Kiev (IKA) — After appointment as the general secretary of the World Synod of Bishops, the apostolic nuncio in the Ukraine, Archbishop Nikola Eterović, issued a statement for IKA in which he emphasized his gratitude to the Lord for the great gift of priestly and episcopal service, and for the five years that he was the apostolic nuncio in the Ukraine. This appointment means that he “will soon leave the Ukraine, go to the Vatican, and assume the office of the general secretary of the World Synod of Bishops,” said Archbishop Eterović, explaining that the World Synod of Bishops was founded by Pope Paul VI in the year 1965 at the end of the Second Vatican Council. “Many feel that the World Synod of Bishops is one of the more important fruits of the Vatican Ecumenical Council. The World Synod of Bishops is a permanent council of the bishops of the Church universal. It can be said that this is an institutionalized form of the eucharistic community of bishops with the Pope,” said the archbishop in his interview for our agency. Speaking about the office of the apostolic nuncio in the Ukraine, he said: “It was an unforgettable experience to live in a great country of Eastern Europe that, having obtained freedom and independence, finds itself on the path of the building of a democratic society, and one of its main characteristics is respect for religious freedom. This positive atmosphere has facilitated the reorganization of the Catholic Church in the Ukraine that has two great traditions in this country: the eastern Greek Catholic and the western Latin traditions. Both traditions show great spiritual and pastoral vitality.” For his diplomatic Church activities in the Ukraine, Nuncio Eterović became acquainted with the synodal structure of the activity of the Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church. The Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church is similar in its organization to Orthodox Churches, except that one of the main differences is in the understanding of the role of the Bishop of Rome, the visible head of the Catholic Church. “Actually, the coexistence and mutual enrichment of the two Christian traditions will be of great value to me in the new duties to which the Holy Father has assigned me by appointing me as the general secretary of the World Synod of Bishops,” emphasized Archbishop Eterović. Speaking about the relationship between pastoral activity and diplomacy, the nuncio referred to a statement by Pope John Paul II that diplomacy is a type of apostloate and mentioned that “the Blessed Pope John XXIII often stated that pastoral activity is the sole goal of the diplomatic activity of the Holy See.” “Therefore, pastoral activity and diplomacy entwine, so that it is not particularly difficult to go from one area to the other. In any case, this always concerns the Church offices, whose purpose is the good of believers and people of good will,” he said. Commenting on his new office, Archbishop Eterović told IKA that for him “it is a great gift to be in direct contact with the Holy Father, the president of the World Synod of Bishops, in the vitalizing and strengthening of collegial relations among the member bishops of a single episcopal order whose head is the Bishop of Rome, the Universal Pastor of the Church. In the Church community, episcopal collegiality is a significant characteristic of the organization of the Catholic Church.”