith - Universal Judge - the 13th Apostle - Father of Fathers, Shepherd of Shepherds - Hierarch of Hierarchs
These titles was already as such even before Servant of the Servants of God or Supreme Pontiff entered the Pope's title. One must always remember that there is often more pomp and ceremony in the East as compared to the West.
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'All-Holiness' has been and still remains a commonly used form of address in the East for the Ecumenical Patriarch - just as judges have always been addressed as 'Your Honour', royalty as 'Your Highness', the Queen as 'Your Majesty', etc.
It is not pretentious, neither is it a show of superiority over the Pope. As mentioned before, should East and West reunite, the position of primacy will willingly be ceded to the Pope.
Would you then consider the full title of the Pope and Patriarch of Alexandria ostentatious? Among others, he is also addressed as:
- the Pillar of the Faith
- Universal Judge
- the 13th Apostle
- Father of Fathers, Shepherd of Shepherds
- Hierarch of Hierarchs
These titles was already as such even before Servant of the Servants of God or Supreme Pontiff entered the Pope's title. One must always remember that there is often more pomp and ceremony in the East as compared to the West.