ecumenism" "
The Holy Synod of the Orthodox Church has approved the results of last month’s meeting between Patriarch Alexis II and Cardinal Walter Kasper, which marked the resumption of contacts between the Catholic Church and the Russian Orthodox Church after a long freeze. In an official declaration adopted by the Synod, this resumption of contacts was judged positively, although on the conditions spelt out to the cardinal by the patriarch and by his number two, Metropolitan Kirill; in the meeting in February, both Orthodox exponents had once again asked for the end of what they call “Catholic proselytism” in Russia. The Synod statement published on 26 March underlines the willingness expressed by the Holy See through Kasper to “preserve good relations with the Orthodox Churches”, and points out the Vatican’s undertaking to take into consideration the objections made by the Russian Orthodox Church on the possible establishment of a Greek-Catholic patriarchate in the Ukraine: a project supported by the local community, but for the time being put on hold by the Holy See. The declaration of the Holy Synod also confirms the go ahead to the setting up of a joint Catholic-Orthodox work group, as agreed between Alexis II and Cardinal Kasper, with the task of tackling and trying to resolve the points of friction between the two “sister Churches”.
