MAJOR EPIPHANY NEWS FROM PALM HARBOR

This week, the town of Tarpon Springs is the centre of the Eastern Orthodox world. His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, leader of the Orthodox religion and it's 250 million followers, is in the area to celebrate the town's 100th annual Epiphany celebration with Greek Orthodox Church head His Eminence Archbishop Demetrios. The celebration is highlighted with young men diving for the white wooden cross tossed by the patriarch into a local waterway.

The big news from the event Thursday was the announcement that Pope Benedict XVI has agreed to visit the Eastern Orthodox Church's headquarters in Istanbul, Turkey. This would be the first time that a Roman Catholic Pope has made such a visit in nearly three decades, and could lead to an improvement in relations between the two religions.

There have been efforts in the past to mend the schism, which dates back to 1054. Most recently, reconciliation talks had been held for more than 30 years before breaking down in 2000.

The visit, which has not been scheduled, was originally to take place in November, but was delayed by diplomatic pressures between the Orthodox Church, the Vatican, and Turkey.