Moscow and Rome Making Progress

Inevitably, this is going to happen and it's just a matter of time. The friendly overtures on the part of the Bulgarians as well as the recent talks in Cyprus point to it, but there are negative reasons as well, threats that are far greater than the Turk.


By Oleg Shchedrov

MOSCOW, Dec 3 (Reuters) - The Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church are making progress towards healing their 1,000-year-old rift, a senior Russian official said ahead of President Dmitry Medvedev's first visit to the Vatican.

But the Russian leader will not invite Pope Benedict to make an historic visit to Russia when the two meet on Thursday because he believes church heads should take the initiative, said the official, who refused to be identified.

"It is not appropriate for a secular leader to raise the issue in the absence of a hierarch," the official said. "They (Church leaders) should decide the issue themselves."

"However, a movement towards normalisation is clearly seen and things are moving in the right direction," he added.

The Russian Orthodox Church has revived dramatically since the collapse of communism and is now a powerful and influential force. Its leader, Patriarch Kirill, is often seen with Kremlin chiefs, top officials and visiting foreign leaders.

Visits by Russian leaders to the Holy See in the past have failed to help heal the rift between the churches.

But fresh hopes emerged when Kirill took power after the death of his theologically more conservative predecessor Alexiy II last December.

Patriarch Alexiy, who spearheaded the revival of his church after decades of Communist persecution, treated rival religions and churches with suspicion.

The Russian Orthodox Church has accused the Vatican of poaching for converts in its territory, including Slav neighbour Ukraine. The Catholic Church says it is only ministering to an existing flock of around half a million Russian Catholics.

The mediaeval Christian church split into Eastern and Western branches in the Great Schism of 1054 amid disputes over papal authority and the insertion of a clause into the Nicene Creed. The divide has never been healed.

Patriarch Kirill, who headed the Church's foreign relations department for many years before taking his present job, has shown less hostility towards Catholics than Alexiy.

German-born Pope Benedict, a theological conservative, is viewed by Orthodox hierarchs as a more welcome partner than his predecessor John Paul II.

John Paul hailed from Poland, a traditional enemy of Russia, and his fight against Soviet Communism was interpreted by the Orthodox Church as a crusade against Russia.

In March, Medvedev took part in a ceremony in which the Italian government handed a pilgrimage centre in the southern city of Bari to the Orthodox Church.

"I think relations (between the churches) are now becoming more open," the Russian source said. "These steps show they are working on the atmosphere and we appreciate this."

© 2009 Reuters

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