Russian, Greek Orthodox Consult On Pope's Visit

MOSCOW, May 7, 01 (CWNews.com) - Greek Orthodox Archbishop Christodoulos said on Saturday, as he arrived in Moscow for a visit with Russian Orthodox Patriarch Aleksei II, that his meeting with Pope John Paul II last week produced positive results.

The archbishop presented Aleksei with a small medal that was a gift to him from the Pope. "The pope's trip to Greece was first of all a pilgrimage, and we had nothing against this visit", the archbishop said. "However we reserved the right to use this moment for reminding him of the wounds inflicted by the Roman Catholic Church on its Orthodox brothers." The Pope issued an apology during his two-day trip for the sins of Catholic men and women through the centuries against their Orthodox brethren, especially the sacking of Constantinople in 1204.

"I made a special point for the Pope that the Russian Orthodox Church is worried by the problem of union [between the churches]. We also touched on Cyprus. We are now waiting for further positive steps from the Roman Catholic Church," Christodoulos said.

Patriarch Aleksei reacted coolly to the apology, noting that it was addressed mainly to historical slights rather than more contemporary events, such as the continuing controversy over the presence of Catholics in Russia and traditionally Russian Orthodox countries. "We will have to see how this excuse is implemented in real life," he said.

The Russian Orthodox Church opposes the Pope's visit to Ukraine in June and demands the Catholic Church renounce all activity it perceives as proselytism and that Ukrainian Catholics refrain from demanding the return of churches confiscated by the Soviets and handed over to the Orthodox.

Catholic World News Service - Daily News Briefs
7. mai 2001