In an interview reported by The Russian Orthodox Church Department for External Church Relations, Rossiya TV asked Patriarch Kirill about his visit to Latin America in February 2016. At the time, Kirill commented about his impression of South America and his hopes for that country. As a comparative lesson, he reflected on the experience of…
Continue readingRussian Orthodox Clergy Support Justice and Respect for the Law
The reform of the judicial system, which practically never acquits and is fully subordinate to law enforcement agencies, has long been discussed in Russia. However, only civil activists are involved in the debates. The government keeps evading any participation in the discussion, and the courts continue arbitrarily to pass unreasonably strict verdicts for both civil…
Continue readingThe IOTA Moment
by Irina Paert Just when we all thought that global Orthodoxy was in a state of deep crisis, God had a surprise for us. Indeed, when four member churches of the Orthodox global family rejected the invitation of Patriarch Bartholomew to attend the Holy and Great Council of Crete, which had been in preparation for…
Continue readingThe Crisis of Orthodox Multilateralism
The contemporary Pan-Orthodox conciliar process appeared in parallel to the creation in 1920 of the first global, political and multilateral institution, the League of Nations, which later became the United Nations after the Second World War. This correlation is even more apparent when we look at the well-known Encyclical of the Ecumenical Patriarchate issued in…
Continue readingThe Paradox of Unanimity: The Holy and Great Council
We are on the eve of the Holy and Great Council, a topic that has weighed heavily in discussions on this blog in recent months. One major issue that has continually come up for discussion is the fact that the decisions of the Council are to be made by unanimous consent. In effect each Primate…
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